Acquapendente to Bolsena

Having a room called the Romeo e Giulietta suite, and overlooking the square and town hall, was romantic until the garbage trucks had a convention there an hour before dawn.

Breakfast was a new point on the sugar-to-pumpernickel spectrum. Almost everything in cellophane, or packaged, nothing fresh bar some apples, no tea, and a coffee machine that used pods that did not fit. There was a vanilla slice equivalent with quadruple sugar and extra thick pastry, and mini-croissants with chocolate (or was it Nutella?). But it was fun opening packets and seeing what was there, and the muesli and UHT milk was actually good.

With blood glucose levels at an all time high, we set off and wove through the old streets, past the cathedral, and due south on a road and then over quite flat farmland. Sunflowers had been ploughed in, and some fields still had potatoes left after the harvest, or lucerne. Many fields had irrigation pump outlets, and the soil looked quite fertile. It was cloudy and cool, and very rural, but nothing like the dramatic views of recent weeks.

After 2 1/2 hours, we reached a town called San Lorenzo Nuovo, which was designed and built a few centuries ago. In most other places, a 300 yo town would be exciting, but the best part of this town was walking to the end, on the crest of a hill, and looking down to a massive volcanic crater lake, Lake Bolsena.

The walk from the town went through a forest and then olive groves and farmland. It was lovely, but the signs kept saying it was 3 hours to Bolsena, and I am sure the 4.0km sign appeared five times. We kept walking and Bolsena kept not appearing. Around 2pm, we saw the castle towers and cathedral steeple, so the place existed.

Our hotel is a 4 star effort right on the lake, so we had to walk through the old town, past the castle and closed church near it. We met an 81 yo retired Swiss surgeon who had been at the same agriturismo in Radicofani, and we communally bemoaned the hard day yesterday, and tiredness today. He is going to Rome, but started from his home in Basel, carrying all his gear. Last year he walked from home to Spain - three months walking, 90 minutes in a plane going back.

We walked around the lakefront and town after having a shower and changing, and scouted out the restaurant we go to for dinner. Most impressive was the Basilica for St Cristina, a local saint from the 3rd C. It has catacombs going back to Etruscan times. It seems that in the 11th or 12th C they found the records of a martyred saint in those ancient catacombs, and may have invented a legend to make her and Bolsena famous.

Dinner was very good. Pasta with ragout/cheese and pepper, then grilled lake fish/ aged beef skewers. Plus salad and really good bread.

40,942 steps, 32.6km and 39 flights. Long... but it was around 25km to the town, and the rest was walking around the town, or Acquapendente, and walking to dinner then along the lake. Tomorrow is only 16km, but the forecast is steady but light rain..Read more