September 18, 1998
Spodnja Idrija to Gorizia
The morning began, not surprisingly, with a great smorgesboard breakfast. We were a bit sad leaving this terrific hotel, and even sadder when it began lightly sprinking soon after. We decided to change our original planned route eastward through the karst region because of the weather, and instead backtracked to the Soca with the intent to cross over into Italy at Gorizia.
Well, we almost backtracked. Actually, we missed our turn somehow on leaving town and took a much quieter secondary road that followed a small tributary of the Idria to a small pass and then dropped back down another one before rejoining the main highway. The climb was quite steep, and unpaved for about 10k.
As we climbed the weather steadily worsened - the drizzle amplified to a full blown rainstorm accompanied near the summit by thunder and flashes of lightning. By the time we were thoroughly soaked, a miracle appeared in the form of a good Samaritan - Franko drove by in his small car, stopping at first to offer us mints from his open window and attempting to engage us in conversation in the pouring rain before continuing on ahead. Five minutes later he returned, with the offer for us to wait out the storm in his nearby home. We followed him downhill 3k to the family farm, deep in the river valley, with him waiting at every bend in the road for us to catch up as we slowly coasted down the steep unpaved slope.
Visiting his home was one of the most special experiences we've come across in our travels. We met his whole family 60 year old Franz, celebrating his birthday; his wife Olga, and Franko's girlfriend who has lived with them for the past 3 years. This is a 7th generation farmstead. We were treated with great hospitality - Olga fed us macaroni and parmesan cheese; they dried our jackets and shirts by their wood stove; warmed us with schnapps; and gave us a tour of their house and stables. The most striking feature of their home to us was the waist-high wood-heated slab in the leisure room. As Franko described it, the spends the winter nights lying together on the slab watching TV. In the stable we enjoyed visiting a clutch of rabbits and a two day old calf ramming its head against its mother, and watch with bemusement as Franko fed cigarettes to the goat.
Miraculously the skies cleared over the next hour, and we enjoyed a beautiful ride for the rest of the day. We followed this small stream down to the Idria and then on to the Soca, and then upriver along the highway to Kanal and eventually into Italy through Gorizia. The Soca has a remarkable turquise hue. We arrived in Gorizia and eventually stumbled our way to an inn a bit out of town and near the Slovenian border. We finished off the day by walking back to the town center to stop in at a very welcome pizzaria.
Today's ride: 50 miles (80 km)
Total: 382 miles (615 km)
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