Via Francigena 2022: Stage 42: Sarzana to Avenza

21 kms — 33o C and cloudy then sunny — We saw no new pilgrims today, on their way to Rome.

(By Jim)

Today’s trek was a planned 18 km so we decided to avail ourselves of the free breakfast included with our accommodation and get a later start. It was 7:45 before we got our backpacks on and were pointed in the right direction, but the path out of Sarzana was slow as we stopped to take many pictures.

Except for two small hills, the trail was mostly flat or slightly downhill so we managed a good clip. Cloudy skies protected us until 10:30 after which SPF 60 was generously applied. Wooded hills and pastureland were again our backdrops today but we have not grown tired of their vistas. There is still much diversity in the sameness of the landscape that we lose ourselves in the beautiful green details.

Walking into Avenza was along a hot urban thoroughfare that quickly sapped our energy and joy. We stopped for an early lunch at the first open restaurant with a shade umbrella. As cars whizzed by we enjoyed an unexpectedly delicious meal of seafood ravioli and testeroli with pesto, a Ligurian crepe-like pasta. Recharged, we pushed on into the heart of Avenza and Ostello Antonio Mazzi, arriving at 1:30. To our dismay, the hostel did not open until 4:00 so I settled down for riposo in the shade of the Church of San Pietro while Laurel set up shop on the terrace of a pizzeria, that was closed for the day.

Unlike the prized Carrara marble quarried in the mountains nearby, Avenza is a gritty unpolished town. However, its statues, plaques, flourishes, even the sidewalks and path rubble all proclaim the calcium mineral that has been mined here for over one thousand years.