After a 5 am arrival at Wytze’s house in Holland, we slept well and took the morning off. In the afternoon, we didn’t do much more than some shopping, walking the dog and I wrote a blog post. Well, Andrew baked an awesome apple pie and Wytze made lasagna for dinner, so good! After dinner we watched a movie I had been wondering about for years, Tom Waits in “Down by Law”. It was funny for us that we watched it with Italian subtitles which meant that for the Italian dialog there were no subtitles! I loved this interesting/weird film.

The next day, we headed to Amsterdam to be tourists. We parked at Wytze’s son’s apartment and walked quite a bit through the city, arriving at the famous Rijksmuseum at our ticket time, 11:30. We checked out the 1600’s floor, seeing lots of Rembrandts although maybe the most famous one, The Night Watch, is still being studied (Operation Night Watch) and is visible but not at close range like all the other masterpieces. We also checked out the Special Collections area with ship models, old guns, etc.

We left before we could get tired and had some lunch at a café. Then we reserved spots on a canal cruise boat – not one of the big covered ones I had ridden on before, but a small open-air boat. When the time came we joined four others and had a nice one hour cruise in the electric boat with commentary from the captain who was from Suriname. Amsterdam is great from the water. By the end of the cruise the sun was even poking out a little, for the first time since Bari.

As we walked through the city, it was fun seeing how many electric cars there were. Other than Teslas and VWs, most models here are different than at home. There are lots of really small ones and I saw a large delivery van too. Lots of charging stations were in use. On the drive in to Amsterdam we saw a huge BYD dealership.

We tried a New England (hazy) IPA at a classic old pub called De Ysbreeker (The Ice-breaker). Great atmosphere and I somehow acquired a souvenir glass. We walked back, drove home and had a nice dinner, followed by another James Bond movie. We watched “Diamonds are Forever”, again having been that day to the exact place James Bond walked (in this case Sean Connery).

The next day we shopped for the Andes Trail party in the morning, then cleaned up the house and did laundry while Wytze took care of some business. The weather had changed from gray to clear, bright and sunny. We had lunch when Wytze returned then went out for a bike ride. The three of us did about 65 km, a mix of gravel and paved roads with some dirt single track. We stopped at a cyclist’s café for drinks, then headed home. Right as we rode through the back field and arrived, who should drive up but Miranda! We started the party with her, then other Andes Trail veterans arrived. Cees could stay only for a little while. Ype, Bastiaan and Jan arrived, and Bart from nearby. The bond we all share from that crazy trip five years ago is strong and amazing. Conversation flowed along with fantastic wines (thanks Bart!) and delicious foods thanks to many. It was past midnight when we went to bed.

The next day, Friday, was my last full day of the trip. We had breakfast and said good-bye to Andrew, off to Germany to visit friends. Jan left as well, but Ype decided to stay and went on another great gravel ride with Wytze, Joke and me. It was another sunny bright day, kind of cool but warm in the sun. We rode to Manuel’s café and had apple cake and tea. Then back home along forest trails and small roads, a little over 50 km. After beers and snacks, we did some work on bikes, for me it was just boxing mine up for the flight. Then Wytze convinced Ype to stay over again and pulled together an amazing four course dinner. Even with severe competition, the dessert was one of the best of the trip! Simple fruit with ice-cream and chocolate. We had a real treat later in the evening – we watched an amazing movie “The Grand Budapest Hotel”. If you haven’t seen it, watch it.

The last day of September, 2024, was our longest day of the tour in time and in distance. The four of us woke up together for the last time this year in Lecce, Italy and we didn’t go to sleep for a long, long time.

We walked to our last breakfast, in a typical nice little café. A couple of modest pastries with our drinks of choice, in my case fresh squeezed succo d’arancia. Back at the apartment we packed up and rode off to the train station after 10. We took a little detour to a bike shop and were partially successful in getting bike boxes: one down, three to go. Wytze provided quite some entertainment by showing off his skill in riding and comedy by carrying the big unwieldy box to the station.

There were many trains to Bari and we had no trouble loading the bikes and our precious box. The train ride was less than two hours. It felt weird to be moving so fast – up to 160 kph, we hadn’t moved at half that speed for the last full month.

In Bari we parked by the station and Wytze and I checked out nearby bike shops. The only one we found open surprisingly had an unhelpful owner. All the rest were closed for the afternoon (common in Italy). So we rode back and switched gears: time for our last group lunch! Meanwhile Daniel had packed his bike in the box and was finally successful talking the luggage guys at the train station into keeping it for him. Lunch was modest but very tasty. It was relaxed because we could see that the other bike shops and hardware stores we wanted to visit were mostly closed until 16:30. I passed on dessert and alcohol – it’s a new life now! After lunch we had to say goodbye to Daniel. His flight to Zurich was earlier than ours and he was already set with a box. Who knows when the four of us will be riding together again, but I suspect it will happen.

We rode across to the other side of town and scored another bike box at the first store we tried. The next one was still closed but there was an appliance store with a bunch of boxes outside on the sidewalk. A guy was working on something and it took a minute to convince him but he graciously gave us two new looking giant boxes we knew we could adapt into bike boxes. Wytze and I carried them back to the bike shop where Andrew was stationed.

Then the question was how to get the boxes plus the bikes to the station and then to the airport. Should we pack the bikes? Go in two trips? Wytze is always the answer man, “I can carry them on my bike.” We stuffed the two non-bike boxes into the bike box and walked the one km to the station with them all balanced on Wytze’s bike. Crossing the tracks required two trips up and down long stair cases.

At the station we decided to try taking the airport train without boxing the bikes. It had worked so well on the Lecce to Bari train with it’s special bike transport cars. Good thing too since once we found the platform there was trouble with our box of boxes. It was way over size and first one staff person then the train manager got really mad about it. It was absolutely forbidden, no possible way. But they didn’t know what we had, a secret weapon: Wytze. He will not fail – that is just a fact they had to accept. By tearing down our one actual bike box and folding it up, we ended up with three bikes and three smaller rolls of cardboard. He somehow talked the train manager into it. There were very harsh looks and “I am doing you a very big favor” and some other things. But it worked.

Once off the train it was quite a complicated way to the actual airport. We decided to first box the bikes. I found a perfect work area and it took a little over an hour to build up the boxes, reduce them to the right size, tape them up, wrap in rope with plastic wrap, then disassemble and pack the bikes. On this whole trip I’ve been thankful to be carrying my Swiss Army knife. It has cut so many pastries, opened a ton of beers and a few bottles of wine. Today it cut so many meters of cardboard. It was new for this trip but probably needs sharpening now!

We scored a cart and then started quite an odyssey, going up and down lifts which only had room for the boxes but not the cart, for a long way. We ended up at the airport entrance, but at the wrong level then eventually found the check-in line. There was one person working who said it would open in 15 minutes. Then someone cleared their throat pointedly and we saw the 20 meter long line of people waiting to check-in ahead of us. Everyone in a surprisingly good mood, we laughed and Andrew and I immediately pushed our boxes to the back of the line. Wytze didn’t follow. Soon he comes over, “It’s ok, they all agree we can go first. I told them you are a shy American and Australian.” Wytze being Dutch, talking to a largely Dutch crowd gave us VIP treatment so we were first to check-in.

It was a relief getting rid of the bike boxes as always. Security was easy and then we headed for the bar. After beers, we still had a couple of hours as the flight was delayed a little. So we had dinner at the restaurant, unfriendly but I think late at night workers at the end of a shift just have a hard time. Our last Italian meal for a while was pasta and red wine.

Boarding was easy and soon we were flying north to Amsterdam. The seats were small and I couldn’t sleep. We landed about 1 am and had to wait a while for the boxes. There’s only one train running from the airport in the middle of the night but luckily it goes straight to our destination, Utrecht, with one stop in Amsterdam, but only once an hour. We missed the 2:03 train as expected, and ended up having a snack by the train station inside the airport at 2:30 am talking to a couple who had cycled to Spain and were just returning.

We caught the 3:03 train and were in Utrecht before 4. As we came out into the giant lobby, Wytze spied a half dozen security guards at the door and said, “Maybe we should go some distance before we put our bikes together.” So we pushed and pulled the boxes outside – mine was being pulled out of my hands by the gusty tailwind. Finally down a big staircase to a place with a little light and trash cans.

We quickly opened the boxes and assembled the bikes. I had made a terrible error though: I followed the rules (halfway) and had partially deflated one of my tires. It’s a wives tale that you have to do this – modern planes are pressurized and as long as your tires can handle ascending to 2,500m or so, you’re good. Wytze pumped up my tire but the valve core came out unscrewing my pump. Note to self: throw that pump away and get one that doesn’t require unscrewing. All the air came out and the tubeless seal was lost so I had an un-inflatable tire at 4 am with heavy rain predicted. I figured I would have the very messy job of putting in a tube but Wytze said there might be a pump in the bike parking lot. These bike parking lots are amazing. The one at Utrecht Central by chance is the biggest one in all of Europe with space for 12,500 bikes. And the pump it has is actually a compressor – it filled and sealed my tubeless tire in seconds and we were rolling!

It’s about 10 km to Wytze’s house and it was quite nice riding on the super high quality Dutch bike paths with almost no one around. It was lightly drizzling but the temperature was a nice 14°C. We pulled in just before 5 am and that was a great moment! We had a snack of homemade apple pie from homegrown apples, then I had a quick shower and went to bed.

The trip isn’t quite over as I don’t go home for five days. Andrew has a little more time and will go to Germany to visit a friend. I think back on the trip, I look at the photos and I have to smile. It was so fun with these amazing guys. My goal for us of riding all the way with no accidents was accomplished. My record of no flat tires on these trips continues. That’s now 10,400 + 3,200 + 7,100 + 2,000 = 22,700 km. I hope I haven’t jinxed it by writing that down. Some final totals:

• Distance: 2,087 km — 1,297 miles
• Climbing: 31,877m — 104,583′
• Longest ride: 115 km — 71 miles
• Most climbing: 2,914m — 9,560′
• Highest speed: 78 kph — 48.5 mph
• Highest elevation: 2,606m — 8,550′

Sometimes on these trips we end up with a special phrase that is used many times. On the Andes Trail it was “This is the best X ever.” This time it was “It’s X for a reason.” It started in Cinque Terre when we went to a café for a snack. It was a little hot and the shaded tables were taken. Wytze saw the sun umbrellas were folded up so he unfolded one that gave us a shaded table. The waitress came over and got mad, closing it saying, “It’s closed for a reason.” Soon after, the owner came over and opened it back up but that’s beside the point. Anything that was a little inconveniently placed or required some adjustment for the rest of the trip “was there for a reason.”

Santa Maria di Leuca to Lecce

Strava: 74.4 km, 367m, 3:35, 126 shifts, headwind all the way

We ate all our leftovers from yesterday for breakfast then took off at 9. While the wind had shifted 180° and would be a strong headwind all day, the temperature and humidity had reduced a lot so it finally felt great to be outside.

Wytze used Komoot to build us a gravel route to Lecce and it did a great job. We rode the whole way mostly on tiny farm roads. The gravel/dirt sections were short and easy. We had a drinks and pastry stop in Tricase after 18 km, then just cranked it out to Lecce. Wytze led into the wind the whole way and I felt strong (easy when drafting!)

We arrived at 13:30 and found a restaurant for lunch right by the old Roman Amphitheater. It was so windy there were a few accidents at the outdoors tables, but we didn’t lose any food or drink. Smoked tuna bruschetta for appetizers, then various dishes, mine was shrimp salad, with some side veggies and giant beers for Daniel and me. Wytze tried to order half a liter of white wine for himself but wasn’t allowed. He solved that by getting two single glasses.

Around 3, we headed to our apartment which is great, very modern, spacious and clean. After a shower and a little watching the UCI World Companionships, I fell asleep then read until 7:45. We walked downtown to meet Daniel – he had a great plan for our big last night together.

We met at Bros Restaurant for our wildest dinner together yet. Unusual for us, we went with the simplest option, the 17 course dinner. Some of those courses ended up being three or four separate ones so it was even crazier than it sounds. Paired with a bottle of local sparkling rosé and then an amazing local primativo red, it was more than four hours of exploration, wild tastes and most importantly, fun. A couple of times we had to leave the table and eat a course or more elsewhere, once down the street.

What can I say but Wow!? We are truly living large. As they say, “Someone has to do it.”

September 28, 2024 was a post-tour rest day after we completed the north to south version of the Italia Unite Wild Trail. Santa Maria Di Leuca is a small but scenic town, at the intersection of the Ionian Sea and the Adriatic Sea. Wytze had rented us a boat for the afternoon so we thought all was set. During breakfast or the bike cleaning session that followed, we heard from the boat guys that we had to reschedule for the next day due to high wind conditions. We were leaving and couldn’t reschedule, so we had to cancel it. But Daniel, always thinking, checked the weather and found a different place that had no worries about the wind.

So it was that at 11 we found ourselves buying provisions for the day, then walking down to the dock. The boat was a Speedy Cayman 585 with 40 hp, nothing fancy but it came with two complete SUPs and snorkeling gear. The guy gassed it up and we took off, Captain Daniel at the wheel.

First we turned right (direction La Spezia we said) into the Ionian Sea. We anchored at a great set of grottos (caves) and explored them by SUP and swimming. The water was perfect and it was great with long fins, mask and snorkel. The anchor came up easily and we continued up the coast to another similar spot. More swimming etc and again the anchor worked perfectly. We continued but then turned around to try the Adriatic side to maybe find a more sheltered place for a late lunch.

Daniel found a great little cove and we anchored again. This one seemed more popular with the tourist boats, lots of activity. We had olive bread, onion bread, anchovies, cheese, tomatoes, cold beer and cold sparkling rosé. Just great! This was my favorite swimming spot. I went really far underground in the cave, it was so dark I had to take off the mask. I sat on a submerged pedestal and just tried to absorb it all. I swam out through a very skinny channel full of fish. Daniel told me he swam down under a rock and into another chamber. What a place!

When it was time to leave the anchor did not release its hold. We tried all directions but it was stuck. So now there is one more anchor on the bottom there, I wonder how many?! We continued a long way up the coast, all the way to Baia del Ciolo where we first hit the coastline riding yesterday. That was scenic and we went a bit further then turned around. I took a nap on the way back and Andrew drove while Daniel napped too. There was never any wind to speak of. Strava shows we cruised 28 km.

We met our guy, paid for the 10.5 liters of fuel we used and fessed up to the lost anchor, he laughed but we had to pay €20 which seemed fair. We headed back home and wow did that air conditioned house feel good. It was supposedly only 25° but it’s humid and it felt hotter to me. I can’t imagine what it was like for our Bike Dreams buddies here over 10° hotter. Four naps were had and mine was so deep that when I woke up at 7 pm I thought it was 7 am! We were a few minutes late to our dinner reservation but it’s Italy so that’s ok. I was proud of our restraint at dinner, only three appetizers, salads for all, then less than one dish per person, a small dessert, and only one bottle of wine, a delicious white frizzante.

At dinner Wytze asked how far we had ridden. I checked and it was exactly 1,999.43 km, with 31,481m or 103,284 feet of climbing. Tomorrow we hit the road together for one last bonus stage to Lecce. The next day, we take the train to Bari.

Galatone to Santa Maria di Leuca

Strava: 63.3 km, 397m, 3:00, 200 shifts

We had an easy riding day planned so decided to take the morning off and visit the highly recommended Museum of Leonardo da Vinci in Galatone. Our B&B host really went above and beyond. He brought us an incredible breakfast, way more than we could ever eat. Then he made the call for us to get the museum to open at 10. With the luxurious suites I think he made this our nicest stay on the whole trip.

At 10 he insisted on taking us over. We left the bikes all loaded and ready to go in the garage. It was a short walk and we had a look in the impressive cathedral too. Then the museum was open. A well dressed man, short and energetic, walked in and greeted us. We spent the next hour and a half with him showing us what he had personally built. A friend gave him a book on Leonardo da Vinci in 2004. He got really inspired and ended up making models of dozens of Leonardo’s designs – weapons, pulley and lifting systems, and a ton more. He spoke in 99% Italian but it was somehow the easiest to understand I’d ever heard. His passion was obvious from the beginning and never let up. It was a rare privilege.

We had a shorter tour with him through an olive oil pressing museum, then finally said goodbye. Our host came and escorted us back to our bikes, and we said goodbye to him too.

The ride today was similar to the previous couple of days, not much climbing and mostly on little farm roads. We had some gravel and some exciting giant puddles too. It was very sunny again, and a little hotter and more humid. After 15 km we stopped and bought lunch at a small market and ate at a bar with lemon soda and acqua frizzante, our standard midday drink mix.

Then back at it for the last 45 km. 10 km from the end we descended down to the Adriatic Sea at a gorgeous spot, then climbed back up and soon were in Santa Maria di Leuca, at the tip of the boot of Italy! We rode to the end of the track, took pictures, then went to our apartment. Our host arrived and the place is spacious but not luxurious. It’s missing WiFi and towels but who’s complaining at €80 a night for 4?! We have more beds than people which is better than the opposite.

After showers we walked to the beach and had a nice swim, perfect temperature and clean water. I was hungry so we got beers and a couple of squid dishes at a restaurant right there. It was really relaxing and fun.

Finally it was 7 and our intended restaurant was opening. After grocery shopping (and buying cheap towels), we sat down and got going with a giant round of appetizers, side dishes, salads and a primi course. I had pasta with tuna and olives. We had a couple of bottles of delicious local red wine, then dessert and a round of Amaro. Don’t forget that!

What a day, what a four weeks! I am so glad we have a day to relax tomorrow, then one final ride to Lecce, I think about 80 km. Then, train to Bari and a plane back to Amsterdam (Zurich for Daniel). This trip has been challenging but we accomplished my goal of all of us riding every effing inch. Traveling with these guys is a really rare privilege. I am so thankful.

San Giorgio Ionico to Galatone

Strava: 83.2 km, 345m, 3:45, 195 shifts

It was nice starting the morning with a video call from Katie, finally back home in Santa Cruz after some plane problems. She was just going to sleep as I was waking up. We packed and rolled out at 8:30. First up was breakfast downtown, with delicious savory olive bread and focaccia.

The ride today was similar to yesterday but with more gravel and less climbing. We spent most of the time on little farm roads, paved or gravel. One point in the morning was funny: the track went off in an impossible direction so we followed some faint bike tracks through a field. I kept having to shift to an easier gear because my wheels were sinking into the dirt. It wasn’t quite mud but it was funny being barely able to ride in 38×42 on flat ground. The field ended and we had to go through a hole in a rock wall, then bushwack – luckily it turned out not to be far. I led with the bike, pushing it into the thorny bushes, to save my skin. Then across another field, then 300m on a gravel road, then we emerged onto a super freshly paved smooth road that gently descended. Suddenly it was effortless!

We stopped almost halfway in Avetrana for snacks, that is drinks and a massive number of pastries.

We continued on, lots more gravel, with almost no riding on roads with traffic which was great. We went through a tunnel which was a single giant puddle. Since there was virtually no climbing and navigation was easy it went quickly. Soon we were in Nardo, the town right before our destination. The old downtown looked nice and had a couple of cafés. For some reason there are tourists around besides us. We had a round of big salads with a bottle of rosé Prosecco which was grand.

It was just a few km to Galatone and we quickly found our B&B. We had said we’d arrive at 3 and we were on the dot and so was our host. We have the whole place and he showed us the rooms, two suites with two bedrooms each, bathrooms, laundry, and a nice upstairs terrace for drying clothes. After putting out my laundry I had a nap then wrote this post.

Just after sunset, Andrew, Wytze and I had beers and snacks on the terrace, then met Daniel at our selected restaurant. We had mostly seafood, with Prosecco and white wine. I was proud of myself for passing on dessert – very soon we have to drastically change our eating habits! We did stop for a round of Amaro on the way home. The temperature here at night just could not be better.

Today was a fun second-to-last day of riding. We’re looking forward to running out of Italy tomorrow at Santa Maria de Leuca, the bottom of the “heel.” We’ll stay there two nights to decompress from the trip, then start the return journey to Holland, by bike, train, plane and bike again.

Matera to San Giorgio Ionico

Strava: 89.7 km, 654m, 3:43, 297 shifts

We woke up in our cave and managed to get going before 9. We found a café within half a km for breakfast. Fresh squeezed orange juice and croissants… Nice.

Then we headed out of town. It was cooler today, and a bit cloudy so I didn’t sweat so much. Wytze kept a fast but sane pace and we had soon cranked out half of our distance. It was mostly paved with a little gravel. We stopped for drinks and focaccia in Palagiano.

The second half was similar but there was an interesting gravel section. We were on gravel in the usual middle of nowhere when we came to a tall and solid gate. Fencing made going around not possible. So I went over and Wytze went to the top. All four bikes were passed up to him and down to me. We kind of knew we were due for a repeat and sure enough after less than a km we had to do it again. We were going around the small bay in the Gulf of Taranto, part of the Mediterranean Sea. We hadn’t seen it since the early days around Cinque Terre.

It was only a little further to our town, San Giorgio Ionico, which looked sleepy and definitely far from the tourist track. Wytze called and our young, friendly host, David, showed us around the apartment. It was modern and clean, with a view. Soon, showers and laundry were done and it was still only 3 pm, luxury.

Later in the afternoon Wytze suggested a plan to pass the time until dinner: since we had another big smart TV, watch a movie. He picked “A Special Day”, a 1977 Italian film starring Sophia Loren. Set in Rome in 1938: fascism, Hitler & Mussolini, very well done film.

After that it was dinner time and it took a while to find a place that was open. If there is one thing San Giorgio Ionico is not, it’s touristy. Eventually we found a focacceria and had a filling meal with four large beers for well less than a tenth of last night’s gastronomic extravaganza. We bought dessert at a pasticceria and ate in the almost deserted town square.

Gravina in Puglia to Matera

Strava: 41.5 km, 721m, 2:39, 216 shifts

I had been looking forward to this day for a while. It was a half-rest day so we took it easy in the morning. Daniel was a superstar and went shopping for omelet ingredients then cooked up a feast. We had it with fruit, yogurt and bread – and it was great to have no pastries for once!

It felt later but we carried down the stairs and started riding at 10. The gravel path was confusing and not possible to follow so we improvised to get out of town. We rode a dirt road to reconnect and it turned out that most of our ride today was off-road. We had some steep climbs and descents, beautiful single-track through the forest and a little bit of paved road connecting the trails.

Before we knew it we were halfway there and our GPS track ended. We switched to the ninth and final track; each is around 250 km. We had a big climb up to Matera partly on dirt. We stopped near the top of town for cold drinks. It was about 30°, not really hot but not cool either.

After cooling off and a quick video chat with Katie in Maine, we cruised the last couple of km to our “cave hotel”. Our man arrived and showed us around, “our biggest cave suite.” It’s a two story apartment, three beds upstairs, built into the rock of the cliff. Of course we call it our Man Cave.

After showers and some relaxing we headed out to have lunch and see the town. We found a cool little local restaurant for lunch, simple pasta dishes with white wine, and throw in some desserts for good measure. Then we walked around and made our way to the meeting point for the walking tour we had booked.

A local named Cosimo showed us around with a couple of other people for two hours. He was born here and told us a lot about the history. Interestingly Matera was called the “Shame of Italy” until 1952 when the caves were finally declared unfit for people to live in and the residents forced into nearby alternative housing. Later, remodeling happened such that today it’s vibrant and instead of saying they are from somewhere else, residents proudly say they are from Matera. He took us into a cave museum showing how people were living until the 1950’s and into a cave church. People have been living here continuously for 9,000 years! He also showed us another place where “No Time To Die” was shot and told us about how it was the two months they were shooting here in 2019. We saw a “Passion of the Christ” shooting spot too.

After two hours of walking around we needed a break and went to a bar that had a rooftop terrace for drinks. I had the best IPA in Italy this trip (Amariam). After that restaurants were open so we decided to check out Ristorante Quid, quite a fancy place. Despite our clothes, we were immediately welcomed in. We went for the standard six course meal which turned out great. The food was amazing and the service too. We ended up staying close to three hours and having a fantastic time. The restaurant is tiny and there were only two other customers so they needed us.

Matera is a musical town with a big conservatory. We heard students practicing a few times on our walk. An orchestra was just finishing practice by our restaurant and we stopped to listen to more live music at an outdoor restaurant after 10 pm on the way home. We probably haven’t done it justice but I loved our short visit to Matera.

Cerignola to Gravina in Puglia

Strava: 83.7 km, 926m, 4:40, 246 shifts

After a great sleep, I really enjoyed the B&B breakfast outdoors on the balcony. We packed and left at 9:30. Riding through heavy traffic in town was something we’re not used to, but soon we were on a tiny road, in the countryside, heading south. The huge amount of garbage was a surprise, at one point it was nearly a Mauritania flashback!

Pretty soon the road turned to gravel and it was a great route. We went by a rock quarry, through orchards and generally saw almost no people, just an occasional farmer in a tractor. Eventually we made it to the one town on today’s route, Minervino Murge. It’s quite hilly. Andrew had a flat near the bottom. After he quickly fixed it, he and I climbed all through the town and met Wytze and Daniel at a café at the top. We had drinks, but then Wytze noticed the lack of a lunch town ahead. He walked away and returned with a box of 12 pastries which we inhaled with a second round of drinks.

After some more tire work, we headed on. Up and down, mostly on dirt/gravel. At one point the “road” was gone and we had to ride through a field, soft and difficult. There was one long, steep and slippery descent…we all made it. Then we had just 20 km of mostly paved small road to go. There was a headwind but we have the antidote and his name starts with W.

We got almost to Gravina in Puglia when our track turned off and gave us a few more km of dirt, even some singletrack and a rocky long staircase to descend carefully. I was not prepared for the amazing sight on arrival. We were across a chasm from the Cathedral and the old town. A few tourists were walking around and we could see the famous Roman Bridge which looked like the only way we could get across to town. A nice German lady took our photos and mentioned that the Roman Bridge was a “No Time To Die” (2021 James Bond film) shooting site.

We rode across and checked out the plaza a bit then went to our apartment. It’s modern and spacious with the all important washing machine. Wytze and Andrew went to the supermarket for supplies which we attacked on their return, having skipped lunch today. Cheese, lots of nuts and fruit, a round of beers and a bottle of wine. After we ate our fill, we all sat in Andrew’s bedroom and watched “No Time To Die”, the first time for Daniel and Wytze. We saw right away where we had just ridden and James Bond had escaped certain death right there very stylishly.

The movie was almost three hours long but we still had power after for a stroll downtown and a last round of beers in the square (Brewdog IPA!)

San Marco dei Cavoti to Cerignola

Strava: 113.8 km, 1,339m, 5:37, 376 shifts

Last night the birthday party we were warned about in our B&B went on until after midnight but given my massive nap earlier I was up reading anyway. Then super solid sleep.

Breakfast was from the B&B augmented by Wytze with yogurt, bread and cheese. Not bad! We headed out about 9. It was warmer with no threat of rain. The stage had some climbing but it was nearly all in the first 40 km. Up and down, steep! We spent the whole day on back roads, with a fair amount of gravel, but all easy.

A little before 11 we stopped for morning coffee and for the first time I had a choice for my cioccolata calda: liquido o denso. Naturally I asked for denso per favore. So thick and good!

That powered us up the last hills. We had finally come to the end of the mountains and it looked like just downhill ahead. It was still some work, especially keeping up with Wytze. We got to a town at 88 km, pretty hungry. Daniel had really been looking forward to the Taste of Sicily restaurant but alas it was booked for a big private party and not even he was able to smooth talk our way in. So we ate our emergency bars and proceeded to the next town at 100 km.

We had better luck at the Togo Café: paninis, fries, 2.5 L of water and 2 L of sodas. That did the trick. The last 13 km was an easy cruise. Our B&B had been cancelled due to over booking and replaced with an alternate so we went there. We called the owner and he redirected us to the original place, a huge upgrade. It took a long time to actually get the gate open, then the room keys etc but we lucked out. It’s luxurious and Andrew was heard to say “It sets a new standard” on emerging from the shower. On a Sunday afternoon, this town (and all the others we passed through) were really dead, except for the Taste of Sicily party. Over booking doesn’t look like it could possibly be a thing here today.

After some laundry and relaxing it was finally 8 pm when restaurants open. We walked over to a pizza place and had a good dinner, beers, appetizers, wine, then more pizza than we could quite finish. I passed on dessert and we all passed on Amaro. The town was much livlier in the evening. Lots of people everywhere.

We’ve finally arrived in our last Italian region: Puglia. We have a medium and a short day to Matera, then three medium stages to the end of the line at Santa Maria di Lueca.