Stage 32: Pavia to Santa Cristina e Bissone — June 29, 2022

19 km — 36^oC and sunny — We saw no new pilgrims today.

(By Jim)

“Grazie per la tua gentilezza” or “grazie per il tuo aiuto.”

“Thank you for your kindness” or “thank you for your help.”

These are two Italian phrases that I have learned from Google Translate, have practiced, and used on many occasions.  Laurel and I constantly rely on the kindness of the people we meet:  hosteleros, bar keepers, bus drivers, fellow pilgrims, strangers on the street.   We have not been let down.

Laurel needed to break in her new shoes so we didn’t want to walk the entire 28 km of today’s stage (at least that’s her story).  We tried to take a bus to San Leonardo to shorten the trip by 4 km,  but to no avail so we ended up back at the Pavia train station on a commuter to Belgioioso.  The walk to Santa Cristina e Bissone was hot, hot, hot!  The fields of corn, soy beans, and sunflowers, although beautiful, provided no shade.

Laurel’s shoes performed wonderfully, they might be faster than her old ones!  We arrived at our destination before noon, had a cold drink, then bought some canned tuna salads from a general store (florist shop?) and retired to a shady park to eat lunch and wait for the hostel to open at 2:30.

Check in was perfunctory.  The priest handed us our keys, pointed to the stairs, said something in Italian then disappeared, never to be seen again.

We were too hot to do laundry so we riposoed until 7:00, when we ventured out to look for supper.  The heat was still a stifling 32oC so we didn’t get far before the first pizza place we passed started to look pretty good.  We returned to it and enjoyed a nice meal below a struggling air conditioner unit.

The hostel was an oven with high humidity and no breeze; we sous vided there until we were fully cooked at dawn.

Leaving Pavia and a colourful house in Belgioioso.

Laurel’s new shoes set a torrid pace (or was it the heat!).

The crops looked good but provided no shade today.

Santa Cristina e Bissone on a hot day:  staying cool in the park. 

Parish Church of Santa Cristina—ornate and cool.  The attached hostel was austere and hot.

Rest Day: Pavia — June 28, 2022

30^oC with rain in the afternoon

(By Laurel)

Ahhhh, just what we needed now!  A rest day!  And Pavia was a pleasant place to spend it.  We wandered about the old town, stopping in to see the Cathedral and other churches, and generally enjoying the atmosphere.  History abounds — in 476 AD, Pavia was the site of the killing of Flavius Orestes which led his son Romulus Augustulus to be the last Emperor of Rome.  The University of Pavia was founded in 1343 and is among the oldest universities in the world in continuous operation.  There were many students going to and fro and filling sidewalk cafes with a youthful buzz.

After trekking over 600 kms on the VF to date, plus previous use, my shoes are wearing out (I don’t blame them).  I picked up a new pair here and will put them into service tomorrow.  My feet will hopefully approve.

Top photo:  covered bridge in Pavia and, in the foreground, a statue honoring laundresses

Bottom:  traversing the bridge

The Cathedral in Pavia

Various scenes in Pavia’s old town

Top photo:  window shopping at the “Canadian Store”

Bottom:  trying on shoes (but not at the “Canadian Store”)

Cobblestone streets in Pavia

Stage 31: Mortara to Garlasco (and on to Pavia) — June 27, 2022

 24 km — 36^oC sunny and hazy — We saw no pilgrims today.

(By Jim)

We got an early start and said goodbye to Tamar and Yoah, who were just emerging from their room for breakfast as we were leaving the apartment.  The sun broke the horizon as we passed St Albino’s Abbey on the edge of town.  The trail was a repeat of the last two days — fields of corn, soy beans, and mostly rice — separated by a maze of canals and dikes.  VF signage was poor and so Pocket Earth provided the golden thread to guide us through the labyrinth from Mortara to Garlasco.  After successfully navigating 6 km past Remondo I checked the map and found us about 1.5 km off the trail.  Not wanting to backtrack, I suggested we follow a canal path about .5 km to intercept the VF.  Laurel was skeptical but went along with the plan.  I hurried on to see what lay ahead.  As I suspected but was afraid to say out loud, the VF was on the other side of a bigger canal with no bridge in sight.  As Laurel approached I had a flashback.

September, 1980:  Buxton, Derbyshire.

The ink had barely dried on our marriage certificate and I’m sure it wasn’t even filed in Regina yet when Laurel and I headed out on our first backpacking adventure:  around Europe in 80 days!  We landed in London, saw the sights, panicked at the cost of everything, and headed to the bus station to go and see the “real England”!  When we got to the head of the queue we asked for two tickets to Darrowby.  The clerk looked confused and asked us to repeat.  “Darrowby … you know, James Harriot’s home.”  The line was long and she didn’t have time to explain that both Darrowby and James Herriot were fictional, so she sold us two tickets to Buxton instead.  The bus dropped us off on the edge of town in a light drizzle of rain.  It was a perfect match for Darrowby.  I could see what looked like a castle tower on a hill and suggested we hike up to it before we searched out the youth hostel — Laurel didn’t want to.  I insisted it would be fun, an adventure; she relented and off we marched.  We came to a shallow stream.  I hopped, skipped and jumped across.  Laurel took one step, snagged a piece of barbed-wire, and fell into the stream.  We never explored that castle and as we walked silently into town, I wondered if this was grounds for an annulment.  It took two days in a room above the King’s Head Tavern to completely dry out Laurel’s clothes and renew our marriage vows!

So as Laurel approached the canal, I knew she would not be open to crossing it.  I quickly took off my shoes and, wading, carried my pack across.  “It’s fine,” I called out.  “Clean, sandy bottom, refreshingly cool, you’ll love it.”  It took some persuading, but she eventually made it across, without incident.  No story here, just a recollection.

The rest of the day we continued our blazing pace and we arrived in Garlasco at 11:00.  There was no room at the inn here or in the next town, so we caught the train to Pavia for a rest day.

St. Albino’s Abbey at day break.

In the morning we share the trail with creatures, great and small.

Tromello: a good location for a pit stop.

All’s well that ends well!  Laurel’s favourite saying is “We made it … to here!”

A tasty gift from a bar keeper.  People have been so supportive towards us:  honking horns, waving, wishing us “Buon Cammino,” and giving us food and drink.

Garlasco: There was no room at the inn, so we caught a train for Pavia.

Stage 30: Vercelli to Robbio (and on to Mortara) — June 26, 2022

21 km — 32^oC and sunny — We met 2 more pilgrims on their way to Rome.

(By Laurel)

With fresh coffee and breakfast in our tanks, compliments of the lovely early-rising hostel volunteers, we took off from Vercelli at the brisk pace of 4.7 kms/hr and “motored along” all morning.  The flat terrain meant there were no hills to slow us down!  Along the way, we exited Piedmont and entered Lombardy.

Level trails along canals and irrigation ditches, rice paddies or corn fields to our left and right — these continued on and on for the day’s route.  Here’s a puzzle:  we’ve noticed five or six varieties of local rice for sale in shops, but haven’t seen many rice dishes on restaurant menus.  Where’s the risotto?  And, likewise, the polenta?  Perhaps we’ll find them in Pavia on our up-coming rest day.

Lacking accommodation in Robbio for tonight, we found a place in Mortara instead and as the total distance to there would have been 34 kms, we rode the train for the remaining distance from Robbio.  In Mortara, another pair of pilgrims stayed at the same accommodation — Tamar from Israel and Yoah from the Netherlands.  It was nice to compare notes with them and find out that they’ve met quite a few of the same hikers that we have.

Top and bottom:  setting out in the early morning

Top:  today’s ONE and only hill!

Bottom:  we caught up to a French trio, who we had met at the hostel 

Top:  on the bridge over a canal

Bottom:  long ago, some farms were centralized and even fortified

Part of today’s VF took us right beside the corn — it’s pretty tall

Top and bottom:  rice fields

Stage 29: Cavaglia to San Germano Vercellese (and on to Vercelli) — June 25, 2022

 

21km — 32^oC and partially cloudy — We met 7 more pilgrims on their way to Rome.

(By Jim)

The morning sky was clear so we packed our rain gear away and headed into Cavaglia to find a bar and the VF.  The rain had cleared the haze from the valley so as the sun rose we could see the mountains we had walked through a week before.  Fields of rice, corn, and soy beans were beginning to look familiar as we transitioned from slopes to the valley floor.  It was nearly three hours before arriving in Santhia and an opportunity for a cold drink.  It was getting hot and with no shade, the next 9 km to San Germano Vercellese was tough on both of us.  We had tried to reserve beds at the hostels in both Santhia and San Germano Vercellese but with no luck, so we decided to take the train on to Vercelli, where we did manage to reserve a couple of beds at Hospitale Sancti Eusebi. 

The hostel was run by VF volunteers and was a delight to stay at and experience the  international fellowship of pilgrims.  Supper was an opportunity to meet some new pilgrims and get reacquainted with people we had met days before and now felt like old friends.  Remy from France, who we met at Col du Saint Bernard was there and so was Claudia, the 72 year old German super walker we had met in the rain two days earlier.

The volunteers outdid themselves to feed us and make us feel welcome and included.  As we retired to our dorm, they told us that breakfast would be ready at 5:30.  Finally, a place where we could get breakfast and an early start.

Yesterday’s rain had cleared the haze to showcase the mountains that we spent a week walking through.

The VF was hot and sunny today.

Checking into Hospitale Sancti Eusebi.  The volunteers were so welcoming.

Vercelli had unexpected beauty.

Exploring Vercelli from shady vantage points.

Vercelli Duomo.

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 Communal supper at Hospitale Sancti Eusebi. 

Stage 28: Ivrea to Cavaglia — June 24, 2022

19 km — 26^oC and cloudy and rainy — We saw 1 more pilgrim on their way to Rome.

(By Laurel)

It rained.  It poured.  It came down in absolute torrents.  I don’t think we’ve ever seen rain fall so fast and so hard.  

We had been warned, as the weather forecast for today indicated rain.  Upon awakening, looking out the window, we saw no rain yet although there were some grey clouds.  So, hoping for the best weather-wise, we set out on our trail along some city blocks and then into countryside.  After about 4 kms and just as we were passing by a small lake, we noticed some raindrops.  We stopped briefly to put rain covers on our packs and then continued walking.  Two minutes later we had to stop again, this time to don our rain jackets, then kept walking.  Two minutes later and it was raining cats and dogs!  Luckily, Jim spied a dry spot close by under a building overhang.  We had been standing there, keeping dry and watching the rain, for 45 minutes when, to our surprise, the figure of a hiker appeared across the park and marched toward us through the pouring rain.  She was a 72 year-old pilgrim named Claudia, walking from her home in Stuttgart (Germany) to Rome!  After chatting with us for 15 minutes under the overhang, the rain eased off somewhat and she decided to head off again on the VF.  We waited a bit longer and then also headed out again; however, with the forecast in mind and the heavy grey appearance of the sky, we decided to walk back to Ivrea.  The Rome2Rio app listed a bus from Ivrea to our destination, so this became our Plan B and we purchased bus tickets at the news-stand.  While waiting for the bus departure, we made good use of a few hours to explore Ivrea:  we visited the cathedral, where an elderly professor who happened to be there explained the meaning of an ancient fresco that we were viewing in the crypt of the church; we met five hospitable volunteers who were manning a VF Info-Point (they gave us some homemade baking); and we had a tasty lunch at a cafe run by a husband and wife — they have a coffee museum in their cafe, so Jim was in his glory talking coffee with them!  All this was a silver lining, as had we not returned to Ivrea we would have missed out on these nice encounters.

So then it was time to catch our bus ….except no bus appeared!  We learned, to our dismay, that there is NO bus on the route we needed.  Rome2Rio and the lady at the news-stand are out of date on this one.  Now it was later in the afternoon and starting to rain again.  Our only option at this point, to get to our pre-paid accommodation, was to take a taxi.  As we rode along in the cab, the rain intensified.  By the time we neared Cavaglia, it was a deluge and coming down so hard that our taxi-driver had to pull off and park for a while under a gas station roof.  He had to do this twice.  We appreciated that he was a safety-conscious and patient driver.  Finally, the rain slowed and he was able to drive to our destination.  An hour later, to our astonishment, the sky was completely blue and the sun was shining.

Top photo:  just outside Ivrea

Bottom:  going past the lake

Top photo:  at first the lake was smooth and calm

Bottom:  a minute later, the lake was being hit by rain

Left photo:  raining lots (but it rained harder later on)

Right photo:  staying dry while under the overhang

Top photo:  the cathedral in Ivrea

Bottom:  interior of cathedral

Looking at the fresco in the crypt

Top photo:  at the VF Info-Point in Ivrea

Bottom:  the friendly and helpful volunteers

Top left: world’s smallest coffee roaster (roasts one coffee bean)

Top right:  world’s smallest mocha pot (uses grounds of one bean and a candle)

Bottom:  different coffee makers

Alpine Nature Hike

 Most of these photos were taken at the Great St. Bernard Pass, in the Alps.  They are all wild flowers.

Stage 27: Pont-Saint-Martin to Ivrea— June 23, 2022

 25 km — 27^oC and cloudy and humid — We met 2 more pilgrims on their way to Rome.

(By Jim )

Today included two of my favourite segments of the VF so far.  The first was soon after leaving Pont-Saint-Martin, as the trail moved up through the hanging vineyards towards San Rocco Chapel and back down into Carema.  The second remarkable segment was just after leaving the village of Settimo Vittone.  The trail passes just below a 9th century church and castle, through a vineyard and kiwi orchard, then narrows and descends sharply through thick woods with rocky outcrops.  I called it “Middle Earth” because Gandalf the Grey would not look out of place there.

The walk down into Ivrea meandered through woods, between lakes, passed beautiful estates, and finally along city streets.  Cloud and shade kept us cool for most of the day, but the sun did break through near the end to force us to slather on the sun screen.  We were both feeling the heat just as were passing a Lidl supermarket, so we took advantage of the air conditioned store and hung out in the frozen food aisle for a while.  Peas were on sale!

We kept walking until we were in the shadow of the Duomo and Castle, where we found a bench and continued our search for accommodation.  It has been very difficult in northern Italy to find places to sleep.  Many ostellos (hostels) are closed and the few remaining ones that are open fill up fast — we have not had much luck.  Thank goodness for booking.com and Airbnb.  We did find a little apartment just off the VF with a kitchen and a washing machine—so now our evening is planned!

We left Casa Margherita fully expecting rain.

The vineyards extend horizontally, maximizing sunshine exposure.  They look like they are floating on air.

The views from San Rocco Church were amazing.

All that beauty had a price: steep climbs and descents.

Welcome signs on the VF!

The One of my favourite trail segments.

The trail reminded me of Middle Earth.

Three things that Ivrea is famous for: it’s Castle, Olivetti Typewriters, and refreshingly cold supermarkets!