16 km — 30oC and hazy/sunny — We met 31 + 26 more pilgrims in a group, on their way to Rome.
(By Laurel)
We would have enjoyed staying longer at Il Castelletto, as it is so relaxing, however, our trail beckons us. Our kind hosts offered to drive us past the city, in order to get us off to a pleasant start on this leg, and we gladly took them up on their offer. As we glided past car dealerships, big box stores, and general urban-ness of modern Viterbo for a few kilometers stretch, I certainly appreciated not plodding on all that pavement.
They dropped us off in the countryside, on the VF path, at Bagnaccio Thermal Bath (Hot Spring). This hot spring is similar to yesterday’s (Bullicame), except that this one is NICE — pools of different temperatures from very hot to tepid, surrounded by tidy green lawns, lounge chairs, and some shade trees. It was opening for the day at 8:00 a.m. and we were the first in line (just ahead of a dozen middle-aged Italians, the men in speedos and the women in bikinis). Admission is 5 Euros, but our pilgrim passport gave us free admission! We dipped our feet in for a few minutes, then headed out on our trail.
It was a lovely walk all morning! From several kms away we could see our destination ahead of us, the town of Montefiascone on its hilltop and with its very large cathedral dome predominant in our view (one of the largest domes in Italy). It just got more beautiful the closer we got. On the last section of trail leading into Montefiascone, the Via Francigena is actually a Roman road! It’s amazing — large flat stones placed with precision, the road uniformly 13 Roman feet in width (that’s 3.9 m to us modern folk), and quite smooth! Some residents have garages, at the backs of their homes, that open to the Roman road and today they drive their cars in and out of their garages on it. It boggles my mind … this road was built in the 2nd century BC!
In Montefiascone, we had booked in at the “Monasterio San Pietro.” As we awaited our 2:00 pm check-in time, a group of 26 walkers went past us … and, to our dismay, straight into the monastery! We were afraid that we had lost our beds?! Not to fear! The cheerful and efficient sister-in-charge welcomed us in right away and even up-graded us from the dorm into a private double room. We ate a satisfying communal supper with the walking group (who turned out to be an Italian Nordic Walking Club — go figure!) and a pilgrim from Hungary.
The Roman Road, Via Cassia
Getting closer to the town and the dome
Now we’re there
Stunning 🤩 photos!
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