If you would like to see details about our journey, check out our itinerary and our bike route.
When we woke up, we heard the sounds of vendors setting up for the Saturday market in the square outside our guesthouse. As we walked our bikes through the crowds, I spotted underwear! I have no idea if it will fit, but I've got it now.
Today was one of those magical days. The route was long and challenging, but very ridable and beautiful. We started along the River Brenta, on a designated regional bike route, with hundreds of other bikers in full kit--many in team jerseys--passing us. It was a gorgeous Saturday morning, and the path was also full of walkers and dogs.
We arrived in Feltre just as workers were setting up bleachers and banners and barricades for an international night-time running race called the Giro delle Mura (Ring of the Walls). It involves completing multiple laps of a circuit within the walls of the city, and draws crowds of people.
Of course, we didn't know anything about that ahead of time.
We checked in to a lovely small guesthouse, with host Anna helping us store our bikes and telling us a little about the town and the dinner options. After showers, we walked to the cathedral for a tour of the Roman ruins below it. We found out that the archaeological site had opened only a few weeks earlier, and that guided tours by local volunteers were free to the public. A nice young man worked his way through an English tour for us, which we much appreciated. We would have never gotten as much out of a printed or audio tour.
When we left the cathedral, we walked to a newer part of town for groceries, and then looked for a place to eat dinner. After striking out at a couple of interesting places (one was fully booked for the evening, the other was crowded and noisy), we settled for sushi in a quiet, almost empty restaurant. A fun little change.
I wasn't quite ready to go to the room yet. Ken offered (somewhat reluctantly) to join me on a hike to the top of the city to see the old square and fortress there. It ended up being quite a hike, weaving through the running course and climbing steep stairs in an old park. Oh, and it started to rain while we were up there, but not very hard, and we had our raincoats with us.
Tired, happy, filled with history, we made our way back to the guesthouse and a very good night's sleep.
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| Leaving Bassano del Grappa. |
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| Biking up the River Brenta on a dedicated path on a beautiful weekend morning. |
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As we went through each village making our way up the river, we saw colored ribbons and flags hanging from houses, fences, buildings. When we got to a little town with a bridge, we saw flags across the bridge and up and down the river, and figured out that each community along the way was decked out in its colors.
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We stopped just beyond the bridge, for cold drinks and a caprese salad.
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 | | Our view up the river from our lunch stop. |
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| About 15 miles up the Brenta, we had to cross the river and climb up over a pass to meet up with the Torrente Stizzon, which we would then follow to Feltre. |
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| The beautiful cycle path along the Brenta ended at an odd river crossing behind a locked gate... |
 | | ...then a small road through a little village, and finally an old, old mountain lane up over the pass. It was interesting. |
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| Wild crocuses growing along the hillside at the top of the pass. |
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After hiking our bikes up the pass, we paused at a little chapel for a snack before coasting down the other side.
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| Feltre is called the vertical city because it is built on terraces up a steep hillside. The cathedral is near the bottom of the hill. |
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| Behind the cathedral is a complex of medieval buildings, including a baptistry. |
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| Also behind the cathedral is the Imperial Gate, built in 1489 and restored in 1545. |
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| The Cattedrale di San Pietro Apostolo was built in the 14th century and renovated during the Renaissance. |
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| Underneath the cathedral and the lawn in front of it is a site with Roman ruins. |
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| Archaeologists suspect that the Roman city spreads well beyond what they have uncovered, but they could not excavate further without jeopardizing the existing structures. |
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| Roman road below the cathedral. |
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| Road and walls to buildings from the Roman era. |
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| Archaeologists found the foundations of an entire Roman building, including a mosaic floor. |
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| A second room in the same building had a checkerboard marble floor. |
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| At the top of the city is the 16th-century Palazzo della Ragione. |
