Bocca di Trat

Overview

Bocca di Trat is an HC climb, the category reserved for the hardest ascents on the map. It runs for 19.7 km at an average gradient of 7.36%, lifting you from a start elevation of 124 m to a summit at 1574 m. That is 1450 m of net elevation gain over the course of a single climb, with a total ascent of 1371 m once the smaller undulations are counted.

Numbers like these describe a long, sustained effort rather than a short punch. At nearly 20 km, this is a climb you settle into for the better part of an hour or more, and the 7.36% average means there is almost nowhere to coast. The pitch spikes as high as 15.79% at its steepest, so even a strong rider will feel the ramps bite.

How the Gradient Unfolds

The defining feature of Bocca di Trat is consistency at a punishing level. A 7.36% average across 19.7 km is not a figure inflated by one wall and a lot of flat recovery — it reflects a road that keeps climbing kilometre after kilometre.

The gap between the 7.36% average and the 15.79% maximum tells you the story of the hard sections. That is more than double the average gradient at the worst pitches, so the climb has real teeth layered over its steady baseline. Expect stretches where the road sits near the average, punctuated by steeper ramps that force a change of rhythm. With 1450 m of net gain packed into the distance, the elevation piles up steadily the whole way to 1574 m.

Pacing Notes

On a climb this long, pacing is everything. The biggest mistake is chasing the early kilometres and paying for it across the remaining distance. Anchor your effort to your FTP and hold a sustainable percentage of it, treating the 15.79% ramps as brief over-efforts you absorb and then settle back down from — not as places to empty the tank.

Because the average never really relents, aim to arrive at each steep section with something in reserve rather than already redlining. If you are unsure what number to build your effort around, run your figures through the FTP estimator first, then set a ceiling you can defend for the full 19.7 km. A slightly conservative first half almost always beats a heroic one.

Gearing

Gear for the length as much as the steepness. On a 19.7 km climb averaging 7.36% with ramps to 15.79%, a wide range at the low end keeps your cadence up and spares your legs over the full 1450 m of gain.

A 34×32 is the sensible baseline for most riders here, giving you a low gear to spin through the sustained middle of the climb. If you tend to grind, or you want insurance for the 15.79% pitches late in the effort when fatigue has set in, step up to a 34×34. The extra range costs you nothing on the steady sections and buys real comfort when the road kicks.

Summary

Bocca di Trat earns its HC rating honestly: long, steep, and unrelenting from 124 m all the way to 1574 m. Respect the distance, pace to your FTP, gear low, and it becomes a climb you conquer rather than one that breaks you.

Length: 19.7 km
Average gradient: 7.36%
Max gradient: 15.79%
Start: 124 m
Summit: 1574 m
Net gain: 1450 m
Total ascent: 1371 m
Category: HC