wrote
Stelvio and Gavia!!! Don't miss them if you ever ride the Alps.

Stelvio is rather close to Switzerland, and the day Tony and I rode it
last summer our loop went thru Switzerland, so it fits the thread topic. And
I thought it was a really great that day, here's some photos:
http://roberts-1.com/t/b08/itj/k/a

But I think a lot depends on weather and snow cover. Like a German rider I
met in September at Passo Tonale told me he didn't like Stelvio but did like
Gavia -- but admitted that it was a sunny day on Gavia and cloudy on
Stelvio. I myself was unimpressed the first time I climbed the east side of
Stelvio three years ago on a cloudy day with little snow remaining in
September, but very impressed with climbing the east side in June this year
on a sunny day with lots of snow remaining from big late-spring storms.

For sheer adventure and remoteness, Col de la Seigne and Col Ferret
on the south side of Mont Blanc are memorably great passes.

Yes definitely for those willing to incorporate hiking and/or rough
dirt/gravel (and possible sticky mud) in their bicycle touring. Not just for
the adventure -- the close views of the Mont Blanc massif are very
spectacular. Thanks to the suggestions and web pages of Jobst, I've ridden
over both of them. I will gladly ride again over Col du Grand Ferret (on the
Italy / Switzerland border) in favorable conditions. Col de la Seigne I'm
not planning to repeat -- the road on the Italian side was just too rocky at
the time I did it -- but I'm glad I did once.

Ken