October 5, 2021
To Verona
It was a joy to awake to a brilliant blue sky! I was headed to Verona where rain was forecast for mid-afternoon, so I left on the early side (9ish) to enjoy the sun while it lasted. My plan was to follow EV7 almost to Peschiera del Garda then head east to Verona.
Similar to the past few days, the route north closely followed a network of waterways along the Mincio River on small roads or paved bike paths. And it was delightful cycling – good surface, sunshine, moderate temperature, no winds. And a pleasant landscape with mountains visible in the distance, the siren call of the Alps.
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The route change quite a bit after leaving EV7 at Montzambaro and heading east toward Verona. There was short climb up from the Mincio River to Salionze followed by a series of ups and downs through San Rocco to Sommacampagna, with the Alps coming ever closer into view.
The route into Verona was a bit confusing (at least to me), and I made several wrong turns that fortunately I was able to quickly correct. However, the city bike lanes were sporadic and often ended suddenly – the good news was that drivers were patient and forgiving, as has been true of the entire tour.
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I checked into the Hotel Verona and was shown to my spacious apartment – the only room available when I booked. Located a few doors down from the hotel, and unfortunately the WiFi was pretty dreadful. Despairing of ever catching up on the journal, I opted to explore Verona before the rains came.
My first stop was the Verona Arena, a Roman amphitheater that remains a venue for opera and other theatrical and musical performances. Personally, I found the Roman Theatre of Orange in Provenance to be more interesting. Nonetheless, it’s always great fun to wander around the dead-end passageways and climb up to the stop seats where you get a great perspective of the neighborhood. I had a nice chat with another cyclist from Michigan who was on a self-guided tour with her husband – one of the first American encounters I’ve had since entering Italy.
It started raining shortly after I left the Arena, so after a rather rapid tour of the central city (no visit to Juliet’s house), I made my way back to the apartment. I had dinner at a restaurant two doors down – it had a an excellent eggplant tortellini but fell short on the tiramisu, the latter ranking last in my sample set.
Today's ride: 41 miles (66 km)
Total: 730 miles (1,175 km)
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It was so nice to chat with you at the Roman arena in Verona! What an adventure you had! I really need to get better at blogging, all of the cities we biked in and out of became a blur! Still, it's my favorite way to travel! Are you from the Columbus area? My husband is from Westerville and went to "The" Ohio State University 😉
I hope our paths pass again someday! -Kathy Schneider
2 years ago
I am not from Ohio but did my BA at Denison U, in Granville. My mother was a Buckeye from southern Ohio and also attended The Ohio State :)
2 years ago