Day 17: Piacenza to Fiorenzuola d'Arda

A big day of walking today (33.67 km). I added about 2 km to that by getting off track! It was a very pleasant rural countryside to walk through, with some mountains in the distance, but with very little shade. My legs got sunburnt even though I started the day with sunscreen. My recommendation for anyone doing the VF in Italy is to wear the most cushioned shoes you can find as you will be walking on a lot of sealed surfaces - either on the roadside itself or the paths adjacent to those roads. It gets very wearing. Luckily, about 6 km before the end, there was a long section of dirt road, which eased my discomfort somewhat. That road brought me to my first quagmire! I was able to avoid the mud on the first side but slogged through the mud on the other side. My boots look very second-hand now. I met four Italian pilgrims today, one French pilgrim and a British couple. Only the British couple and I are going all the way to Rome.Read more