Stage 12: Gallina to Radicofani

16.2 kilometers
Elevation gain/loss: 693/273
Steps: 24,142
Total distance traveled: 221.0km
Distance to Rome: 191.7

Since I (Roch) wussed out of today's stage of La Francigena, Brenda wrote today's entry:

Maybe it was the way Roch kept saying today's walk would involve 15 kms of ascent. Or maybe it was the way my Camino app described the climb to Radicofani as very demanding. Or maybe it was the rain in today's forecast, but as you can imagine, I was feeling a bit of trepidation about walking this leg of the camino on my own today.

But as it turns out, today was, oddly, my favorite walking day thus far. I hit the trail just before the crack of dawn and it was beautiful to watch the sunrise. It was mainly overcast so the temperature was cool but perfect for hiking. Unexpectedly, I saw no other pilgrims during the entire walk and I loved the solitude and quietude, just the sound of my breath and the tip tap if my trekking poles.

I was prepared for a slow plod of constant ascent, but it really wasn't bad at all, and as a bonus, I didn't even have to pull out my rain jacket.

Roch ended up taking the bus to Radicofani and we met up for a coffee before exploring the town. Coffee took us longer than exploring the town did because Radicofani is tiny. For lunch, we found a reasonably priced restaurant that served huge plates of pasta and amazing salads, a just reward after all the elevation gain I made today.

We are now over half way to Rome!Read more