Alto de Mondoñedo

Overview

Alto de Mondoñedo is a long, high-altitude Category 1 ascent that stretches for 28.3 km and asks for patience above everything else. From a start at 1275 m it climbs relentlessly to a summit of 2743 m, delivering 1468 m of net elevation gain across an average gradient of 5.19%. The total ascent of 1502 m tells you the road dips and rolls in places, giving back a little before clawing it away again. This is a rhythm climb: no single ramp will break you, but the sheer length and thinning air will test how honestly you paced the first hour.

How the Gradient Unfolds

A 5.19% average over 28.3 km sounds gentle, and much of the climb genuinely sits near that figure. But the gap between the 5.19% mean and the 11.85% maximum reveals where the difficulty hides. Because the total ascent (1502 m) exceeds the net gain (1468 m) by 34 m, there are false flats and short descents woven through the middle — sections where you recover, followed by pitches steep enough to spike your effort well above threshold. Expect the hardest ramps to arrive when your legs are already loaded, not at the base. The climb rewards riders who treat those steep bursts as brief surges rather than sustained walls, spinning through them and settling straight back into the aerobic grind.

Pacing Notes

On a climb this long, discipline in the opening kilometres decides your day. Anchor your effort to a percentage of your FTP rather than to how you feel — early enthusiasm at 1275 m will cost you dearly near the 2743 m summit, where altitude quietly saps your power. Aim to hold a steady tempo that leaves headroom for the 11.85% pitches without redlining. If you're unsure what your sustainable number is, run the FTP estimator before you ride so you have a concrete ceiling to sit under. The 34 m of extra climbing beyond net gain means brief recoveries exist — use them to drink and reset your cadence, not to attack.

Gearing

With 28.3 km and 1502 m of total ascent, gear for endurance, not heroics. A compact 34-tooth chainring paired with a wide-range cassette is the sensible baseline. A 34×32 will carry most fit riders through the 5.19% stretches comfortably, but the 11.85% ramps late in the climb — arriving at altitude with tired legs — argue strongly for a 34×34. That extra sprocket lets you keep cadence high and torque low over the steepest sections, protecting your legs for the kilometres that remain. If you tend to grind, the 34×34 is cheap insurance on a climb this sustained.

Summary

Alto de Mondoñedo is a test of patience and pacing: 28.3 km of steady gradient, punctuated by pitches sharp enough to matter, all played out in thinning air on the way to a high summit. Pace it honestly, gear it generously, and it rewards you with one of the most satisfying long climbs you can log.

Length: 28.3 km
Average gradient: 5.19%
Max gradient: 11.85%
Start: 1275 m
Summit: 2743 m
Net gain: 1468 m
Total ascent: 1502 m
Category: 1