Valley of the Temples to Licata

March 27, 2023

Villa La Lumia offered an excellent breakfast buffet, the best so far. Of course, when we stayed at the small places, we were often the only guests or fully half of the total, so we wouldn’t expect a buffet. In any case, we enjoyed it.

A 3-jammer but all the jams were homemade!

Then it was off back down the hill we’d ridden up yesterday, going straight at the roundabout at the bottom to join the SIBIT route to Licata. Good thing we have GPS because, although it’s supposed to be well marked, I’ve seen only one sign. We haven’t been following it exclusively, of course, but I would expect more signage than there is, more like the Eurovelo or similar long-distance routes.

I first heard about SIBIT when researching cycle touring in Italy on this site https://italy-cycling-guide.info/cycle-routes/coastal-rides/southern-sicilian-coast/ Unlike all those radwegs in Germany, though, iv I hadn’t read about it first, I would never have noticed. That said, I saw three dirty SIBIT signs today, all in the quiet, very hilly, back road into Licata.

Along the backroads that were once highways, the verges are taking over.

A highway that was replaced by an autoroute is excellent for cycling (as long as you’re prepared for a bumpy ride!

Sicily has its own fields of plastic greenhouses but there are also wind turbines and a few fields of solar panels.

When our route took us back to the coast, it was a coastline once guarded by the Castello di Montechiaro

There was a section of road that had been lost to a landslide years ago but we crossed without too much difficulty. We (Al) lifted the bikes past what looked like a derailleur-eating rock.

Speaking of back roads into Licata and, really, any road that’s not a major highway: the garbage problem is truly awful.

This unofficial garbage dump along the road isn’t uncommon and this particular one is only moderate in size. Many are much larger and most are smellier.

Back to more pleasant views!

View from the beach near Torre di Gaffe, a village that looked deserted.

The harbour at Licata. We must be getting close!

We came in past the Licata cemetery. The road past was really steep—down. We’d already done a really steep climb, so steep that even Al had to push. That doesn’t happen very often.

Licata isn’t really a tourist destination. We are stopping here because it’s the best option between Agricento and Ragusa. And that made it good for us. Our inexpensive two-bedroom apartment is spacious and has a washing machine! We spent the afternoon chilling and letting the washer do the work. It was too windy to leave the laundry unattended on the clotheslines projected beyond the balcony railings but we had nowhere to go. We rested up for our big day tomorrow and had an early pizza dinner.

Pizzeria del Centro was the first pizzeria we’ve encountered in Italy that offered different sizes (bambino, normale, familiale). Al said he was considering a familiale and I thought he meant to share. No, I had to get my own. We took the leftovers in a takeout box back to our apartment to save for tomorrow’s lunch.

Walking back to our accommodation through Licata’s old town.

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Today's ride: 57 km (35 miles)
Total: 497 km (309 miles)

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