Italy to Santiago II Part 1: Via Domitia Day 9: Borgone di Susa - Susa

Stand at the crossroads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way lies: and walk in it, and find rest for your souls 

- Jeremiah 6:16

We were fortunate to be hosted by a long-distance cyclist in Avigliana: Giancarlo has cycled from Avigliana to Santiago, and is currently working on completing a long-distance cycling route that follows the Apennines all along the length of Italy - from top to toe. One section at a time. And he is of course familiar with the cycling paths in the area where he lives, and he suggested we follow the brand new Ciclovia Francigena della Val di Susa - a route so new my navigation tools didn't recognise  it - in order to shorten the day's stage and get to Susa as early as possible. A heavy rain warning was in effect for all day, and we didn't want to get any wetter than necessary! So we bundled up in all our waterproof gear - which had the agreeable effect of lightening our backpacks considerably - and said goodbye to our kind hosts Giancarlo and Betta, who accompanied us to Avigliana train station to catch a fifteen-minute train ride to Borgone di Susa, where we had left off walking the previous evening. 

We set off in a steady but light drizzle, as I tried out my new waterproofing gear for the first time. Instead of carrying a light rainproof/windproof jacket and a bright orange poncho to throw over top in heavy rain, I bought a garment from the Decathlon that is a cross between a long jacket and a poncho: it has fitted sleeves, and a hump for covering the backpack. It has the additional merit of being black rather than bright orange, a colour I have always detested! 

I also purchased a pair of supposedly waterproof gloves, which worked for a while but eventually started to let the rain in: it's probably best just to wear an ordinary pair of rubber dishwashing gloves, if you really don't want to get your hands wet! 😂

What's more, the gloves made it pretty much impossible to use a smartphone for taking photos, navigating or communicating. Though I did at one point manage to activate my phone without taking off my gloves, and take a picture of my right glove for illustrative purposes - using my left hand to hold the camera still and my nose to press the button! 😜

Luckily I didn't need to use the phone much for navigation, as the Ciclovia Francigena is very well signposted. 

You are here 😅

After walking ten kilometres in the rain, we were ready for a break by the time we came to Bussoleno. We dripped our way into a café, spread out our wet things on the chairs at a vacant table next to ours, and ordered hot drinks and sandwiches. 

When we had dried out sufficiently, we continued towards Susa along a dirt track parallel to the highway. Hoof prints in the mud (and other evidence 💩) suggested that the road was also used for moving herds of livestock, though we didn't meet any - until we came to the outskirts of the town, right outside the Lidl supermarket, where we literally crossed paths with a herd of cows!

We made it into the supermarket despite the cattle, stocked up on healthy snacks, and continued on our way into the centre of Susa.

Segusium, from the Gaulish word sego, meaning fort, Segusia and then Susa in Italian. The site was inhabited by Ligurian and then Celtic tribes before Julius Caesar made a pact with their king, Donnus. Numerous vestiges of the Roman city still survive, including the city gate now known as Porta Savoia, the Arch of Augustus, and the amphitheatre.

Franciscan friars established a monastery just outside the city walls, beside the ruins of the Roman amphitheatre, in the first quarter of the 13th century. Legend has it that it was Saint Francis himself who founded the monastery, on his way through the valley during his pilgrimage to Santiago in 1214, leaving behind a sleeve of his habit. The monastery complex is now the Convent Boutique Hotel, where we have the privilege of spending a night at a bargain rate offered only to pilgrims. The room is a dormitory with five beds, but we are the only ones staying here tonight, so we have been able to hang up our things to dry on the rungs of the ladders leading to the upper bunks! 

Borgone di Susa - Susa 21 km