Day ride to Merano

October 3, 2018

So I’ve been threatening to take a break from the blog from time to time. Today’s as good a time as any, so I’ll just let the photos and video of our day ride to Mantua speak for the day. If I skip the narrative, I’ll save some time for milling around Bolzano before we depart for Trento. See you tomorrow.

Bolzano must see some bike tourists. The bike room in Hotel Figl had hanging capacity for about thirty.

In the plaza outside the duomo. Another beautiful, sunny day. And warm! Did I mention yet that it’s warmer down here in the valley?

The duomo is worth more than this one shot, but we’re antsy to hit the road. Maybe tomorrow.

The architecture in Bolzano is really beautiful. One building after another looks like a work of art.

Bolzano has one of the best urban bike networks we’ve seen anywhere. The paths and signage are excellent.

Build it, and they will come. The bike paths are very heavily used, to the point of being overcrowded at times. You really have to keep alert.

Mareccio Castle sits above the Adige, just on the outskirts of Bolzano.

The bike route follows right along the east bank of the Adige, through vinyards and apple orchards. The quality is about like this the whole way.

We’re off the bike road here, crossing over to the west bank for a few miles because of a construction detour.

We stopped for lunch in Lana, a small village on the west side of the Adige. Here, our bikes share the spotlight with a modern, user friendly tobacco dispensary. It’s a bit hard to read in this photo, but the kiosk instructs you to use your ID, drivers license, or even passport.

There’s a reason that apple strudel is such a dish here.

Looking north across a sea of apple orchards to the outskirts of Merano.

Near Merano. This is really beautiful cycling country. It’s easy to imagine basing yourself here for a week or two and take day rides in all directions.

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Ride stats today: 45 miles, 1,400’

Today's ride: 45 miles (72 km)
Total: 1,139 miles (1,833 km)

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