21 Saint Vincent to Ivrea
560 m climbing
6h 10m elapsed
3rd August 2020, 18°C, thunderstorms
48.37 km
3h 51m moving
33% off-road
Rain, rocks and cycle shoes don't mix
Today was a real mixed bag of routes... sometimes the walking route, sometimes the cycle route, and at other times something else. But the big news of the day is that it’s been raining most of the day on and off so it’s been cooler! Yay!
However if you thought descending rocky slopes was tricky in cycle shoes in the dry you should try it in the wet. Today was possibly harder than some of the earlier "hike-a-bike" sections because of that... although there were no prolonged hikes today, only having to get off for say 50m at a time perhaps.
Outside the hotel in the morning. About to set off.
Looking down the valley. More castles.
Typical route.
Roman roads in a few places.
Verres
Verres
Waiting out the rain under some shelter. I think I spent like 30 minutes here.
Bard fortress
The bridge at Bard. Particularly impressive with the rain.
Another Roman road.
Vineyards. Distinctive style.
Another Roman bridge.
Trekking through the vineyards was great.
The churches are now very much temple with tower attached.
Overnight: Ivrea, Dora maison de charme
Ended the day in Ivrea... which is the home of Olivetti. The family firm worked with leading architects to design offices, factories, housing, social and cultural facilities to ensure the workers were happy (very 2020s)... but as the world changed, Olivetti didn’t and most of these amazing (my opinion) buildings are now crumbling heaps of junk. ☹️
This was my last day for this year. And I’m just remembering that when I got back last year... dropping the children off at school etc, I got a few comments on “how good it must have been touring France eating at Michelin restaurants”. Nobody mentioned the early starts, the eating out of jars, injuries from falls etc. So this year despite eating out of cheese pots and having musli bars that taste like dog biscuits for lunch I’ve avoided the Michelin stars. Although the flight isn’t till late on tomorrow....