tales of wander

Day 3: Pisa 45.5 mi, 895 ft. As each day passes, we get better at navigating our way out of the city. Once outside of it, we started the route on a gravel path along the Serchio river. I’ve loved the mix of terrain on these rides, with lots of gravel to break up the monotony of riding on the roads. We made a coffee stop at Marina di Vecchiano, which is a beach town on the Mediterranean, then continued our ride to Pisa, where we were confronted by a sweaty, pulsating mass of humanity, all competing for a picture with the leaning tower in the most clichéd pose possible.

(Sorry, I get a little cranky when met with a horde, particularly when it’s 89 degrees with humidity that makes it feel more like 98. I. am. melting. Also, this is my second time seeing the leaning tower, so there’s that.)

As I said, it was a hot day, so we made a quick exit and caught the Puccini Bikeway back to Lucca, with a stop for lunch along the way. By the time we returned, I had just enough time to shower, grab a quick bite, then return to the old town to meet the ladies of my group for a night of opera. Lucca is the home of Puccini, the famous opera composer, so we got tickets to a concert featuring music from Puccini and Verdi operas, while the men went out for steaks (which hilariously felt like a small protest against opera). What matters is we all had a satisfying evening doing something we enjoyed.

Day 4: Rest day. 26 mi. Yes, I know. That does say “rest day” followed by more miles. This day was a planned day off from cycling where everyone could choose how they wanted to spend it—whether sightseeing, wine tasting, shopping, or just relaxing. I already did my sightseeing, so while others in the group did that, I decided to have a more leisurely day, starting with a recovery ride. It was meant to be an easy 10-mile jaunt to see Villa Reale, a beautiful Renaissance-era palazzo that we passed on our first day. I downloaded a route and navigated my way to the lovely gravel path that runs along the river. Then…well, I guess I just lost myself in the enjoyment of the ride, because by the time I checked the route, I had long passed my turn. It looked like retracing my steps would take longer than simply taking the app’s suggested reroute, so I took the reroute and discovered that RideWithGPS has a different notion of rideable roads than I do (and I’m an adventurous rider). After several failed attempts to follow the app’s various suggestions (ending at the edge of a field that had a narrow path of dirt or a really rough gravel road that would’ve required a mountain bike), I finally lost faith in it and retraced my steps. To make a long story short(er), I did get to the Villa, but it was closed. Womp womp.

Thankfully, my little adventure only used up my morning. I spent the rest of the afternoon hunting down the best coffee, panini, and gelato I could find, then taking a siesta before meeting the group for a fun dinner out. Hopefully, a day of binging will not weigh me down for tomorrow’s hill ride.