Yesterday's blog was ridiculously long. I will likely be arrested for murder by boredom if anyone actually read the whole thing. I knew bringing a keyboard was a bad idea. Too easy to get diarrhea of the fingers.
Today we rose at 5:00 am, ate a hard boiled egg, showered and were on the trail (right outside our door) to Vernazza by 5:45 am. It was about 65°, no wind, no hot sun and most importantly, no people. The trail is beautifully made and maintained as it winds across the slope, climbing up and dropping down to avoid cliffs. It is nearly wide enough to walk side by side.
We reached Vernazza about 7:30 am. We walked through town, right down to water's edge and had some bread and cheese, enjoying the sunrise. Sally ran some internal checks and pronounced herself fit to do the next stretch of trail to Monterosso. Yeah!!Time to get back on the trail.
The trail starts from the center of town, between two buildings. It is more a staircase than a trail as it climbs out of town back up the hill. We still had the trail to ourselves, although we had seen one couple leaving town as we entered. Yesterday we met a mom and daughter pair, the daughter about 25. She described the trail as scary, hanging on the side of a cliff, narrow, with no guard rail. That conjured up a vision in my mind that was not matching what we had hiked in the least. What lies ahead?
This stretch was like the last. Stunning. Hundreds of feet above the blue Mediterranean Sea we walked through verdant forests, groves of olive trees, past gigantic agave and prickly pear cactus just starting to bloom and past still working vineyards all lit with the ethereal glow of dawn's light. It was spectacular.
As we neared Monterosso and 9:30 am the trail became a steady stream of oncoming human traffic. In the last 3/4 mile we passed well over 200 people, a marked contrast to the earlier hours of our hike. They were climbing up out of Monterosso. Judging the heavy breathing and beet red faces, many should not have been there.
Once in Monterosso, we made our way to a Coke stand. Refreshed, we walked around the point to the rest of town, sized up the beaches, bought some groceries, walked back to the first beach, bought boat tickets to return us back down the coast toward our home town of Corniglia and swam in the warm Mediterranean. At least Sally did. I stood first watch on all our worldly possessions in my pack.
We hustled from the beach to the dock as our boat approached. We enjoyed seeing the coast from the water as we motored south, stopping at every town but ours. Corniglia has a difficult shoreline with no place for the boat to dock. We knew this before boarding, planning to go to the southern most town Riomaggiore, explore it, then take the train north to Corniglia. Which is what we did, after a bowl of deep fried anchovies in Riomaggiore.
Our hiking pass also allowed us to ride the bus from the Corniglia train station up to town perched on the cliff. Once in town we stopped at the grocery, said hi to Sara, bought some food and returned home to cook pasta with red sauce for dinner. We ate out on the landing, overlooking the sea. We wandered back to town for sunset from the Piazza at the end of town and enjoyed the empty streets.
Great day! Sally thrived on the hike and is pain free at day's end!! Yeah!! Thanks doctor Smitherman!!
Being prudent, she plans to sleep in tomorrow morning. I think I will go for a hike while she replenishes herself.
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