DAY 50 - FORNOVO DI TARO to BERCETO - 9 June 2026

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A glorious day in the mountains!

We quickly rejoined the Via Francigena and it took us up and over, with wonderful views. We found a statue of a knight and a bear before the road dropped into the valley then continued to climb. In one hamlet we saw three pilgrims resting on the benches - our first fellow walkers for this Via. The deviation by the river was closed so we continued up on the road,  finding a very welcome fountain and bench at Bardone. It was quickly followed by two more,  in the same hamlet!

Finally the Via left the road and plunged uphill on gravel in shade,  then alongside a pasture before entering the forest again.

At the top we descended steeply, sometimes on a single track. It was shady and we went through some small hamlets.

After a while we rejoined the road,  which is the wet weather and cyclist Via Francigena, to take us into Cassio for lunch.

Rejuvenated, we headed out on the road, with great views of a rock formation in the valley,  the Devil's Jumps. We deviated on an off road track briefly before burning up some kilometres on the asphalt. At Cavazzola we reached the 1000 kilometre mark of our walk, and celebrated with the traditional ceremonial selfie (or 2).

For the last 8 km we followed the off-road Via Francigena.  There were great views,  grassy paddocks and steep descents. We arrived at our lodging just after 6pm, in time to use the washing machine before dinner. 

Shortly into the day's walk we came across this pilgrims' rest area
Wonderful views opened up as we climbed into the hills
A short but pleasant descent
We do love coming across Roman remains. Here it's a Roman villa at Roncolongo
A closed dirt track meant an extended climb on the asphalt alternative
Approaching Bardone on the Via Francigena
The climb to Bardone
A welcome water fountain at Bardone 
About to leave Bardone as a few walkers and cyclists come in
More climbing after Bardone 
Scenic walking on this stretch of the Via Francigena 
A tricky downhill bit
Casola
A bit more climbing. There was quite a bit of climbing today. 
Lunch in Cassio
The hostel in Cassio
Australian long-distance walker pointing out the Devil's Jumps rock formation across the valley
The Via Francigena was again very well signposted
A grassy descent on the way on from Cassio
Sweeping views on the descent from Cassio
Ceremonial selfie - 1000km into the walk. A Via Francigena marker on one side of the road . . .
. . . and expansive views on the other
Via Francigena approaching Berceto
A grassy section of the path
A minor obstacle
Berceto in sight after a long day's walk
The entry into Berceto
Berceto
Via Francigena pilgrim statue at Berceto 
Bits and pieces
Bird
Day 50 - Map
Day:                               50
Distance:                      31.99 km
Walking time:               6 hrs 56 mins
Elevation gain:             1318 metres
Cumulative distance:  1008.75 km

Comments

  1. Anonymous10 June 2026 at 00:19

    Congratulations on passing 1000km!🏅

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous10 June 2026 at 00:33

    Well done 🏅You are both amazing and some of those hills 😮‍💨

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous10 June 2026 at 05:31

    Ah yes, remember the wooden sculptures, and the steep, steep road down. Congrats on your 1000km, looking good you two. Wendy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Barkers10 June 2026 at 05:53

      We were thinking of you today when we did this! Hope you enjoyed revisiting it.

      Delete
  4. Anonymous10 June 2026 at 05:43

    Well done guys. Richard

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Barkers10 June 2026 at 05:53

      Thanks Richard. Now for the next bit...

      Delete
  5. Anonymous10 June 2026 at 22:25

    Massive achievement!! Epic! And a 32 km day to top it off.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Barkers11 June 2026 at 05:55

    We were quite tired but definitely a day to remember!

    ReplyDelete

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