Chuck's News: Day Six - Monday, October 27, 2026 Altopascio to Ponte de Cappiano

- Weather-sunny & warm, High 69, Low 55, a few clouds during the day, but mostly sunny.

On Route 9.39 miles, Total Distance 10.55 miles, 25,062 steps

The Walking, the Weather, the Country or the People?

It is only day two of walking I am beginning to wonder which trait makes this so enjoyable. Is it the walking-the rhythmic movement of one foot in front of the next, watching the world go by at a pace that allows us to see in detail all the nuances of the terrain, the vegetation, the soil, the manmade “improvements”, the architecture, the art and the changing perfume of the air? Or is it the weather, being outside for the entire day, the sun warming the skin and squinting the eyes while cool breezes caress the skin? Could it be the country that is so similar to our own and yet so different, kilometers vs miles, unusual signage, different customs, aggressive driving attitudes, cheap prices for food and lodging, and centuries of history behind each building/statue/monument? Or is it the people, the ones who own or work the shops who treat us as if we are ambassadors of good will as we plod through their towns, the other adventurers biking or walking who we meet along the route during the day or sit down to dinner with at night to compare lives and stories, the families on the parks and the school children in the school yard laughing and playing and jabbering loudly just like home, but making unintelligible sounds in a different language, the locals who socialize at the cafes on the street over pasta in all shapes?

One of these in particular? No. It is the kaleidoscope of all these experiences tumbling prismatically together that combine to make each day unique, enticing and memorable.

Due to the unrecognized-by-me change to daylight savings time yesterday we were awake an hour earlier. Also, our roommates, though quiet as can be, were up and out the door before us, acting like a quiet and polite alarm clock.

There was no cooking facilities here, as well as no eating in the room. These conditions prompted us to pack up and return to the coffee/pastry shop of the night before for a croissant and Coca Cola breakfast. Sally was to regret her croissant decision. Her croissant had a little tuft of pudding on top that she thought would be a nice addition to her croissant. She came to realize there was a lake of pudding stuffed inside, overwhelming her pancreas and throwing her into hyperglycemia shock for the next two hours of walking.

The path bordered the highway for the next mile, then split off into the woods. Petra, a 49 year old woman who shared our rooms last night and left an hour before we did came walking up behind us, to our surprise. She had taken a wrong turn somewhere and it had taken her an hour to correct her mistake.

Last night Petra had passed by our beds and stopped to talk. Sally-The-Empath sensed her loneliness and engaged her in conversation for the next hour, giving her the comfort and companionship she was seeking. Petra walks Caminos about 8 months a year. This means she is by herself a lot. If you saw her on the streets you would think her homeless, or more appropriate to Europe, a gypsy. Her hair is in dreads wound into a top knot on her head with feathers protruding. Her skin is weathered and darkened by months of outdoor exposure. She often walks barefoot. Her voice is as weathered as her features. She is kind and thoughtful.

We walked with Petra for about half an hour, talking, comparing lives. Then she was off. Our pace was too slow for her and she had some time to make up after her misdirection earlier.

About an hour and a half later, after walking through fields, along highways, under forest canopies and on ancient cobblestone roads we arrived at about the midpoint of our day, Galleno. As we approached the town on a millennium old cobblestone road under heavy tree cover we glanced left through the trees towards a building and saw Roque and Belen from last night. How did we catch up with them? We greeted each other happily and after 5-10 minutes headed up the main road of Galleno together. A block up the road, urged on by a man sitting at a table outside a cafe we stopped in to get our credentials stamped. Out the door and on we went chatting with our new friends.

We realized it was time for lunch. We wanted to stop at a cafe to eat and give Sally a chance to put her feet up. But, we had broken the maxim of walking caminos, always stop at the first place in town. We had, but excited about running into Roque and Belen we didn’t stop to eat. They now needed to move on. We found a small bakery just a few blocks further up, but no sandwiches, just bread and juices and no chairs or tables to sit and eat at. We got a slab of bread and some juice and walked half a block up the street, found a wall to sit upon and ate our lunch.

The rest of the way to Ponte di Cappiano wandered through forests on a mix of dirt roads and trails. We dropped 240 ft down to the Arno River flood plain and walked the last quarter mile into the town. We immediately found the open cafe and parked ourselves at a table with a beer for Sally and a fizzy water for me. It was a little after 2:00. The hostel didn’t open until 4:00. We moved to another set of tables on the other side of the bridge when our cafe closed at three and spent some time researching, writing and resting. Eventually we moved to the nearby park to stretch on the grass and nap on the park benches. At 4:00 we wandered back to the hostel which was just opening.

This hostel has quite a history, or at least the bridge that it resides on. It was built by Cosimo De Medici in the 15th century during the battles to control this part of the Arno River valley.

We got registered for the night, chose our two bunks out of the four in the room and rested for a few minutes. Two French girls, Mary Lou and Jan joined us, taking the two beds furthest from the door. They headed out for beers and Sally and I headed out to find food . . . except the girls had taken both sets of keys, thinking they were both for them. I stayed in the hostel while Sally checked the only open bar in town, found them there and retrieved our keys. There were no groceries available, so we joined the girls at the bar and had two plates of pasta and a couple of cokes for dinner.

Jan and Mary Lou were delightful dinner companions. Adventurous and excited for life, they exhibited all the traits we enjoy about the kids on the PCT. After an hour and a half we headed back to the hostel, but saw the grocery shop had opened. We stopped in for some bread, a chocolate bar and some cheese. By the time we got back, the girls had gotten back first. I had not expected to be out so late and was in shorts and a tee shirt. I was freezing. I headed for a hot shower and soon was back to a normal body temperature. We FaceTimed Andy and Jeff, then called it a night and went to sleep. So did our roomies.