Nov. 18, 2024
Agritourismo Maneggio Vallecupa
I left Pineto at 9:30 and drove down the coast to Montesilvano. There was a bank there where I could withdraw funds without paying a fee. Montesilvano was an organized, modern city. I was easily able to park near the bank. From Montesilvano I headed to Pescara. I had been seeing signs for Pescara for days, but the city was unimpressive. From there, I turned inland. I passed the hill city of Penne to my left. Eventually, my route merged with SR5 and I followed that for an hour or so until I realized that I was going to arrive at my destination too early to check in.
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| The Sanctuary at Santa Maria del Monte |
I saw a sign for a museum and turned off the highway. I followed a narrow road up a steep hill to the Sanctuary at Santa Maria del Monte. The church was closed and surrounded by barriers. It looked like it might have been declared unsafe. I walked around the tiny hamlet for a few minutes and then headed back down. I followed another sign and eventually arrived at the crumbling, virtually abandoned village of Bolognano. I parked in front of another barricaded church and got out of the car. The town clung to the side of a steep hill. The only open business was a pharmacy. I saw no one under 75. There were more cats than people. A garbage truck was collecting trash. The garbage men couldn’t get the truck into the town. They had to walk through an archway into the maze of alleys. They came out carrying only two small bags of trash. It seemed everyone had left to live in more modern housing. I drove back down the hill and continued along SR5.
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| Church Interior Bolagnano |
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| Bolagnano Scenery |
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| Bolagnano Archway |
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| Plaza in Bolagnano |
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| War Memorial in Goriana Sicoli |
I continued down SR5, passing through the town of Popoli. I almost regretted not stopping there, but I wanted to wait until later to stop for lunch. I finally stopped in Goriana Sicoli where I saw an accessible parking lot. It was easy to park, but there were no restaurants open. A group of old men stood chatting in the parking lot. No one else seemed to be around. The town was in better condition and there was some construction going on, but it still seemed mostly deserted. I sat in my car and ate the salad and remaining falafel balls left over from dinner the night before. I had been driving through the mountains for some time. The forest was mostly deciduous trees, some with colorful leaves. Shrubs with seed pods that looked like dandelions, looked like blossoming trees when backlit by the winter sun.
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| Deciduous Forest |
From Goriana Sicoli, I climbed up over an exposed ridge. It looked like the moors in Scotland. There were more trees on the far side. At the upper elevations, I saw traces of snow along the side of the road. I was relieved when the road descended into a deep valley. I had been driving through the national park for quite a distance, but I saw no parking lots or trailheads. The scenery was spectacular, but there was nowhere to pull over. There was no other traffic on the road. At one point, I just stopped in the middle of the road and took a picture.
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| The Restaurant at the Agritourismo |
The weather was looking quite threatening by the time I reached Pescasseroli. I found the agritourismo easily. It also looked deserted. I entered the restaurant, and a friendly woman checked me in and gave me a key. My room was in a building across the parking lot. There were eighteen rooms in the hotel building. A light rain began to fall as I got out of the car. It was warm inside and the bed was reasonably comfortable. Best of all, there was a common area with comfortable chairs. If it rained the whole time I was there, at least my back would survive. I took a short walk up the road and petted a couple of ponies. It was cold. I went back to my room and took a nap. When I woke up, I walked over to the restaurant, but there was no one there except for the owners eating dinner. I went back to my room and munched on peccorino and banana chips.
Nov. 19, 2024
Agritourismo Maneggio Vallecupa
When I got up, something had spread garbage all over the parking lot. I asked the poor young man tasked with cleaning it up what had done it. He said it was animals, not the dogs. While there are bears in the area, I suspected foxes.
I had a nice breakfast in the hotel restaurant and then headed to the Pescasseroli tourist information office in search of a trail map. It was closed. The private outfitter that offers information was also closed. I went to the National Park Headquarters. They were open but didn’t have a trail map. They referred me to the (closed) outfitter. I found a map online, but it was difficult to use because the numbers associated with the trails did not appear on the map and the streets had no street signs.
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| Hiking to Colli Bassi |
I did manage to locate a nearby trailhead by trial and error. It was a short hike through grassy meadows to a steep drop off. It was threatening to rain but only drizzled a little. The trail was not well marked and disappeared completely in places, but it was hard to get lost in such an open area. I walked the mile to where the trail ended and took a few pictures. Then I headed back. It was too early for lunch.
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| The End of the Trail |
Lacking anything better to do, I decided to drive the twenty-five kilometers to the town of Bisegna. It was a pretty drive through the fall colored scenery. Just before I took the turnoff to Bisegna, I saw a red fox walking along the road. The road was deserted. I started up the hill to Bisegna and then I saw an actual marked trailhead. I stopped. The trail went uphill from where I was back towards Pescasseroli. The grade was gradual enough that, while I could feel the altitude, I was able to keep up a normal walking pace. Soon after I started hiking, I heard cowbells. It turned out that they were actually horse bells. The local horses were short, but sturdy. They looked like fourteen hand draft horses. They were curious but wouldn’t let me get close enough to touch them. There was quite a large herd of them. The farm where I was staying had a herd of small ponies that were led out to pasture each day.
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| Free Range Horses |
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| Beech Forest |
I passed the horses and continued uphill through a deciduous forest for a couple of miles. As I climbed higher, I began to see traces of snow. Most of the trees had lost their leaves, but I did see some juniper with lots of berries. The area was known for bear sightings, but I figured they must have been hibernating at this season. The area also provided habitat for wolves. I saw many bear crossing signs as I drove. I turned around at the two-mile mark because I had already walked a couple of miles, earlier, and knew that six miles was about the limit for my back. I spent the return trip pondering the fact that I was likely to need back surgery before I became eligible for Medicare. My back was starting to limit almost every aspect of my life.
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| They Looked Like Small Draft Horses |
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| Maple Tree in Bisegna |
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| Bisegna Street |
Once I returned to the car, stopping to photograph the horses some more, I continued up the road to Bisegna. Bisegna clung to the side of a steep mountainside and reinforced my belief that Italians are cliff dwellers. The town appeared deserted. Not one business was open. I walked through its narrow streets and admired the view from terraces. The oldest building seemed to be a twelfth century tower. The newest building was a church built in 2000. It, too, was closed.
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| Bisegna's New Church |
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| 12th Century Tower |
The restaurant at my agritourismo (farm stay) was only open from 12:30 to 14:30 and it was 15:00 by the time I returned. The owner offered to make me a sandwich, but I’m not a big fan of sandwiches. Even the grocery stores were closed between 13:00 and 16:30. Not a single restaurant in Pescasseroli was open. I sat in the comfy chair in the common area of the hotel building and read until 16:30. Then I went to the grocery store to provision. I bought foccacia, salami, cheese, cookies, peanut butter, mineral water and salad. Unfortunately, I later realized that I didn’t have a fork.
The heavens opened just as I returned from my hike and it began to rain in earnest. I was happy to stay in my toasty room and munch on my goodies. I cracked a single serving box of wine and settled down to write.
Nov. 20, 2024
Agritourismo Maneggio Vallecupa
According to the forecast, there was 100% chance of rain. I ate breakfast in the hotel restaurant and had a long conversation about our various travels with the owner in Italian. She was quite the talker and I was the only person around. She had travelled a fair amount in Mexico but didn’t like Playa del Carmen where all the Italians go. I once had to take a tour in Italian while I was there.
I spent an hour or so paying bills and reading email and then set off to explore some villages. It was too wet a day for hiking. My raincoat was falling apart and I didn’t trust it to keep me dry.
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| The Village of Opi |
My first stop was only about eight kilometers away in the village of Opi. It was raining when I got there, but too windy for an umbrella. I parked at the beginning of town, which was a good thing since they were working on the sewers and had the main road torn up. Opi was definitely not deserted, although everything was still closed. I even saw a charging station for electric cars. It was your basic Italian cliff dwelling village. I climbed up the steep streets and took some pictures. It was drizzling, but not too unpleasant. The temperature was 9 degrees Celsius or about 48 degrees Fahrenheit. It was windy. I explored for about half an hour, but was glad to get back in my warm car. I continued on to Villetta Barrea.
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| Tower in Opi |
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| Stairs in Villetta Barrea |
Villetta Barrea was much bigger than Opi. Like Opi, nothing was open, but there were plenty of people about, even in the rain. I parked below the town and climbed up a steep staircase to the old part of town. Then I climbed another staircase that started out gradually but became increasingly steep as I ascended. There was a great view of the city and surrounding areas from the top. It continued to sprinkle, but the wind kept me pretty dry. The church of Santa Maria Assunta was closed. It had been destroyed by an earthquake in 1915 and rebuilt in 1926. The main portal (designed by Bernini, my favorite sculptor) and the original altar were preserved and reinstalled in the new church.
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| New Cobbles in Valletta Barrea |
Much of Villetta Barrea was fairly modern. It had expanded as a result of the tourism brought to the region by the national park. The newer cobblestones often had fanciful patterns. Villetta Barrea is bordered by the Sangro River and uses it to generate electricity. I visited the nice park (museum closed, of course) next to the flume for the hydro plant.
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| Flume in Villetta Barrea |
Marsican brown bears can only be found in this small area of the central Appennines. They are critically endangered due to persecution by humans. They are making a gradual comeback, but there are signs everywhere urging people to drive slowly so as not to hit them on the roads. They are generally shy, but are active at dawn and dusk. Marsican bears go somewhat dormant in the winter but do not actually hibernate like other bears. They may even leave the den on fine winter days. As I neared Villetta Barrea, I started to see wolf crossing signs.
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| Lago Barrea |
From Villetta Barrea, I continued down the road past Lago Barrea to the much larger town of Barrea. It was raining harder and the size of the town was somewhat intimidating. I wasn’t going to stop, but then I saw a really good parking lot. Hill towns are not known for good parking. I decided to stop. Barrea overlooks the reservoir of Lago Barrea that was formed by damming the Sangro River. The lake is a pretty blue green color, even on a nasty, rainy day. I walked up the road to the main plaza of Barrea along the belvedere overlooking the lake. The view was spectacular, but a cold front was approaching with a vengeance and the wind was so strong that it caused me to stagger. It must have been blowing 70 knots. Leaves were flying everywhere. Shockingly, the bar on the main plaza was actually open. I dashed in out of the wind and ordered a cappuccino and an arrancino, a breaded and deep fried rice ball with ham and cheese in the center. It was the first hot food I had had since leaving Pineto and the first hot food in a restaurant since Pesaro.
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| View from the Belvedere in Barrea |
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| Plaza in Barrea |
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| Arrancino |
The main road wound uphill through the newer section of Barrea. I was thinking of going to Castel del Sangro, but it really started to rain. By the time I reached the top of the pass, it was pouring and visibility was very bad. Since I was unlikely to see much or get out of the car, I decided to turn around and head back to Pescasseroli and my warm hotel room. I spent the rest of the afternoon planning my next steps and writing.
Nov. 21, 2024
Rental Unit in Lettomanoppelo, Italy
I was greeted by a noisy tortoiseshell cat when I stepped out of the hotel. She insisted that I pick her up and snuggled under my chin, purring, all the way across the parking lot to the restaurant. It was nice to get a kitty fix.
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| Pescasseroli |
I left Pescasseroli after breakfast and drove back over to Villetta Barrea where the road turns off for Scanno. I had all day to kill, so stopped and took a short hike in the mountains above Villetta Barrea. I walked uphill until I was certain that the recommended portion of the hike was long past. Then I turned around and walked back to where I had parked in Villetta Barrea, bemoaning the lack of an actual trail map or real map of Italy. Google Maps got me where I was going (until later in the day, anyway), but failed to give me any sense of the direction of things. The maps in my guidebook were too general to be of any use. The compass in my car always seemed to tell me I was going the opposite way from where I felt I should be going.
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| Hiking Above Villetta Barrea |
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| The Pass Above Villetta Barrea |
After leaving Villetta Barrea, I drove up above the town and headed up a pass over the mountains that led to Scanno. The scenery was spectacular. The trees displayed fall colors, the sun was out, and I soon climbed up into alpine scenery. I kept an eye out for those snowy peaks I had seen from Atri, but didn’t see them anywhere. Whenever there was a place to pull over, I stopped and took a picture. Finally, I reached the pass and headed down the other side, arriving in Scanno about 13:00.
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| Stairs in Scanno |
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| Escher Drawing of Scanno |
Scanno was a largish hill town, exceptionally steep, with warrens of stairways and walkways passing under arches. Building across streets and alleys had been common in Scanno. I parked in the first place I found on the main road and then walked through an arch into the pedestrian section of the town. Scanno had been the inspiration for M.C. Escher’s drawings and I could see why. It was a fantastic and confusing place. Eventually, I came upon the main street, which was tiled, rather than cobblestoned and looked slippery. Most things were closed, but I quickly came upon an open restaurant and stopped for lunch. I ordered grilled lamb which came with roasted potato wedges and grilled zucchini. It was the first meal I had eaten since Cesenatico other than a pizza. Eating is one of my favorite things to do in Italy, but the pickings had been slim. The lamb was plentiful and delicious.
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| Scanno Main Street |
I walked around the town for a while after lunch and stopped into one of the churches. While Sulmona looked close on the map and I had booked my lodging thinking it was close to Sulmona, I realized that I was still over and hour and a half away. I didn’t linger too long in Scanno, since I had told my AirBnB host I would be there by 16:00 and I wanted to arrive before dark.
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| My Lamb Lunch |
The drive between Scanno and Sulmona followed a river down a narrow gorge. The water was an unreal shade of blue and the scenery was incredible. The road was very narrow, but I managed to stop and snag a photo or two on the way down. I was stopped at a roadblock and required to produce my license and registration. They asked me where I was going and then took my documents off to enter data in some computer. When the policeman returned, he asked me where I was born and seemed satisfied when I told him California. The whole process took about 15 minutes, which put me behind schedule. I passed the turnoff for Introdacqua where some friends of mine had moved, but didn’t have time to stop.
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| Lago di Scanno |
Sulmona was a much bigger town than I had expected and traffic was heavy. Despite having chosen my lodging for its proximity to Sulmona, I was still an hour away. I followed SS17 to SR5 and was fairly certain I was going back the way I had come several days before. Since I left Ancona, all roads had led to Pescara. At Scafa, I turned off the highway and headed back into the hills toward Lettomanoppello. It was more of a town than I had expected and Google Maps had no idea where the address was. My host had come down with a virus and was too sick to meet me. She couldn’t find me on WhatsApp to send me directions. After driving through streets barely wider than the car, I finally found a place to stop long enough to get directions from her. Apparently, only Apple Maps knew where to find the place. It still took me three tries to locate it and getting the car through the gate was a challenge. Once in, there was ample parking behind the building.
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| The House in Lettomanappello |
The unit appeared new but was sparsely furnished. Once again, there was no comfortable place to sit. Even the bed had an iron headboard, making it difficult to lean against. There was no wifi password posted and the host didn’t know what it was. The heat had been turned off. The wind was howling outside, and I needed three layers and two pairs of socks to stay warm. Without internet, I couldn’t work on my blog. I did some writing, munched some bread, cheese, and cookies, and settled down to read.
Nov. 22, 2024
Rental Unit in Lettomanoppelo, Italy
The landlady hadn’t sent the password when I woke up, but I did receive a message from her asking me to open the gate for the workmen. Apparently, there was only one remote. It had been very windy all night. Shutters were banging and equipment blew around the property. I had had to put in earplugs before I could sleep. I stepped outside to open the gate and the door blew closed. It locked automatically. I had nothing. My wallet, car keys, phone, and warm clothes were all locked in the house. It was sprinkling and still fairly windy. I huddled under an overhang and tried to figure out what to do. The landlady’s phone number was inside on my phone. She wasn’t expected to come and would probably think I had gone out if she messaged me and I didn’t answer.
While trying to figure out what to do, I saw a figure at an upstairs window. I manage to attract his attention and tried to explain my predicament in Italian. I thought he was with the workmen and hoped he would have the landlady’s phone number. He came down after a few minutes, but he didn’t have the landlady’s phone number. He seemed to have a hard time understanding me and barely spoke, himself. I began to wonder if he had something wrong with him.
Eventually, he led me to the contractor. He was more communicative and he had the landlady’s phone number. He called her and she said she’d come, but she had to come from Pescara. He said it would take her half an hour. The workmen were renovating another unit on the first floor. I was going to wait in the unit’s kitchen, but the man from upstairs indicated that I should come upstairs where it was warmer. After sitting there for a few minutes, I realized he was watching English television. I asked him if he spoke English and he said, “Yes.” Actually, he didn’t speak English very well, either, but it explained our difficulty communicating in Italian. It turned out his name was Claudio and he was from Norway. He was in Italy because he could make more money in Italy than in Norway. He and three other men were sharing the apartment above mine. None of them seemed to be working on Friday.
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| My Unit in Lettomanoppello |
I sat there, refusing food and drink (I had just had breakfast.), for nearly two hours until the landlady showed up. She was very nice about the whole thing. Fortunately, she seemed to have needed to come to talk to the contractor. She found the password for the WiFi which was located in the storage area. She was very surprised at the mess made by the wind. All kinds of debris had blown under my door during the night.
It was nearly noon before I got organized enough to leave the house. It had stopped raining and I decided to go to Introdacqua to see where some friends of mine, who were unfortunately in Germany, had moved. It was about an hour’s drive from Lettomanoppello. I retraced my track to Sulmona and then headed up a valley with snow dusted peaks on my left side, which was confusing, since I was sure than the bulk of the mountains were to my right.
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| Introdacqua |
When I got to Introdacqua, I found a parking lot near the city hall and parked easily. The sun came out and it felt warm. I decided I could leave my raincoat and umbrella in the car. It seemed the storm had passed. I walked around the town, which was built on a steep hillside. I wanted to take some photos for other friends who were curious about where our friends were living. Everything was closed, including the church. I climbed to the top of the town and discovered a tall tower up there that had been used as a lookout and defense of the town during the Middle Ages.
The town was originally settled by people sent to the area by the monks of the Abbey of San Clemente in Casauria to till the land. It is called Introdacqua because it is located at the end of a valley between two waterways. You could hear water running everywhere. A spring was running freely. About the time I got as far away from my car as I could get, a cloud filled the valley and it started to rain. The snow-covered peaks were quickly obscured by the cloud. I hurried back to my car.
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