We knew Sunday would be a busy day out on the Valsugana cycleway but we took the bull by the horns and headed west to Lago di Caldonazzo. This was when it dawned on us that the Italians spend much more money on their cycle paths then they do on their roads, it was a joy to ride on 15 miles of smooth, traffic free roads even though it was, as expected, a tad busy in places. At the lake we took the last remaining free bench overlooking it and relaxed for a while before refreshing with some ice-cream and then heading back home. By now we really felt the heat and welcomed the brief shade offered by the wooded sections.

Back at the ranch we’d managed to grab a spot where we could sit in the shade, although all the vans in the aire were fully exposed to the heat of the sun until about 7pm. As we were relaxing during the afternoon 2 Italian couples rode up on their bikes wishing to talk about the aire, of course the only words I know in Italian are “Mi dispiace ma non so parlare Italiano” which usually breaks the ice, when one of the guys replied “Uscita” a fight nearly broke out! But I quickly realised he meant “Do we get in through the exit”? Shortly afterwards 2 campervans arrived in the aire through the ‘uscita’.

Views from the aire

Monday morning it was back in the saddle for a ride east and south along the same cycleway to Bassano del Grappa. We set off at 8.45am when the weather was t shirt and short stuff, the bike batteries hadn’t been charged from the previous ride (this was intentional so as to drain them right down before recharging), so we had to be a bit economical with their usage. We played the ride by ear and the first 15 miles was on a superb path, the best we have ridden, there were areas of landscaped gardens and deliberate curves put into the path design rather than just straight. It followed the river, darting into and out of wooded areas and we thoroughly enjoyed the views of the mountains along the valley.

One of the straighter sections

Later on the ride we came across two diversions and, as is the Italian’s way, there was very little signing. We couldn’t really go far wrong as the valley became so narrow there was very little choice, but it meant we were out on the public roads, something we preferred not to do. The good thing about this though was that all the streets were decorated in pink, as we were now on a stage of the Giro d’Italia, but that was a few days ago.

We now had 25 miles under our wheels and I was thinking it was just another six to Bassano, it turned out to be twice that! So by the time we reached the outskirts of town we’d been going over 3 hours and the day had warmed up significantly, we cycled around the historical centre stopping for lunch at a restaurant in one of the piazzas. After a couple of beers the prospect of cycling back another 37 miles had lost its appeal, so there was only one thing for it, let the train take the strain! Thankfully the two guys I had met up by the castle the other day suggested this to me, so 7€ a person and 2 for the bike was a great way to come home.

Black spaghetti and crab