Mariella rejoined me this morning and we picked up the Via Francigena on the opposite side of the river from where I left off last night, just outside Sarzana. Our plan is to follow the Via Francigena northward for one and a half stages to where it crosses the Via del Santo Volto, and then follow this route, also known as the mountain variant of the Via Francigena, to Lucca.
We set out along a canalside path then climbed up to the colourful village of Ponzano Superiore, then continued climbing through the bushes to Castello di Brina, the ruins of a fortification dating back to pre-Roman days. We climbed all the way up to 550 metres on the slope of the aptly named Monte Grosso, crossing from Liguria into Tuscany!
From here the path descended through the woods to the hamlet of Vecchietto, before climbing again to the circular hilltop village of Bibola before the steep descent into Aulla, where we are staying in the Foresteria of the abbey of San Carpasio, along with a lively group of pilgrims on their way to Rome.
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| Castello Brina |
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| Ponzano Superiore |
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| Vecchietto |
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| Bibola |
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| Castello di Bibola |
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| Plan of Bibola |
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| Covered street in Bibola |
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Aulla
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Aulla - the bell tower is of the abbey
where we are staying |
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| Sarzana - Aulla 17.5 km |
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