DAY 52 - PONTREMOLI to FILETTO - 11 June 2026

-

Before checking out, we had a walk around Pontremoli, crossing the bridge to explore the old town then up to the Piagnaro castle for views. We sampled the local 'vanilla slice' (amor) - delicious! We also found out about Pontremoli's association with books. It began in the 16th century with itinerant booksellers that came from Pontremoli selling books town to town, in northern Italy. Now the booksellers award a prize for the best book each year.

The Via Francigena left using a fairly busy road but soon diverged off into small roads through hamlets. In front of us we had a spectacular view of the mountains, which were clear today. We passed vineyards, churches and many signboards which explained the history of the area, layer upon layer. We passed through agricultural land, including an equestrian centre with some unusual 'horses'. We learnt about tower houses (built to withstand a siege), victims of fascism, and stele statues (sandstone slabs carved with human features, from 4th to 1st millennium BC). We were able to see male and female stelae inside a church at Filattiera, and then some more behind it.

After a focaccia and a torta d'erbi (veggie pastry speciality), we climbed up through Filattiera. The Via then took us up through shady forest on mostly soft surfaces, a long distance walker's delight. There were some river crossings and an ancient chestnut forest, where stelae and menhirs had been found. There were also a lot of picnic tables at the chestnut forest but you needed long arms to reach them while seated!

After checking into our accommodation in Filetto, we had a short walk before enjoying an aperitivo in the piazza.

Pontremoli
Pontremoli this morning
Pontremoli
Amor - the local speciality that closely resembles a vanilla slice
Some Pontremoli book paraphernalia: A book bench, pavement mosaic of an itinerant bookseller, and a statue of Walt Disney characters donated to the town in recognition of its bookish heritage
Leaving Pontremoli in mid-morning 
On the Via Francigena you sometimes have the impression of walking through somebody's backyard

A water refill - plenty of water fountains on the route today
We learn a lot about the regions we pass through by reading information boards on the way
We had this jagged mountain range as a backdrop for the first half of today's walk

Walking through agricultural scenery
Historic village of Ponticello
Ponticello 
Shady path to take us forward
Via Francigena signposting was excellent again
The Via Francigena towards Filattiera 
On our way past a horse ranch. That one doesn't look like a normal horse.
Approaching the Pieve di Santo Stefano at Sorana, with the old village of Filattiera on the hill behind
Some of the stelae at Sorana
Lunch, Filattiera 
Climb up to the old village of Filattiera 

Medieval village of Filattiera
Walls of Filattiera 
A bit of uphill walking
Oratorio della Beata Vergine Maria 
Via Francigena towards Filetto 
Australian long-distance walker photographing fish
Some exercise along the way
The light at the end of the tunnel
Menhir at Filetto 
Picnic table for people with long arms
Chestnut forest at Filetto
Filetto
The Piazza at Filetto
Some bits and pieces from today's walk
Some more bits and pieces
Birds
Some other random animals from today's walk, including our first zebra sighting for this trip
Day 52 - Map

Day:                               52
Distance:                      18.8 km
Walking time:               4 hrs 14 mins
Elevation gain:             227 metres
Cumulative distance:  1057.97 km

Comments

  1. Jane12 June 2026 at 03:38

    Love the antics of the day 😆 Amazing book history for the town 📚
    But…the zebra in Italian countryside takes the vanilla slice 🦓 😉

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Barkers12 June 2026 at 06:41

      It did amaze us! But seeing a cow in the paddock did too. They're mostly kept in feedlots here.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous12 June 2026 at 22:50

    Amazing photos!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Barkers13 June 2026 at 05:53

      Thanks! We had great subject matter. 😊

      Delete
  3. Anonymous14 June 2026 at 08:30

    Today’s birds:

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous14 June 2026 at 08:32

    Today’s birds: Western House Martin, maybe Carrion Crow, Hooded Crow, maybe Italian Sparrow, Common Redstart

    ReplyDelete
  5. Barkers15 June 2026 at 07:43

    😊

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PREPARING FOR ANOTHER LONG WALK

-
Image
We're excited to be getting ready for another adventure! This time we are heading to Italy. The plan is to walk from the East Coast to the West Coast,  starting from Marina di Ravenna on the Adriatic Sea on Tuesday 21 April, arriving at Ostia on the Tyrrhenian Sea on Sunday 12 July.  Using walking paths and small roads, we aim to cover about 25 km most days,  with plenty of rest days in interesting places in between. We've pre-booked bed and breakfasts and small hotels in the places we pass through.  We're planning to write a blog post about our experiences every day. Follow along to share in wonderful vistas, fabulous food and the joys of long distance walking! Coming soon: Reading, Preparation 
Read more

TRAINING

-
Image
Approaching Lennox Head Last Saturday we completed our final training walk, from Ballina to Lennox Head. When we are travelling, our phones are very important. We use the Samsung Health app to record the day's walking statistics, take photos with the camera app, then compile the blog on our phones in the evening. Shouldering our full packs, we started out from Lighthouse Beach in Ballina. The fine drizzle gave us the opportunity to test out our hands-free umbrella holding system. We found something that worked for Kath, but Russell's is still a work in progress. We followed the sealed path along the coast, admiring fine views before heading into the coastal scrub. The path was busy and we shared it with cyclists, joggers, fellow walkers and a couple of groups in training for long distance walking - one even planning on walking the Via Francigena like us! The new facilities at Sharpes Beach - toilet, water, benches - were being well patronised. Someone had even built rock cairns...
Read more

DAY 1 - MARINA DI RAVENNA to RAVENNA - 21 April 2026

-
Image
Ceremonial selfie to mark the start of the walk - Marina di Ravenna After a wonderful week with family and friends we were very excited to begin our walk today!  We flagged down the 5:30 am bus to get to Marina di Ravenna, our starting point,  in time for sunrise over the Adriatic. We walked along the breakwater, marvelling over the fishing huts jutting out into the sea.  One of them provided a temporary shelter as we scrambled into wet weather gear when the weather changed.  Luckily the rain and wind did not last for long.  The wet boardwalk and early morning light made for good photography as we followed a coastal bike path. Many of the beach shack restaurants,  closed at the moment,  looked as if they could be washed away in a good storm!  Leaving the coast, our path took us through fields of crops and workers planting trees before heading back into Ravenna for breakfast and a rest at our hotel. Ravenna is known for its wonderful mosaics. We ha...
Read more