September 17, 1993
To Lecco
This day was a bit of a disappointment - partly because we biked to far, partly because we were worn down by a surprising number of steep climbs away from the lakes and by fairly lengthy stretches of bone-jarring rough roadbed; partly because much of the day had surprisingly heavy traffic; and partly because Lecco and our hotel room are very noisy, largely due to the everpresent motor scooters with their mosquito-like whine.
It was not all disappointing though. The landscape and the towns are in man places exceptionally beautiful. There are many spots where the mountains rise nearly vertically from the lakes, leaving no room for the lakeside roads except through the many tunnels here. We must have ridden through more than twenty tunnels today, including one that was 1500 meters long.
The lake shores on both sides of the lake are heavily built up, with villages and towns largely constructed of peach and cream pastel stucco buildings with reddish orange tile roofs. The towns are all very attractive.
We took two brief ferry rides today - one the first thing this morning, to cross Lake Maggiore the other late in the day to cross an arm of Lake Como. Both were enjoyable for the respite from biking as well as for the offshore views of the lakeside towns.
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We arrived in large, congested Lecco about 5, and after consulting the information center quickly registered into a massive old hotel in the heart of the old town. For dinner we visited a pizzeria, where we split a pizza and a delicious calzone. Afterwards we took our gelatos down by the shore of Lake Como and watched the bats fluttering over the water before returning to our room for frustrating night of attempted sleep.
Today's ride: 95 km (59 miles)
Total: 1,003 km (623 miles)
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