Passo del Tabernacolo

Overview

Passo del Tabernacolo is a long, patient climb rather than a brutal wall. Over 23.4 km it lifts you from a valley floor at 145 m to a summit of 967 m, a net gain of 822 m. The headline average of 3.52% sounds gentle, and for long stretches it is — but that number hides a sting. Somewhere on this ascent the road bites back with a 18.97% ramp, a gradient steep enough to change how you plan the entire effort. Rated Category 2, it sits squarely in the middle of the difficulty scale: harder than a Cat 3 or 4 warm-up, but short of the Cat 1 and HC monsters. The challenge here is duration and rhythm, punctuated by moments that demand real force.

How the Gradient Unfolds

Do the arithmetic and the story becomes clear. A 3.52% average across 23.4 km implies mile after mile of shallow, spinnable road — the kind of gradient you can hold in the saddle without ever touching your limit. Yet the total ascent of 879 m exceeds the net gain of 822 m, meaning 57 m of the climbing is given back and re-earned. This is not a smooth ramp; it rolls. Flatter false-flats and small dips break up the ascent, and those descents force you to reclaim height you thought you'd banked. The 18.97% maximum is the outlier that defines the climb's character: a single savage pitch, more than five times steeper than the average, that will spike your heart rate and empty your legs if you meet it in the wrong gear.

Pacing Notes

Because the average is so modest, the temptation is to treat Tabernacolo as a tempo effort and settle in below threshold. That works for most of the 23.4 km — but only if you keep enough in reserve for the steep section. Ride the shallow kilometres slightly under your FTP so you have the headroom to absorb the 18.97% ramp without blowing apart. On a pitch that steep, power stays high even at low speed, so budget a short, deliberate over-threshold surge and recover once the road eases. If you don't know your sustainable number, run the numbers through the FTP estimator before you commit to a target. Get the pacing right and the climb feels controlled; get greedy on the flat and the steep ramp will collect the debt.

Gearing

For a climb averaging 3.52% you don't strictly need mountain gearing — but the 18.97% wall changes the maths entirely. A compact 34-tooth chainring paired with at least a 34×32 gives most riders enough range to keep cadence up on that pitch without grinding to a standstill. If you climb at lower power or carry any fatigue over 23.4 km, size up to a 34×34 for extra insurance. The wider ratio costs you nothing on the shallow stretches and buys you a spinning gear when the gradient nearly quadruples. Better to have it and not need it than to be out of the saddle, over-geared, on the steepest metres of the day.

Summary

Passo del Tabernacolo rewards patience and punishes overconfidence. It is a long, mostly shallow Category 2 ascent whose one savage ramp sets it apart. Pace it below threshold, gear it for the steep section, and the 822 m of net climbing will pass under you steadily rather than crush you.

Length: 23.4 km
Average gradient: 3.52%
Max gradient: 18.97%
Start: 145 m
Summit: 967 m
Net gain: 822 m
Total ascent: 879 m
Category: 2