Fifth stage – Arborea/Buggerru

Refreshment along the route: at km 50 (Ingurtosu)

Timed section: from km 0 to km 12 – Entrance gate opening: from 9.00 to 9.30

Prize giving of the day: 6.00 pm – the first three men/three women + prize draw among those present at the briefing.

It is a short but very special stage to be experienced intensely kilometer by kilometer enjoying everything in a relaxed way … even the stretch of dirt road of a few kilometers located within the protected area of ​​the Dunes of Piscinas!

And it is precisely for this reason that the timed section at controlled speed was placed right at the beginning of the stage: they are twelve completely flat kilometers that end at the edge of the Marceddì fish pond.

Crossing the characteristic bridge that divides the sea from the pond, you enter a hilly area between the sea (Torre dei Corsari, Porto Palma, etc.) and the metalliferous hills.

Thus begins an area that is little used for tourism which, only for this reason, has been able to remain very natural and “wild”: the road is very little frequented and leads to the short Costa Verde.

Certainly in that area you cannot see the millionaire villas of the Costa Smeralda … but then the paved road ends and a dirt road begins in which there are also two crossings of streams – in October they will be dry or will have very little water!

You enter a different world: on the right you can clearly see the Sand Dunes of Piscinas and on the left the mountains with the old abandoned mines.

At the 43rd kilometer you will find the crossroads that allows you to enter the heart of the Dunes: frankly it is advisable to take those 1,500 meters of dirt road that ends in front of the sea, on a decidedly unusual beach in the Mediterranean!

At the end of the dirt road, you begin to climb up to the 250 meters of the Ingurtosu mines – where the refreshment point is – and then further up until you reach the 460 meters of the pass.

A long and very scenic descent takes cyclists to the sea and to the tourist port of Buggerru.

Beautiful stage made in little-known and little-frequented roads!

In Buggerru there are no large four-star hotels and therefore the group of participants will certainly have to divide between the available accommodations.