Today we bid farewell to David and Tom, who headed to Rome after breakfast. BDan, Beth, Joe, Lucas, Scott, and i headed into the Appennines, the mountain range south and east of Spoleto. BDan, Scott, and i rode for 2.5 hours to a pass 20km in and almost 1km up, where we took pictures and then had a terrific run back to town, 10km straight downhill. On the way back into town, i would up too tired to ride, then fell off my bike while trying to call a halt. It turned out fine, and it happens, but stupidity and traffic don't mix, so that's a lesson for the future. We stopped for sandwiches after that, then rejoined the group and walked up to the Rocca Albornoziana and its neighboring aqueduct, meeting my main tourist goal for Spoleto. We then walked through the amphitheatre museum, and had an unexceptional dinner in town.
Last full group morning: Bill, Scott, Tom, David, Beth, and Lucas eat breakfast in the hotel before Tom and David leave to catch their train |
Joe is still not on this trip. I continue to have no idea what you're talking about |
a building in Spoleto we passed on the way out of town |
can't have a cycling trip without livestock photos, what was i thinking? |
riding through the valley before we start climbing |
Beth and Lucas climbing a hill |
Beth and Lucas riding |
Lucas, staying hydrated |
Beth, Joe, and Lucas split off at this fork, while BDan, Scott, and i kept climbing |
field view while climbing |
the road ahead, while climbing |
the road behind, while climbing |
view while climbing |
We made it! View from our arbitrary stopping point, the top of a hill at La Spina |
Scott celebrates by futzing with his camera |
the summit of our trip — panorama from La Spina hilltop |
BDan celebrates by wearing reflective sunglasses |
opposite hilltop from the hill where we're standing to take pictures |
looking north from La Spina (the view north wasn't great) |
looking south again |
looking down at the road where we left our bikes |
another mountain view |
looking north again |
our bikes at La Spina |
on the way back down, we stopped for water in La Spina itself |
rocky wall among the switchbacks |
looking over the railing at the hill opposite |
the road ahead |
view of mountains and the road below, while descending |
water pipe by the side of the road |
BDan, coasting downhill |
Scott, coasting downhill |
field and hillside by the road |
Scott, riding next to a hillside field |
Scott, most of the way back down the hill |
the road ahead, valley, and mountains |
we broke this speed limit coasting downhill |
the grips on my rental bike were super comfortable |
highway crossing |
back in Spoleto |
street in Spoleto near our hotel |
clock and sundial in Spoleto |
building in Spoleto |
entrance to the Rocca in Spoleto, a 14th century fortress attached to a 13th century aqueduct |
exterior wall of the Rocca |
east from the Rocca |
Spoleto from the Rocca |
north into the hills from the Rocca |
Ponte della Torri, a 13th century aqueduct |
along the aqueduct |
an arch of the aqueduct |
Bill and Lucas look at the aqueduct |
crossing the aqueduct, Bill contemplates the height |
risking my camera to capture the view down from the aqueduct |
view from the aqueduct |
views north and east from the aqueduct, plus bonus photographers Lucas and Beth, and a man with two faces |
Beth and Scott on the aqueduct |
me on the aqueduct |
view along the aqueduct back towards the Rocca |
Lucas and Beth in an arch |
Bill, Lucas, Beth, and Joe in three arches |
tower on the far side of the aqueduct |
aqueduct from above |
Rocca from across the aqueduct |
part of a rainbow (photographing rainbows is hard!) |
sheep, from above |
snail shell |
courtyard of the Rocca |
wall of the Rocca |
courtyard with some signs of excavation |
Spoleto, seen from the Rocca (Spoleto is actually pretty big) |
Spoleto and the valley behind |
art in the Rocca |
courtyard of the Rocca |
artifact in the Rocca museum |
some arches and doors i liked, in the Rocca |
how do you get to that staircase? |
geometric tile fragment |
a map of Spoleto and its territories: might be Roman era, i don't remember |
a shield, photographed upside down for your convenience |
art in the courtyard of the Rocca |
Spoleto, from the window of the Rocca |
art in the Rocca |
Bill, in a hall in the Rocca |
Lucas and Beth, in a hall in the Rocca |
a large hall in the Rocca |
partial fresco, in the Rocca |
BDan in the Rocca |
more art in the Rocca |
more art in the Rocca |
a door (i don't know what the door is talking about) |
12th century lion head, in the Rocca museum |
hillside view from the window of the Rocca |
sculptures in the Rocca museum |
the aqueduct seen from a window in the Rocca |
a fragment of geometric art in the Rocca courtyard |
art in the Rocca courtyard |
a decorated archway ceiling |
beginning of sunset over Spoleto |
courtyard wall of the Rocca |
One of an incredible series of outdoor escalators that took us from the Rocca. After four or five escalators, we started worrying about the laws of physics, but decided that in the worst case turning back would do us no good. Eventually, the escalators ended, leaving us in Spoleto |
dusk/sunset view from the Rocca |
Spoleto amphitheatre in the dark |
hallway under the amphitheatre |
headless tile figure in the amphitheatre museum |
inscribed stone in the amphitheatre museum |
map of various goings-on in (i believe) pre-Roman Umbria |
dessert! but it's missing something... |
...that's better |