Cammino verso Assisi (Via della Costa) Day 3: Moneglia - Levanto

Set out early on Day 3 to avoid the heat. At 7 am we dropped by a hotel in Moneglia owned by a friend from our book club to ask for a stamp on our credenziale and then headed out of town, up the hill through the hamlet of Lemeglio to San Pantaleo at 325 metres above sea level.  

Leaving Moneglia just after dawn

Still on the Sentiero Liguria / Via della Costa

The village of Lemeglio

Into the woods

Looking back down towards Moneglia

We crested the hill and continued through the woods, descending steeply towards Deiva Marina on a path that would be unwalkable on a wet day: it was quite obvious that the trail would become a stream bed in rainy weather, and the crumbly slate would become dangerously slippery underfoot. But luckily it was dry and sunny and we proceeded safely down into Deiva, arriving not at the modern tourist developments along the beach but into the old part of the town, further inland. 

Deiva Marina

  

Someone seems to think this garden needs protecting 
from the birds with reflective plastic bottles...
even though there's no fruit or vegetables growing in it...

Deiva Marina

At Deiva, Mariella had to leave me and go back home for a couple of days due to family commitments. I carried on, scrambling up another rocky hill rather like the ones we climbed yesterday, but not so high. At the top I took a detour to Punta Apicchi, where I rested my feet and enjoyed an early lunch in a shady picnic spot with a sea view.  

View from Punta Apicchi

View from Punta Apicchi

View from Punta Apicchi in the other direction

View of my feet

After this break I carried on along a dirt road that wound through the woods and around the hill to come out in the gardens and vineyards of Costa, one of the five villages making up the municipality of Framura. 

Coming into Costa

The main street in Costa

The clock tower in Costa

Pilgrim hostel in Costa, first opened on December 27, 1400.
Unfortunately closed this year due to plague. 
Not for the first time, I imagine!

I followed the path down to the water with the intention of heading towards Bonassola along the cycle path, but accidentally ended up at the wrong end of the town(s), and it was a lucky accident as I found myself in a lovely village I had not yet explored, Setta, and then on a beautiful beach with sparkling clear water and hardly anyone swimming in it! 

Path down to the sea

My beach!

The passeggiata a mare in Framura

After a quick swim, I stashed my sweaty hiking gear in my backpack, put on a sundress and sandals, and strolled along the seawalk constructed to join the various beaches of Framura and allow pedestrians to get around the rocky points in between them. It passed the train station and led to the start of a 6 kilometre cycle and pedestrian path running along the route of old railway line, including tunnels, to Bonassola and Levanto. Numerous cyclists and a few pedestrians use these tunnels to get to secluded beaches and rocky coves accessible only by boat or through the gaps between tunnels, where small groups and even single bathers had a whole beach to themselves, in perfect "social distancing" style! There were even a few joggers, training at a time of day when it is unbearably hot for running on the earth's surface.     

Happy to escape from the midday sun, I plunged gratefully into this cool, damp underground world, feeling a bit like a hobbit in the Lord of the Rings as I tunnelled further and further into the bowels of the mountain.

Into the mountain

Railway tunnel architecture at its finest

Over the next hour or so I had plenty of opportunities to observe details of early 20th-century railway tunnel construction. 

I discovered that these stripy railway signals are actually made of 
20 x 20 cm black and white ceramic tiles just like the ones in my kitchen!

The meaning of life

I emerged from this cool, damp world into the afternoon sun in the pretty beach town of Bonassola, where I stopped for (another) lunch. 

A warm day, but I think this thermometer is exaggerating a bit!

Another series of tunnels took me the rest of the way to Levanto. 

Despite the beauty of these beaches, I was too tired for another swim, so I headed directly to the Levanto tourist information office in a former convent to get a stamp for my credenziale, and from there to the train station to catch a ride home. 

Tomorrow, a rest day (already!) to catch up on some leftover bits of work and make a plan for the next few days!

Moneglia - Levanto 25 km
(approximately - no signal in the tunnels!)

Cammino verso Assisi (Via della Costa) Day 2: Sestri Levante - Moneglia

 After yesterday's "warm-up hike" of only 10 km, today things started getting real! 

We set off from Luna Blu Beach, where we left off yesterday afternoon, along the waterfront and across the town of Sestri Levante to Riva, following the cycle path parallel to the main road. After a brief stop for a slice of cheese focaccia in Riva, we made our way around the back of the shipyard and up the hill towards Punta Baffe.   

... and up the hill...

... and up the hill... 

... as the day grew warmer and warmer. 

At Punta Baffe the trail splits: left, toward Mt. Moneglia, or right, signposted as the shorter route to Moneglia. But shorter does not necessarily mean easier, as we soon discovered! We chose to turn right and take the route closest to the coast, rather than heading up toward the mountain, but sticking to the coast, in Liguria, means going up and down over ridges, in and out of the valleys positioned at right angles to the coastline. This was partly because I wanted to take a different route from the way I went on my way to Rome, but also because it was signposted as the shorter route. The trail descended steeply toward Vallegrande, where we stopped at Nua Natua, a bar and restaurant literally in the middle of nowhere, to replenish our water supply. Down a little further, and we came to a cool creek lined with ferns and populated by dragonflies hovering mid-air and water-boatmen skimming over the water. I soaked my feet in the stream while dining on a boiled egg, a piece of cheese and an apple. It was a lovely resting spot, was lovely, but we had to get out of Vallegrande somehow, and this meant climbing up the hill... 

... and up the hill...

... and up the hill...

... as the afternoon grew hotter and hotter!

There was no shade anywhere along the trail to Moneglia, unless you crouched down on the ground below a spindly pine or a colourful strawberry tree (corbezzolo): the only trees capable of clinging to the crumbly slate of the mountain slopes. The temperature must have been above 30°C in the afternoon, at least in this corner with its own particular micro-climate. We were grateful to reach the highest point of our hike (only 300 metres, though we felt as though we had climbed much higher!) and turn inland into the shade of the woods for the descent into the town of Moneglia. 

We didn't stop for a swim this time, as we had an appointment with a friend for a ride home - we're still close enough to return home every evening, and this is what we plan on doing for as long as we remain in our own region, Liguria, in view of the fact that many of the more inexpensive accommodations such as hostels are closed this year and the convenience of hiking a route that is more or less parallel to a major train line! 

Sestri Levante waterfront in the morning

Pedestrian bridge in Riva

At the trailhead

View of Riva from above

It's a long way up!

When a butterfly lands on your walking stick

The watchtower at Punta Baffe

View from Punta Baffe back to Riva, Sestri Levante
and Chiavari, our starting point yesterday!

Medieval watchtower at Punta Baffe

View of the ground we will be covering in the next few days!
Looks rather daunting!

The ideal spot for a lunch break

Nua Natua, the bar that saved us from running out of water
A paradise between the hills and the sea!

It's a long way up - again!

Corbezzolo - Strawberry tree
It doesn't actually have strawberries on it,
but it does have edible red fruit!

We're still on the Sentiero Liguria

Pine needles on steroids!

Another view of troubles to come

Moneglia coming into sight! At last!

Moneglia

Sestri Levante - Moneglia 15 km
750 m total elevation gain

Cammino verso Assisi (Via della Costa) Day 1: Chiavari - Sestri Levante

Time for another Long Walk! 

After Rome and Santiago, the logical choice for my next Long Walk is the Via di San Francesco, to Assisi.

It doesn't pass by Chiavari, but I like to set out from home, so I stepped out the door today headed in the same direction as I took on my first Long Walk, to Rome, five years ago to the day! Part of my route will overlap with that walk, up to Lucca, after which I will veer off in the direction of Florence along the Via di San Jacopo in Toscana, and from Florence to the Sanctuary of La Verna and the official start of the Via di San Francesco. 

This morning there was a severe thunderstorm warning in effect, so I waited until it passed before setting off in the afternoon over the bridge to Lavagna, where I was joined by my walking buddy Mariella.  

Lavagna

Lavagna

Lavagna

Chiesa di Santo Stefano, Lavagna

"Don't start walking without the taste of wine in your mouth"
Good advice (?), but we didn't follow it! 

This is why it's called Lavagna (Italian for blackboard): the town is built on slate!

We took it easy, since we had set off late in the day and the afternoon was hot, and took the low road, walking the route known as the "panoramica" or scenic route above Lavagna to Cavi. From Cavi, however, there was no avoiding the steep climb up to the ruined church of Sant'Anna or the steep descent to Sestri Levante on the other side. 

View over Cavi di Lavagna

Church above Cavi di Lavagna

Ruins of the church of Sant'Anna

Sestri Levante as seen from Sant'Anna

The Sentiero Liguria is well marked

Here the Sentiero Liguria coincides with the Via della Costa,
the route across Liguria which joins the Camino di Santiago with 
the Via Francigena and also the Via di San Francesco

Hot but happy at Sant'Anna

Descending toward Sestri Levante

Coming down the hill from Sant'Anna in the hot sunshine, we were waylaid by the vision of Luna Blu Beach waiting for us, and gave up the hardships of pilgrimage in favour of a refreshing swim and drinks at the beach bar, in its final week of operation before shutting down for the fall and winter.   

Today, my pilgrimage ends here!

The walker's reward: a swim and aperitifs on the beach

Looking sharp at the bar in our matching sunhats & face masks!

Chiavari - Sestri Levante 10 km