The Albula Pass is a quieter and more elegant sibling to the Julier and the Flüela, and at 2,312 metres it sits on a bare, stony plateau between the Albula valley and the Engadin. The road was opened in 1865, making it one of the early Alpine crossings built for coaches, and its surface and gradients still show the sensible hand of a nineteenth-century engineer. It is an open, sweeping road, quiet in the shoulder seasons and delightful when the light is good.
The climb from Bergün goes up in a series of hairpins through spruce forest, past the little hamlet of Preda, and then into open country, where the trees thin out and the landscape becomes bare rock and meadow. A dark small lake near the top reflects the sky. Beneath your wheels, a railway tunnel almost six kilometres long carries the Rhaetian Railway under the pass, opened in 1903, a feat of engineering that took a heavy toll in lives and money. The descent on the Engadin side is more gradual, with long straight stretches and views over the broad valley toward Samedan and the Bernina range.
The Engadin has a distinct character. The sun shines more often than in most of Switzerland, the air is dry and clear, and the light has a special quality that has attracted painters and writers for generations. The valley is the home of the Romansh language and has its own architecture, with deep window recesses and painted facades, and the lakes at St Moritz and Silvaplana lie only a short ride away. Sudden changes in weather are common, and a cold snap with snow in August is by no means unknown.
The pass is closed in winter, and normally opens in late May or June, depending on snow, and closes again in October or November. A thick layer of snow can linger at the top into the summer, and at night the road can freeze. Check conditions before you go, and carry a layer. The surface is generally good but has frost damage in places, and there are few safety barriers on the bends, so keep your speed measured.
Samedan, about six kilometres from the summit, is the nearest town with services, and La Punt, on the Engadin side, is another village. Fill the tank before the climb, and plan time for a pause at the top, where the silence is almost complete.