Domodossola is the Italian doorstep of the Simplon, a town of about eighteen thousand that sits at the junction of several Alpine valleys in the northern Piedmont, at the point where the Ossola valley opens toward Lake Maggiore. For centuries it has been a place of passage, with merchants, pilgrims and armies crossing the mountains by the Simplon road, and its old centre, built around the Piazza Mercato, still has the arcades, wooden balconies and frescoed houses of a market town. The weekly market is lively, and local cheeses, cured meats and the sweet wines of the valley are for sale.
Above the town, the Sacro Monte Calvario climbs a wooded hill in a sequence of chapels and stations, a UNESCO-listed pilgrimage route built in the seventeenth century and still a peaceful walk. The setting is lovely, with views over the rooftops and the surrounding mountains. The town is also the railway gateway to the Simplon Tunnel, which opened in 1906 and, at nearly twenty kilometres, was for decades the longest in the world.
The pass road itself was ordered by Napoleon, who wanted a way to move guns and soldiers into Italy, and was built between 1801 and 1805 by the engineer Nicolas Céard, with a great number of bridges, galleries and cuttings. It is one of the most civilised high passes in the Alps, wide, smoothly graded and well surfaced, which makes it a fine road for a touring bike. From Domodossola you head up through the Gondo gorge, a spectacular, narrow cleft with waterfalls pouring off the cliffs, then cross into Switzerland and climb to the pass at around 2,000 metres, where the old Simplon Hospice stands.
Fuel is easy in Domodossola, and cheaper on the Italian side than in Switzerland, so fill the tank before you cross. Be aware that the pass has seasonal closures, usually from late autumn to spring, though the tunnel remains open for cars on the train. The Italian approach can be warm and humid, while the pass is much cooler and often windy. Eat something local before you go, perhaps a plate of polenta with cheese, and take your time.