The multiple weather forecasts available were very conflicting. Although there appeared to be a drying trend in the morning, the final decision on whether or not to ride was left to a look out of the hotel room window! Really the only forecast that counts. Upon seeing some clouds and some blue sky this morning we agreed it was a go - but we wanted to be quick as some forecasts suggested afternoon showers.
In Varese we stayed in a business style hotel and the breakfast was all business. Even had scrambled eggs and bacon in a warmer. So many full trays of food you have to wonder what they do with the items that are not eaten. Today we only saw three other people while we were there, and they did not appear to be big eaters. We did our best. Scott completed two trips through the buffet including three double espressos.
We were fully caffeinated and on the road by 09:30. Starting with a quick look at downtown Varese, it confirmed our view that it does look like a great place to visit - when it`s not raining. Our routing led us out of town and then quickly transitioned to a bike route and a sharp decline down to the lake elevation. We rode bike trails for the majority of the 30 kilometre distance to Sesto Calende.
A static display on a roundabout. ¨The Aermacchi or Macchi MB-326 is a light military jet trainer designed in Italy. It is one of the most commercially successful aircraft of its type, ¨ or so says Wikipedia.
ann and steve maher-wearyDid you pick some up for supper?☺️ It looks like they are about the same price as here. They were 10Euros for supper for two. I asked our hotel lady if she thought we'd paid too much and she said the price fluctuates depending upon availability. With the rain come the bounty of mushrooms. It hadn't rained much so it might have been on the high end. However with so much rain in the forecast, I guess the price will come down. Reply to this comment 2 years ago
The second lake we passed by was Lago di Comabbio. Pat was most interested in a regatta being held here today. It looked to be a significant event with various sized boats competing. We had seen four person sculls at other lakes but not up close. They are a different design than Pat is familiar with. They are not a sleek sit on top type but instead, the hull is more canoe like in design.
After leaving Lago di Comabbio we had a short distance to ride on back roads to Sesto Calende. Sesto Calende is located in Lombardy but on the border with Piedmont. The town is located at the point where Ticino River leaves Lake Maggiore on its journey towards the Po River.
Arriving at the Ticino River that leads to Lago Maggiore. Our tour route has now circled back to the southern tip of the lake where we began several days ago.
Due to weather uncertainties our ride today was short and we arrived at our destination around 1 pm. Our room was not quite ready when we stored our bikes for the day. The hotel manager carried all our panniers in one trip up a flight of stairs to our room and we set off the explore the small town of Sesto Calende. It is a very pretty small town on the east bank of the Ticino River. A couple of kilometre promenade stretches along the river beyond both ends of the town. On this unexpected dry and warm fall Sunday afternoon there were many people out for a stroll. It appears to be the norm but today was also voting day in Italy. Maybe they were all out voting.
We enjoyed a coffee before returning to our room. There we received an email that Scott had left his phone in the hotel room in Varese. A bit of a bother but he does not really use it that much except to listen to the BBC podcasts and get some other communication. It does not have European sim card so we asked if they would mail it to our home in Canada, to which they agreed.
We set out to see if we could cross a nearby bridge to the other side of the river but it began to shower and upon reaching the car / train bridge, it did not look pedestrian friendly. We spent the rest of the evening wandering about before calling it a night. Tomorrow we will leave this Italian lake area and head south into the Piedmont region.
Election day. Interesting that Italy seems to be very restrictive on political signage. This poster was on a local board along with other candidates' posters.
