Day 33: Stage 28: Ivrea, 21 kms, drizzle then sun, 26°

Flushed From The Alps! 

I finally had my first pizza in Italy on this trip! It’s not for lack of trying. You might recall I was trying to find a pizza last night and ended up with chicken wings and some sort of pasta salad. Neither of which did me any harm. It was pretty good, but it would’ve been easier to eat if they’d given me a sharp knife. They don’t pre-cut pizzas in Italy like they do at home.

I was up at six this morning, a bit of a shock! I intended to complete the stage without stopping because the shorter stage yesterday took too long, and my toes weren’t happy with being in the boots that long. Annemarie and I discussed options last night, and I elected to bandage up the worst toe and leave the other toe free. Sort of a scientific experiment to see which one was going to work the best.

Today’s stage was reported to be 23 km, but I managed to shorten it a couple of times. I left just before 7:00 and was at my destinations by 11:30. Certainly earlier than I expected, but my toes were delighted with the outcome…me too!

I was a bit surprised when I stepped out of my room to find that not only was it cloudy, it was also raining around me. That encouraged me to skip the first climb and just head straight down the highway. I kind of said to myself, “what could I possibly see up on that hill at this time of the morning that I would even care about?”. It was an easy decision! 

I turned on both my flashing lights and put my red pack cover on because I’m convinced some of the drivers here need all the help they can get when it comes to avoiding pedestrians. There was no sidewalk or verge. It started raining as I walked down the highway, but I didn’t stop to put any wet gear on  because it wasn’t particularly cold. It looked like it was just going to come and go, and that’s exactly what happened.

One of the more interesting experienced today was that the path led me through a number of vineyards with the traditional frames. In some places I simply walked under the frames, or between them. It was very cool!

Typical camping in Europe. It seems that almost on every Camino Annemarie and I have stayed in one of these campgrounds. Usually with good facilities.

I walked along backstreets in little villages which had this sort of rock cobblestone. It reminded me a lot of other Mediterranean countries. I can’t imagine making these. Crippled by age 30!





My guidebook said that it’s not unusual to experience some melancholy as you leave the mountains. However, looking back towards the Aosta Valley I wasn’t feeling that. I reflected on just how much I’d enjoyed climbing through the Alps. The distances were typically not super long because the terrain was steep and often rugged. The whole experience was amazing! I’m not sure all parties felt this way because the following wind and the rain early this morning made me feel like I was being flushed out of the valley! I’m pretty sure this was only my interpretation😂

I caught up to my Israeli friend and sorted out names. Her name is Hager, and after a short chat I explained that I was trying to make time today to give my toes as long a rest at the end of the day as possible. I’m pretty sure that at some point our paths will cross again on this walk. A nice person. 

Today I crossed into the Piedmonte Region, home of the rich Barolo wines, white truffles and risotto! I’m really looking forward to trying all of these in the coming days. 

Tonight as I write this post I am enjoying a chilled Chardonnay from this region. I found a half bottle shopping for groceries. It will go nicely with the tortellini and sauce that I’m planning to cook shortly. I’m in a very interesting little apartment tonight. The owner has gone to great lengths to make this small space extremely functional and enjoyable. It’s not particularly expensive, and the ability to cook meals makes it actually more economical than staying in a cheaper accommodation and eating out. On long extended walks I find that restaurants every day can become a bit tiring. 

My new best friend! Don’t worry Saoirse, I’ll be sending you a video of this lady just as soon as I finish here.

The edge of the Italian alps. I never get over how the mountains always stop so abruptly. 



Walking through these vineyards was completely different than other experiences I’ve had. Usually you walk past the vineyards, and occasionally close beside them. However today I was walking right under them. Very cool!

An interesting trail today.



I could almost reach out and touch the grapes. What am I saying? I did!



This too is part of the path. Walking through ancient derelict buildings.

A last look back and then it was forward into the minor hills which have been formed by the long heaps of glacial moraine. 



The sun was beginning to make more of an appearance. It was a pretty humid day and when I got into town I was surprised to see that I had drunk all my water. I’ll be taking extra water tomorrow on a longer stage.

Again, a church that doesn’t look like much from the outside was actually quite mysterious and interesting on the inside. 







A last fortress?

A tiny country church. Sadly it wasn’t open as often these remote places get vandalized.

I try to remember to follow the little walker and not the F’s🙃

I entered Ivrea through a pretty well healed neighbourhood. 

Very soon I was able to access my neat little apartment. It’s extremely well thought out, a bit of a puzzle to put together. Annemarie would love this place! I washed my clothes in the sink as there was no way I’d be able to sort out the washing machine before I had to leave tomorrow. 

The town is pretty nice as well. Here’s just a few pictures.

This is where I ate my pizza.



I climbed up to the church to have a look and also to see if I could get a stamp in my credential. 

I went inside and had a look around and noticed an elderly fellow at the back. I approached him and showed him my credential and asked if he could help. He smiled and went into a small room and came out with a very nice stamp. He applied it right up against a wall of a very old church. Doesn’t get much better. We had a nice chat about the route and he wished me a good trip and showed me the way down into the crypt. He didn’t follow me down.😳

Safely back at ground level I finally had a good look around the church. 

Once I get this posted it will be time to make dinner. It’ll be an even earlier morning tomorrow because I plan to be out the door before 6:00. I’ll explain everything in tomorrow’s post. Thanks for following and for all the comments, emails and text messages. Dad I’ll get back to you about your own big toe experience as soon as I have a moment. I think I figured out how to tape my problem as I had very little pain today, thankfully!