May 14, 2023
Over the Po
Mantova to Parma
I was up early so I could call the family who were having lunch in Jugiong to celebrate Mother’s Day. It was bucketing down outside and had been most of the night. The forecast was for light rain in the afternoon so we hung around Mantova for a few hours and set off around noon. We drank too many coffees and found a cafe where Franklin could get an English breakfast with poached eggs. The guy in the cafe didn’t have poached eggs on the menu but was willing to give it a crack (pun intended). He presented Franklin with three perfectly poached eggs but conceded it took him several goes to get it right.
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We leave around noon with threatening skies but the rain has eased and we remain dry for the rest of the day. Maybe my luck with weather has returned.
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My bike has been going perfectly all trip despite being subjected to mud and slush for the past month. Yesterday it started to clunk a little and the back wheel started to develop a noticeable wobble that got worse as the day went on. I’ve got a broken spoke. Luckily I’ve got a few spares so I’m nursing the bike along until Parma where I can visit a bike shop tomorrow.
No bike paths today but mostly quiet country roads and classic Italian villages. We cross the mighty River Po midway through the ride, which is the longest river in Italy. I think you can call the longest river in any country mighty despite what it looks like so the mighty Po it is. It is actually a pretty substantial river and we cross it on a skinny bike lane seemingly superglued onto the main bridge with barely enough room to squeeze a bike the guardrail and the fence. It goes for nearly two kilometres as there’s a substantial floodplain either side of the mighty Po.
The longest river in the world is of course the mighty mighty Nile at 6,650 kilometres but what is the shortest river in the world? It is The gutless Roe River in Montana USA which measures at its longest length 61 metres. You’ve gotta love America!
Back to the ride and with a late start we find a small Ristorante around three that is still open and happily cooks us a bowl of pasta each as long as we order the same thing. The tagliatelle porcini hit the spot perfectly. There’s more quiet roads on the way to Parma and we roll in just before seven o’clock.
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The two kilometre walk into town is a bit long but the meal was worth it. No prizes for guessing that we had a mixed plate of hams and cheeses followed my another entree of asparagus flan and Samosas Italian style that were delicious.
Today's ride: 78 km (48 miles)
Total: 1,350 km (838 miles)
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