Passo Campolongo, at 1,875 metres, is the gentlest of the four Sella passes, a short, easy climb through meadows and larch forests between Corvara in Alta Badia and Arabba in Livinallongo. It is the link that completes the Sella Ronda, and its broad, grassy saddle is a place to pause and look at the peaks around: the Sassongher, a pyramid of rock above Corvara, and the massive walls of the Sella group to the west.
Alta Badia, on the northern side, is a valley of Ladin villages, wooden farmhouses and alpine pastures, and it has become one of the great food destinations of the Alps, with several restaurants holding Michelin stars. The local dishes are simpler but no less delicious: turtres, fried pastries filled with spinach or sauerkraut, and canederli, bread dumplings with speck.
Livinallongo del Col di Lana, on the southern side, is named after a mountain that saw some of the fiercest fighting of the First World War. In 1916, Italian troops dug a tunnel under the Austrian positions on the summit and blew it up with tons of explosives, leaving a crater that is still visible. The front line ran through these mountains, and trenches, tunnels and forts can still be found.
The riding is pleasant and easy, with gentle bends and good surfaces, and the views are superb. In summer, the road is busy with riders doing the Sella Ronda, and cyclists are numerous.
Corvara and Arabba both have fuel and plenty of places to sleep. If the day is going well, take the small detour to a hut on the pastures above the pass, where turtres come hot from the pan and the Sella walls glow orange in the evening.