Nothing really to report, except an incident while at dinner street-side. Cars had difficulty in the narrow street. As one passed there was a loud crunch as it ran over an electric scooter locked up right opposite to our table. The car reversed up and the passenger opened his door briefly for him to judge … Continue reading VF del sud day 33: Rest day in Lecce →

Early morning in the olive groves. Many have died - drought maybe? A slightly earlier start and it was very pleasant walking while it was still cool. The first two hours was farm roads, the middle section through barren ground dominated by wind turbines, and the last seven km the inevitable trudge through the satellite … Continue reading VF del sud day 32: Torchiarolo to Lecce, 23.5km →

Porta Lecce, Brindisi Something of a late start today as I was trying to avoid the thunderstorms. It wasn't long after setting out that I got to practice the putting on and taking off of the pack poncho. While I had it on I felt safer - I suspect October 1 is opening day of … Continue reading VF del sud day 31: Brindisi to Torchiarolo, 24km →

The old theory was that these columns marked the terminus of the via Appia, but more recent research believes they predate its construction. Why let facts get in the way of us posing at the end! A tough day at the office: Sam's legs bothering him combined with a long day, hot weather, and too … Continue reading VF del sud day 30: SMS to Brindisi, 27km →

Susan took the mochilla express, while Sam and I took the official alternate route. While the normal route is 30km, we were promised 20km. Unfortunately, not only was this a short measure, but the suggested path was not actually a path at first, but a walk along the beach. Having had a modest previous experience … Continue reading VF del sud day 29: Torre Canne to Torre Santa Sabrina, 24km →

We took liberties with the proscribed route again today, trimming 9km off the daily requirement. Just as well we did as Susan's feet did not stand up to the rigours of the day. So much so that we have ordered the 'mochilla taxi' for her tomorrow in the hope that her foot issues will subside. … Continue reading VF del sud day 28: Monopoli to Torre Canne, 21km →

After 26 days of walking covering some 618km, we figured that we had earned a rest day. And we thought we were on to a cheap holiday, but sadly this town uses euro currency. Personalized street side cafe Monopli is a nice town - or at least the old town is. In keeping with past … Continue reading VF del sud day 27: Monopoli →

The most scenic day yet, but tough physically! Facing a 30km day we made the obvious choice of walking along the road for a few kilometers. It turned out to be a great decision as it was a protected bike lane for most of it, and totally devoid of cyclists. Mind you, it was raining … Continue reading VF del sud day 26: Mola di Bari to Monopoli, 24km →

Leaving Bari old town, 0730 Sunday morning at 0730 was not the ghost town we expected. The beach promenade south of the city extends a long way, and was very busy with runners and regular folk taking a morning stroll. The street cleaners were out in force so the debris of Saturday night was being … Continue reading VF del sud day 24: Bari to Mola di Bari, 23km →

Bari is a big town, and the second biggest economic centre in southern Italy after Naples, so the folks that chose the route did an admirable job avoiding the worst of the industrial areas and new suburbs. We meandered through more olive groves, the fringes of an industrial park (a few years from now and … Continue reading VF del sud day 23: Bitonto to Bari, 20km →