It’s worth stepping out the door to look across Portoferraio Bay again this morning; as I suppose it would be every morning, come rain or come shine. Hard to imagine becoming jaded to this view.
Afterwards we come back inside to settle down in the common area of our penthouse and wait for Alexandro to appear with breakfast. Once again we have the place to to ourselves because the neighboring unit is still unoccupied.
We’re off together to explore the eastern half of the island today. Rachael asked me to come up with an out and back so she can either race on ahead of me or turn back early if she gets tired of the hills. I develop four alternatives for her consideration, and she chooses the forty mile option that skirts the southeastern coast at Porto Azzurro before curving up the east side to Cavo and turning back.
We can’t really claim to enjoy the eight mile ride to Porto Azzurro. The first two miles leaving town are much like yesterday’s ride west; but in this direction the traffic continues heavy for much further; and not long after leaving town the road narrows to two lanes with an uneven road surface that leaves you continually anxious about the traffic. There are a few spots where we leave the road and wait for a queue to pass.
No idea what’s going on here, but it’s a chance to showcase the vineyards. I think most of the Elba Rosso must come from around here, the flattest and most arable part of the island.
Porto Azzurro, once we finally arrive at it, is an attractive little place. There’s ferry service to here from Piombino also, so it would make an alternative base for a visit to the island. I think if we ever make it back to Elba I might stay here and use it as a base to see parts of the island we won’t get to this time. It would be good for either biking or hiking, with several enticing hiking trails starting right from town. You could be out walking along the coast or up into the mountainous interior in just a few blocks.
Porto Azzurro is much smaller and cozier than Portoferraio.
Traffic lessens significantly on the other side of Porto Azzurro as we turn northward. It’s never quite as quiet as I found the remote western end of the island to be yesterday, but it’s quiet enough; and the further north we go the quieter it becomes. For the first few miles north of town we face a moderate climb up to a low saddle between a coastal headland and the north-south range to our west. The countryside is beautiful, with the lower slopes cleared for vineyards and small holdings and the high elevations blanketed by gorgeous bright green pines.
over the top, we drop down to the sea following the course of Elba’s ‘river’, dry in this season, and coming to the shore at Rio Marina. It’s a beautiful little village with an attractive seaside promenade above the marina lined with benches in the sun - the obvious place to stop for lunch.
The pine-blanketed slopes on this part of the island are striking in today’s midday sun.
After lunch we bike up the slender road behind the clock tower looking for another perspective on the unusual structure, and find that the road just keeps going. It’s a beautiful panoramic course that follows the contour of the shoreline, so we decide to follow it as far as it will take us. It looks like it might continue on and eventually double back to join the main road; but after a mile the pavement ends; and in another half mile the road itself ends at the beginning of a walking path up into the hills. Not quite the experience we’re looking for today, so we turn back here and coast back to the port.
Back at Rio Marina again, we continue north on the coastal road for a ways, climbing to the top of the next low saddle for a view north to the bright red peninsula between here and Cavo. We turn back from here, but with more time and better legs I’m sure it would be a wonderful ride to continue north to Cavo and then double back along the high road to Rio Nell’ Elba. If we come back some year I’m sure I’d like to make that loop.
On the way back, we scrap our original plan of an out and back ride through Porto Azzurro. Instead we take the most direct route back to Portoferraio, over the top, hoping for a quieter ride. It is quieter - practically an abandoned road really, and a very beautiful 900’ ascent at about 9-10% that gives us awesome views back down the course of the river. From the top we drop steeply down the west side toward Portoferraio Bay, enjoying spectacular but dark views across the bay to Portoferraio and ahead to Monte Perone in the west, the high point on the island. A thrilling ride, but one that ends too soon back on the main road where we endure four less peasant miles back to town. Better than coming through Porto Azzuro for sure, but still not the best.
And a special word for the drivers on Elba - some of the worst in Italy, from our brief experience here. Not far from town a driver makes a right turn directly in front of Rachael, close enough that she would have crashed into him had she been moving faster.
The view north to the most iron rich part of the island.
Ride stats today: 34 miles, 2,900’; for the tour: 2,570 miles, 95,400‘
Today's ride: 34 miles (55 km) Total: 2,570 miles (4,136 km)
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Jen RahnFor Elba drivers
Very special word for you:
Effity eff bomb?
Glad you got through in two intact Team Anderson pieces again! Reply to this comment 3 years ago
Scott AndersonTo Jen RahnNow that’s why we should be really packing you along, Jen. We’re always at a loss for words at times like this. Reply to this comment 3 years ago
