Camino 2018/2019

The bulky brick built buildings of San Miniato look slightly spooky, towering up through the morning mist.
We do not lose height but set off along a ridge with frequent backward glances at the  hill top buildings and their massive foundations.
It is pleasant walking with views to both sides of  classic Tuscan countryside rolling away into the distance.
At the top of a hill we stop to talk to Fred who is enjoying a well earned rest, when a white van pulls up. The driver proceeds to embrace us, he is Giovanni, he tells is he has walked
Canterbury to Jerusalem in his time and shows us pictures of him embracing the Pope.
He leads us on to an oak tree and a seat with a book to sign. After further embraces we leave him with a French couple who have just arrived.
Later as we are sitting by a crossroads having a rest he drives past with some lunch for them, they hadn’t realised there was nothing available on this country stage.
We continue through the improving weather and spot butterflies and flowers. Top sightings are a single bee orchid and a badger crossing a busy road.
The final ascent of 200 m through vines and olives brings us to the Ostello Sigerico, a lovely building at the back of a church with a garden looking up to Gambassi Terme, a kilometre above, where we plan to get breakfast tomorrow.

Link to where we are on Google Maps

Thank you to all those who entered our wildlife identification quiz: majority opinion was a spotted fritillary.
We say fond farewell to Hugo and set off on a pleasant walk through the Woods of Cerbaie, consisting of oak, alder, tree heather and strawberry tree growing on sandy soil, still muddy from recent rain.
Coming down to Ponte a Cappiano there is a restored medieval covered bridge built by the Medici. This replaced a previous bridge which was sketched by Leonardo da Vinci, but whether his design was used is not known. The area changed hands many times as control passed backwards and forwards between the city states of Lucca, Pisa, Siena and Florence and the bridge was destroyed and rebuilt many times.
Next up is Fucheccio, another lovely place you never heard of before and decorated with flags from the visit of the Giro d’Italia cycle race a few days ago. As seems to be the pattern, there is the old town on the hill and the new town below with a fancy elevator to whisk you up from the car park, we take the stairs.
We purchase lunch and cross the River Arno looking for a pleasant place to eat it but end up dining under a road bridge.
The final 150 m climb up to San Miniato is hot and humid and we arrive at the Franciscan Monastery for tonight’s rest just before a loud clap of thunder and the rain pours down.

We loved Lucca, a maze of narrow streets and medieval churches, culminating in the Piazza Antitheatro, an big oval space that used to be the roman amphitheatre and now is full of  bars and restaurants.
We set off into heavy rain and heavy traffic across a flat landscape of industrial units.
All five of our chums manage to meet up with us in a bar for the first coffee stop and as we emerge the rain eases off.
There is little to entertain us until we reach Altopascio.  We spot a bar full of men in hi-viz having a labourer’s lunch at 8 euros so we join them.  The remains of San Jacobo, one of the most famous stops on the Via Francigena include a castellated bell tower which apparently  housed the bell of the lost which was rung to guide pilgrims to the hospital through the impenetrable marshes, well it’s a good story anyway.
After getting a special pilgrim stamp in our credentials we set off again, we need no bell to guide us through the oak woods and olive groves as the way is so well marked. The only wildlife is an unidentifiable  butterfly (any suggestions anyone?)
We arrive at a B and B in the country for tonight’s stop to be welcomed by Hugo the pot bellied pig.

Link to where we are on Google Maps

We have an excellent breakfast in the Ostello and Tony is instructed how to use the coffee machine by Ross, the toast is less successful, as the bread is extremely heat resistant. We leave the Swiss ladies having a leisurely breakfast and set off, just round the corner Fred and the Aussies are trying to interpret the bus timetable, good luck with that.
To a chorus of frogs we set off up the first climb to Montemagno, where a statue of a man with a guitar turns out to be Giorgio Gaber, a popular crooner M’lud.
Up again through woods under an overcast sky. At Valpromaro we pass the ostello where Alessandro, who we met earlier in our trip will shortly be hospitallero. In the adjacent cafe we meet Bruno who tells us he lived in Birmingham many years ago and used to cycle out to Stourbridge, maybe we saw him! He asks us to say hallo to the Pope for him.
Emerging into a downpour we descend through woods to reach the River Serchio. We walk alongside the brown rushing waters until we hit the road into Lucca.
We enter through the gate in the intact walls into a maelstrom of tourist activity. The ancient streets and the magnificent cathedral are impressive. We found our hostel and get stuck into some serious washing, ah the joys of a pellegrino life.

Link to where we are on Google Maps

A wet night continues into a wet morning and we set off. Almost immediately we head up hill to the castle and weave our way between the cloud laden mountains and the coastal plains.
Eventually we get a panoramic view of the sea and the end of the Cinque Terre peninsula.
After a second coffee we continue onwards. If you want to know where Italian marble worktops come from, we can tell you, we passed by yards with huge lumps of Carrara marble and gantry cranes to lift them.
Pietrasanta looked nothing special as we huddled under the town hall roof overhang to eat our lunch, but later we discover one of the prettiest squares in Northern Italy with ancient churches and town gates.
The weather improves throughout the afternoon and the hedges smell of orange blossom.
We meet up with our multinational friends including the reappearing Aussies at the municipal hostel overlooking the graveyard.

Some km flat lots more by train.
We leave the hostel about 7.30 and progree across the flat lands of sub urban Liguria, we left Tuscany for a few days yesterday. There is little of interest along the banks of the Canale Lunense, except some olive oil butts in an olive grove and Tim is struggling. It gradually becomes apparent that a very slight stroke is in progress! Symptoms remain minimal but make rucksack carrying difficult. At a coffee stop Tim decides he should go home before the team heads back into the Tuscan hinterland far from help. The team agree this is an uncharacteristically sensible thing for him to do. The station for a train to Pisa is only 500m away a flight back to Bristol is booked for Sunday with easyJet, he should be home tomorrow evening. We spot a huge marble quarry up in the hills from the trains later find out where most of it went. The whole team have an unexpected day visiting the leaning tower of Pisa and cathedral before leaving Tim in a small hotel next to the station. The internet is wonderful when you know how to use it! The blog goes on posts should be done by Ray on Betsy’s phone.

Link to where we are on Google Maps

25km . up 973m down 996m and it feels like it.
The day begins as before with 500m straight up, but at least it’s early in the day. We spot another, dead this time alas, slow worm and learn that mating among slow worms is a vicious process. The two yesterday, one was biting the other, this one may have been a loser in the evolutionary battle.
Fairly soon we reach a little Tuscan hill village but this is only the first of two climbs through the woods on the second we spot 3wooly bear caterpillars and some cistus last seen in South Spain. Eventually we descend again to reach Ponsano Superiore a ridiculous village on an hill where reputably there is a shop and a bar, we fail to find it and spend time going though hobbit tunnels where it is difficult to tell the difference between the street and someone’s back yard.
Completing our descent we see the sea and an island and get a beer finally in the centre of Sarzana with an historic castle in it with magnificent machiolations.
Tim and Ray are nattering in the rear and miss a turn and so arrive a bit late at the ostello in Caniparola. But all well at the end of the day.

Link to where we are on Google Maps

35km Yes 35 up 500m down 700m the guide book says this was only demanding not very demanding.
A comfortable night in our castle, after we were shown our room in the castle walls. Ray was a little late leaving and waved from our room.
Today is much more relaxing with none of the steep valleys across our path just a steady passage down the valley of the Fiume Magda. Ha Ha!
The day progresses slowly though pleasant woods but by midday we have not secured a bed for the night. Though we have found a lizard that refused to leave it’s rock in the stepping stone a large caterpillar and a pair of slow worms mating. The ultimate town of Aulla is a long way off, various plans evolve. We meet a young German walking this section by himself. We all enter the town of Terrarossa together. There used to be an Ostello here but no more, even the tourist information office next door is open but no one is there except two computers in a darkened room! We have now done 30km it is another 5km or so to Aulla we have planned to get the bus and bus back from the ostello there in the morning. Where is the bus stop,Ray asks A Politzi Municipal. He points 10m away! We, that is Ray and Betsy, chat to him. He and his mate are nonplussed, why do we want a bus it is only 2km to Aulla by cycleway. Eventually we accept there is no room in this town for pilgrims. We agree we can walk but since there is a bar a beer and snack fist seems a good idea. Our Politzi friends are waiting and show us across some scrub 200m to the cycleway it is a short 2km to Aulla across the bridge! And the first time any of us has been escorted out of town by police!

Link to where we are on Google Maps

24km up 724m down 1433m lots of valleys to cross. And then after arrival at Castillo 33m up to our rooms in the tower!

The day is bright and dry and the 2km up to Passo Del Cesa pass quickly and the unusual church at the top of the pass can be entered. We now go along and up through mainly coppiced Hornbeam woods along very old mule trails. We are over 1000m here and it’s quite cold with a bit of wind but flowers are out and we bounce along. There are probably no bars or coffee on the way with the possible exception of the oasis of Marcia and Marco we find it and they are out so no sandwiches for donativo in Casalina. We press on up and down valleys and over bridges of varying antiquity, crossing Torrente of varying size.
We get a couple of hours of rain during the day and a cold wind in exposed places. Betsy is fuelled by Tony’s emergency nuts and raisins and cranberries. So we get to Pentremoli by 3pm and fall into the first bar we see. After rehydration and a packet of crisps we find our way up verticals alleys to the top of the hill and check into the castle.
We have never slept in a castle before. It’s amazing. Drafty but good for drying washing.
We have a walk about and see the town. Pontremoli obviously means says Ray we’ve got more bridges than you.

Link to where we are on Google Maps

Oh what a beautiful morning. Oh what a wonderful day.
19km up 761m dowm 592m
It has stopped raining! The sun comes out intermittently but at 900m it is still cool. We descend out of Casio along the road south towards Passo Del Cesa and get good views back of the Devil’s False Teeth we passed yesterday. Then it is up in the mud and puddles through mixed decidous forest with hornbeam, beech, Oak and sycamore. As we get higher a few juniper trees appear in the mix. Eventually we emerge on to a grassy ridge covered in orchids and cowslips. We cut a corner across a field of long grass and flush a couple of hares who should have stayed still and not been spotted.
We descend into Barchetto past a large wooden cross with a pilgrim book to sign, where we get cappucini and some pizzas for lunch later. We enter the cathedral with a lot of stone carvings outside and inside, and some of the best stained glass since Switzerland. There are lots of rampant lions around due to the coat of arms of the Rossi family whose castle is currently seeing a little refurbishment.
Unfortunately we have to go back up again to our lodgings in the ostello 2km and nearly 200m below the Cesa Pass at 1029m. Domani!

Link to where we are on Google Maps