Olbia to La Maddalena

October 29, 2023

A beautiful day to start our ride in Sardinia

We had a nice calm crossing on the Superman ferry. We had one more hour of sleep than expected due to the falling back to standard time. Good thing our phones knew about the time change, because we didn’t.

It was a beautiful morning. We disembarked before 7 am. There were lots more people leaving the ferry than we saw last night. I guess they arrived early and went right to bed. Two other cyclists had arrived after us, so the staff room/control room was crowded.

The Superman ferry. Its partner is a Batman ferry.

Sue and I got separated immediately upon arrival because I had my bike, and foot passengers were bussed to the terminal from the ferry. We sorted it out without difficulty, but then I realized that in the confusion of loading up, I’d left my lock on the ferry. Dumb. I had to go back through security to get the lock, accompanied by a lovely port security worker. This didn’t delay the start of our ride, since Sue’s bike wasn’t expected to show up til 8 am. It arrived promptly, dropped off by two very friendly women from Bike4More. We were on the road by 8:40. First stop was at a beachfront restaurant for cappuccinos and pastries at 9:30. Then we had some winding and gentle ups and down on good pavement

A bigger and hotter climb took us to lunch in the lovely hilltop town of San Pantaleo recommended by the bike rental folks. There were some other Sunday bike riders and families enjoying the perfect patio weather. This ritzy area we entered today is known as the Costa Smeralda (Emerald Coast). We saw lots of sailboats and passed multiple marinas and resorts.

We had lunch of panini outdoors in the shade at a nicely renovated bar/resto on the town piazza. It was fun to see kids playing soccer, riding bikes, and climbing trees on a nice Sunday afternoon. Church was over - the sneaker-clad priest walked by too.

Nice lunch spot on the edge of a classic small town piazza in San Pantaleo.

We had a sporty climb and descent after lunch on a rural road - it was steep and required a bit of walking. We saw a good sized tortoise on that road. Cool! Beyond the sporty bit, there was a nice section of bike path right along the ocean.

For a while, we had a nice path along the coast.

After a bit more hot riding -temps in the high 20s- we stopped for a swim at a nice beach near Palau. There were only a few people on the beach, none of them swimming. From there, it was a short ride to the ferry dock in Palau where we caught the ferry to La Maddalena. We’ll stay here for two nights. The hotel is fine, and the staff are lovely. But the wifi won’t win any speed races.

Our first Sardinian beer. Not the last, I suspect.

How to get a bike up to the rooftop deck for storage.

Nighttime in La Maddalena. These islands were the site of Napoleon’s first experience in battle. Not far from his Corsican beginnings.

Our first choice for dinner was closed, so we went to a nearby seafood restaurant, which was good, but not mind blowing. Still, it was lovely to eat outdoors.

Today's ride: 62 km (39 miles)
Total: 90 km (56 miles)

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