Distance Walked: 962 miles
Current No. Blisters: 0
I’ve been back on the trail three days now, having flown back to Italy on Tuesday, and slept another night at the same campsite in Saint Vincent. They seemed surprised to see me back (and shaven)!
I left Saint Vincent at 06:00 on Wednesday, having already packed up the tent. It was an early start. Indeed, I think I’ll be making more of these; it’s getting really rather hot now, and by one or two in the afternoon it’s not fun to walk. So, an early start is going to be essential, for making the most progress I can.
Saint Vincent seems to be mostly known for its casino, but it is quite pretty to look at as well. I walked around forty kilometers that day, up and down in the Alp foothills. The path generally steers clear of the tightening valley bottom, where motorway, river and the odd hydroelectric power station all jostle for space. As such, my legs were worked quite hard.
The valley opens up after the street-town of Bard (the whole town is on a single street – perhaps illustrating the space issue!). And after reaching Pont Saint Martin, once the site of a notable Roman bridge, the remainer of the Aosta Valley is visible, and hints of the rice plains of Pied-Monte lie ahead in the smog.
I slept at another campsite, because all the accommodation in Pont Saint Martin appeared to be full, including the 58 person hostel (not quite sure what’s going on there!). I treated myself to a wooden fake-tent construction, on (wobbly) stilts, for a extra €4 from a basic pitch.
On Thursday my early start plan went straight out the window. Fortunately, it was not a long day. I managed easily to accommodate a late (10 am) start. I bade a brief farewell to the Alps, and began the descent into the widening valley, towards Ivrea (incidentally, a town I know, because I’ve had to change train there twice, to get back/from Saint Vincent). The final rocky climbs offered still more smoggy views of the great flats that lie ahead in the Po Valley.
A couple of other things worth mentioning about Thursday’s descent into Piedmonte – within a few hundred yards of each other, I saw my first (outdoors) cactus of the trip and my first snake. In other words, the days of throwing myself down on the grass with abandon, at a point of rest, are well and truly gone.
I toasted the Alps one final time with a glass of prosecco in Ivrea, having turned my back on the majesty that dominated every view since the day I had crossed the French-Swiss border. I bought the prosecco simply as an excuse to use the WiFi (to update my mobile banking app, to pay my dangerously low other bank account (for international use) money from my main UK account). Naturally, the moment I stepped indoors, the signal vanished. So, immediately afterwards I had to buy a pistachio ice cream outside to access the WiFi of Ivrea.
I spent the evening nibbling, talking and drinking at a bar, joined by an English and an American pilgrim from the hostel, which I’d earlier found to be set in a centre for white-water kayaking. It made use of a diverted flow from the Dora-Baltea river to create some rather terrifying looking rapids.
This morning, I set off for Santhià. The 40 km walk passed very quickly, probably on account of good conversation. I think by returning to the UK for a few days, I’ve moved my position in the route back enough that there are more people around – and indeed Italy is the more walked section of the route. The signage has improved considerably since France, and there are signs in most of the main towns to bars and restaurants offering a pilgrim menu – all of this infrastructure has rather rapidly appeared, after exiting the Alps. A silver lining perhaps, to leaving behind one of the most unforgettable parts of this pilgrimage.
I haven’t mentioned feet in a while – so here’s a quick update: generally doing well, with no blisters, and feeling returning in my left big toe. At the end of the day, they ache a bit, but by the morning they’re ready to be back on the trail. All in all, I think they’re doing really rather well, now.
I just need to be extra vigilant in getting up early for the next few days, at least. With no shelter or shade on these upcoming rice plains, I’m going to have to be careful not to bake in the midday sun.
