To Borgo Valsugana

June 7, 2023

Rachael’s Hike in Trento

Rachael’s been cursing her iPad for the last two days straight, frustrated beyond her ability to bear it by the fact that something has changed and she can no longer save a slideshow. Finally she finds the reference that steers the way for her, so here’s the slideshow of the hike she took while I was biking to Revereto.

The weather for the day was marginal so I got out early for a hike. It started out with some fog but as I got higher it cleared up some. This is an amazing place to hike with a great variety of trails!

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Today’s ride

I’ve been fretting over today’s ride to Borgo Valsugana for nearly two weeks - ever since my last arrhythmia episode on our ride to Mantua twelve days ago. It’s about the climb out of Trento to the divide into Valsugana - a thousand feet in under three miles, more or less similar to the climb from Riva di Garda that we avoided by changing our itinerary.

It’s not been until the last 48 hours that we’ve settled on the decision to tackle the climb. We’ve been waiting to see what the weather was like and how I’m feeling before deciding whether to take the train instead to Pergine, the first stop on the other side and rejoin our friends there for the rest of the ride.

The weather is beautiful though, for the morning at least, so that excuse is gone. And I’m feeling fine after twelve days without an incident, so we’re riding - or riding and pushing, more likely.the plan though is for us to get an earlier start than the Gibson/Kertesz team and meet them at the summit. They’re taking breakfast at our B&B, which isn’t served until eight, and we’re walking over to the same cafe we went to yesterday, arriving just past 6:30. Yesterday’s nocciola gelato surprise was a novel start to the day, but today’s raisin roll was really more my style and hit the sweet spot.

We’re out the door and moving about quarter past eight, giving us enough lead time so that we should arrive at the summit first unless I’m pushing most of the way.

Leaving Trento, another in a long list of towns we’d like to come back to for a longer stay.

The first half mile is pretty much flat as we make our way out of the historic center, and then it starts - steeply almost immediately, around nine or ten percent at first, edging up to thirteen at one point. The traffic on the winding narrow road is a bit more than we’d like to, but manageable. After that though it eases off to something more manageable, and to my pleasant surprise I stick with it all the way to the summit, stopping just once for a shot back cross the valley and once for a shot of Rachael passing beneath some cliffs.

Looking down on Trento and the Adige Valley. We’re about a third of the way up the climb here, maybe three hundred feet off the valley floor.

Beautiful cycling country. This climb really wasn’t that bad, now that it’s done. If we return to Trento for a longer stay, I’d probably try it again.

It’s not quite Galibier or Ventoux, but I’m pretty happy about it.

We arrive at the top at least a half hour and maybe 45 minutes before Janos and Suzanne finally show up around the bend about a hundred yards away. We don’t mind at all. It’s a pleasant morning, there’s a comfortable spot to sit on the grass, and it’s not a surprise that they’re so long in coming. Better to be filling the time this way than pushing the bike up the road or lying on my back hoping my heart will stop racing.

The main issue is that my arms and shutter finger are getting tired and I’m getting eye strain watching for them to pass through the one gap in the walls and vegetation where their bikes will be briefly visible, and likely moving fast because it’s downhill now. I don’t want to miss my chance to shoot off photos of them when they pass by, but as luck would happen when they finally do show up so does a car that spoils the shot. Shoot.

Lots of catching up to do on the last twenty months.

The women don’t seem that interested in your drone, Janos. Maybe you need a new pick-up technique.

The next mile’s a delight as we coast down from the summit on a swooping road that’s captured best on video. After that we work our way through the villages at the west end of artificial Lake Caldonazzo, the large reservoir created by the damming of the Brenta.

Video sound track: liexá, by Anat Cohen & Trio Brasileiro

It’s been over an hour since we arrived at the summit, and I’m feeling really good about my condition. I feel fine, and presumably out of danger. Paradoxically, my episodes any more often initiate after an exertion - for example, once I’m starting to coast after crossing the summit. Not today though. I’m feeling fine, my mind drifting back and forth between admiring a flock of graylag geese fleeing from a young girl pursuing them across the grass and contemplating our planned adventure tour of Spain this fall. Maybe I’m still capable of a more contoured route I’ve been thinking of lately.

And then, suddenly I realize I’m not quite right. I check my pulse, and confirm that I’m humming along at 150 bpm again. I look around and spot an open-air ping pong table in the shade, so I head for that and lie down; and ten minutes later it passes. Pretty good, really - one brief incident in almost two weeks. Maybe my system is finally starting to adapt to the new meds I’m on? More tests are needed.

We’re looking here at a village atop a filamental ridge separating this lake and smaller Lake Levico just behind it.

I’m fine now, as I was sure I’d be as soon as I’m back to my version of normal again, and the rest of day’s ride is a relaxing delight as we follow the infant Brenta River gradually downhill to Borgo Valsugana, our stay for the night. About halfway there Suzanne and Janos peel off for a snack break at a biker’s stop but we keep going, a little less confident in the day’s forecast and interested in arriving dry.

One stunning view follows another in the Valsugana.

This church confused me as we approached. It’s a broken sky, and from a distance I couldn’t tell if the top of its tower was darker because it was in the shadow. Nope. Just slate.

Telvana Castle, perched on a ridge above Borgo. It’s clouding over, and I’m lucky to catch it in a window through to the sun.

I’ve gotten behind Rachael for all the usual reasons and I’m still a mile from town when I get the call. I’m thinking she’s at the room wondering how soon I’ll arrive with the passports so we can check in, but it’s a different script this time - the “I’m Lost!” Script. But she’s not lost really - she’s in the center of tiny Borgo, maybe two hundred yards from our lodging, and can’t find it.

And neither can I, once I’m there. Our mapped route goes straight up the cliff on a steep staircase, which we aren’t taking. Instead I find the nearest steep lane and walk up that, leaving the bike behind while I try to find our place. I finally give up after winding steeply uphill for about four blocks when I come to what looks like the edge of town. I can’t see anything beyond but a wall and then the woods, so I turn back perplexed and frustrated.

Back at the bikes, Rachael pulls up the listing to get the address of the place. There is no address other than the name of the street it’s on, but that’s more than I had before so I head up again - to exactly the same place I stopped the first time, but then I go probably only ten feet further and see the corner of a sign beyond the end of the wall. I turned back just a few yards too soon!

So, back down the hill. Before climbing up the third time though (pushing the bikes this time!), I call Suzanne to warn her of the navigation issue and to save some battery for the long, stiff climb at the end.

Once I’m on top for good I’m cursing myself for having picked this spot (this one’s on me), as I’m sure our friends will be doing soon enough. And then I look around. What a place!

The setting and the views from Villa degli Orti are extraordinary, and worth the work to get up here. But just climb the one time. Three is an overkill.

I haven’t eaten yet and don’t really have anything along, but it occurs to Rachael to ask our host if she has any milk for the muesli we have along. She returns shortly with bowls, spoons, and a liter of milk, and I enjoy what is probably my favorite lunch of the tour sitting outside and absorbing the views as I recover.

Later I’ll walk down into the village for a look around and to see if there’s anyone at our intended restaurant so I can reserve a table. There’s not, but there is my first new bird in awhile, a black redstart flitting around along the edge of the river that splits the town. Then back up to the room to wait for dinner; then back down to the restaurant for a fine meal, and then back up again in the near darkness (for my fifth time today!).

At the top we stop to lean on the railing, catch our breath, and take in the spectacular views for a last time. There’s discussion of the fact that the moon must be near full if we waited long enough for it to rise above the mountain behind us, and maybe a billion stars would be visible; and an assertion that maybe I’ll come out in an hour or so to check it out. But I don’t, and I assume they don’t either. We’ve all had enough.

The stairs my Garmin thought we should bike up.

Can’t we just call an Uber, some would like to know?

Ooh, I almost forgot! Here’s a concatenation of four video clips Janos took from his drome or his phone perched atop a camera stick he fixed to his handlebars - we’ll show you what that contraption looks like tomorrow.

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ann and steve maher-wearyOh, I kept reading, you did have an episode but you are okay. Thank goodness. Love your best lunch of the trip story!
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10 months ago

Ride stats today: 25 miles, 1,700’; for the tour: 1,765 miles, 72,200’

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2023 Bird List

160: Black redstart

Today's ride: 25 miles (40 km)
Total: 1,763 miles (2,837 km)

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Suzanne GibsonWonderful write up and slide show and video and pictures! Such a great capture of the day. Love the video creation using Janos's videos, Rachael!
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10 months ago

Patrick O'HaraGlad to hear that your episode did not linger on too long! Thanks for kick-starting our memory of our trip through this area last year into gear. A beautiful valley to cycle through! Great journal and photos, as usual. Bassano next?
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10 months ago

Scott AndersonTo Patrick O'HaraSo impatient! Wait and see.
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10 months ago

Patrick O'HaraYou've got me pegged!
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10 months ago