For today’s ride, our final ride of the trip, we were back in the Adige River Valley heading north this time, to Bolzano once again, “the city of bicycles.”

It being Sunday, we saw many cyclists out for a ride, many of them in full racing kit going at a very fast pace, but also lots of casual cyclists, many of them riding e-bikes. We have to admit that it is rather annoying to be passed by people on e-bikes who appear to be out of shape.

The Adige bike path has a series of helpful, informative signs spaced along the route.

After riding for a couple of hours it was time for a bicigrill break so conveniently situated adjacent to the bike path.

Just before entering the outskirts of Bolzano we stopped for a short break at a picnic table alongside the bike path. It was a peaceful spot, with only the sound of the river flowing close by. Soon, the sounds of the city would envelop us.

We have two nights in Bolzano and then we take the train back to the starting point of our cycling journey near Munich.

Navigation can be a little tricky when the “pista ciclabile” signs disappear even though we’re following a GPS track on our phone.

A final push up to the top.

Then another chance to roast marshmellows on my flaming-hot disc rotors on the way down.

Hungry work.

But there is a solution for the hungries.

Last riding day tomorrow.

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It was a three-bicigrill day and we took advantage of each one to stop for a short break.

A large log serves as a creative bike rack.

And a bike serves as a creative table support.

Bicigrills–what a great concept!

We left the Veneto Region today and re-entered the Trentino as we make our way north back to Trento and then Bolzano.

Entering the secret passageway to Borgo.

Add strawberries to the crops this region supports. They look like they’re just about ready to be harvested.

A few colorfully decorated bikes we saw along the way.

The mountains rising up on both sides of the valley aren’t as dramatic as the Dolomites but are impressive nonetheless.

Tomorrow, on to Trento.

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That’s “veneatzia” for you foreigners. The bus and train systems are so good here we decided to catch the train to Venice for the day.

Venice is truely a wonder of the world. It is an amazing place for a number of reasons.

It started because the locals got tired of being ransacked by the hordes from the east. So they moved out into the lagoon. By putting wooden posts into the lagoon they were able to create a village on stilts that evolved into Venice.

In its heyday Venice influence stretched across the Mediterranean. They had a formidable navy and trading ouposts as far south as Crete. It is said that they would show visiting dignitaries their ship building yard where they could complete a war ship in one day. At its height Venice had more wealth than a hundred Rockefellers.

Today Venice is mostly another giant shopping mall for high-end corporations but that is somewhat appropriate because Venice has always been a place of business. It had a unique government for the times. It had a council of businessmen who elected a president called the Doge who could be removed if he did not do the job. The Doge’s palace off the Piazza San Marco is beautiful.

The Venetian businessmen knew that every great city needed the remains of a Saint to really get on the map. So they did what any big modern corporation does when they need an important marketing tool. They stole it. “It” being the remains of Saint Mark which were lying in Alexandria.

The Basilica of San Marco is ornate and one of the most interesting aspects for me are the frescoes which were not painted but done in glass mosaics which means they are as vibrant today as when they were created.

Although Venice has a bit of a Disneyland feeling with the gondoliers plying their trade there is a fundamental difference–the gondolas are real handmade works of art that are handed down from father to son.

The details are exquisite and each boat costs about $30,000 to make.

The best way to see Venice is to get off the beaten path, away from the cruiseship hordes, and get lost in the narrow passages of Venice.

Tomorrow, we are back on the bikes.

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I headed for Valstagna on the path along the Brenta River.

A little further north, just as one is about to leave Valstagna, there are a series of white-water kayak slalom gates positioned along a set of rapids.

The next day we headed to Bassano del Grappa and crossed over the 500-year-old Ponte Vecchio which is undergoing repair.

Bassano del Grappa is an ancient city on the Brenta River. It has a famous old bridge that was first built in the 1500s. Like most beautiful old cities these days it is mostly a high-end shopping mall of ancient marble. But that is how you stop old cities from being ploughed under in favor of glass and steel these days.

I love the marble as a subject in abstract patterns, each piece being different than the next.

We spent a day enjoying the architecture, art, and marble of Bassano del Grappa.

And enjoyed some gelato as well.

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The last part of our ride today, on a gravel path along the Brenta River.

Our average daily pace is five miles per hour. That is the total average with all stops. We don’t want to arrive at the B&B at 2 o’clock in the afternoon. Instead, we want to use the whole day on the ride.

Today we rode away from our ultra modern hotel, back into the Middle Ages.

Our destination was one of our favorite bike hotels, Albergo Contarini, on the banks of the Brenta River. To get there we would ride to the walled city of Mariostica and to Bassano del Grappa, at the base of Monte Grappa, with its ponte vecchio foot bridge first built in the 1500s.

One of the icons of this region is the Venetian lion that you will see in sculpture, frescoes and flags. City states fought among themselves until they gave allegiance to Venice which would then protect them. Because Venice was run by a group of businessmen, it was usually a good trade.

In the main square in Mariostica there is an unusual feature – a giant chess board. Legend says that a princess had two suitors and the tradition was for the young men to fight to the death for her hand. But the king was an enlightened ruler and, instead, built a giant chess board, made for people in costume as pieces, and the winner would marry the princess. Even today couples come to the board to have wedding pictures taken.

On the ride to Mariostica we came across a group of cyclists from Norway in a town that, just by coincidence, was having some kind of Norwegian-Italian festival. The town was adorned with the flags of both Norway and Italy. The group apparently stumbled across the festival but one woman said “We felt very welcome!”

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Packed and ready to leave our B&B in Verona.

We still had some steep hills to negotiate today even though we are out of the mountains and into the “plains.” When the gradient hits 10% or more for a good distance we sometimes resort to walking with our bikes. That happened today on one of the hills.

A narrower than usual path on our way to Vicenza.

The view from the top of the hill.

Today’s route took us mostly on small roads as opposed to separated paths, some with a fair amount of traffic. For a good part of the way we were following biciitalia route I1, but the signage was not as consistent as on previous routes, like the one from Trento to Verona.

We passed the well-preserved medieval Castle of Soave along the way whose walls were built in 1379.

Tomorrow, on to the Brenta River Valley.

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Looking down on the Val dell’Adige.

We left the mountains today but not without a fight. In order to leave the Val dell’Adige we had to climb over a ridge with 10 to 15% grades.

Lots of riders on the trail. Clubs with identical jerseys and kit riding fast in pace lines.

A religious shrine along the trail on the descent to Verona.

After dropping down the other side we were in the plains. Italian history, cars, elegant towns with marble-laid walking streets, and air pollution awaited us.

A variety of pizza for lunch.

We enjoyed a wonderful dedicated bike path the whole way to Verona.

The path to Verona before leaving the Val dell’Adige.

Vineyards everywhere.

Verona is a 1500-year-old walled city surrounded on three sides by the Adige River which afforded protection from other city states. It is the number one tourist destination in northern Italy because of its history, one of the only intact Roman open-air amphitheaters still in use (that can host 15,000), sites like the House of Juliet and, of course, shopping at all the high-end shops.

After checking in to our B&B, we went for a stroll (una passeggiata) along the walking streets of Verona.

People waiting in line to see the opera “Notre Dame de Paris” at the Arena di Verona, a Roman amphitheatre built in AD 30.

Juliet at her balcony.

And finally, a word about keys. At every place we’ve stayed, keys open the door to our room. No cards inserted into slots to open doors here. For tonight’s lodging we have five keys. One to open the main door into the courtyard, one to access the stairway leading to the residence, one to open the door to the residence, one for our room and one for our own private bath down the hallway!

Our room at B&B Casaesvael

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We’ve left the land of apples and have entered the land of grapes. Almost the entire Adige River valley from just north of Trento to at least as far south as we cycled today is filled with vineyards everywhere you look.

Continuing our journey south toward Verona, we left our B&B in Trento, Mas Dei Chini, and set out on the bike path (pista ciclabile) that, once again, pretty much follows the Adige River.

Heading down the Via Claudia Augusta the views were typically beautiful.

The obligatory stop at a Bici Grill was our mid-ride break.

Ending at our farm B&B in Brentino.

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But all good things have to come to an end and there was a price to pay for coasting down the Val di Fassa the day before. So we spent the morning climbing over a ridge from the Val di Fiemme to the Val dell’ Adige.

We passed Billy goat gruff and his family on the way up the pass (I knew you wanted more baby goats.)

At the top of our climb we found a rail trail that made a gradual descent toward Trento through the forests.

After the rail trail ended, we had a steep descent to Trento, which took a toll on my disc brakes. (Don’t get me started on how bad and over-hyped disc brakes are.) Barb had no problems with her v-brakes.

Once in the valley floor we stopped at a Bici Grill for a snack then headed into Trento. When we were in Trento four years ago we found Tutti Pazzi Per la Pizza a small pizza place owned by chef Alex. In the week we were here last time we ate there every night and Alex gave us a pizza education, selecting a new Pizza every night and telling us about the origins of the recipe. It was a real pleasure to see Alex again and learn about happenings in the last four years.

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