Saturday October 6, 2018

It started raining during the night so we knew we needed all our rain gear today. We stepped outside of the BnB to finish adjusting ponchos and packs.

As Suzanne was standing there I asked her if she had her sticks. The answer was “no”. And now the door was locked. We knew our host would be back to make breakfast for people not leaving before the sun came up, but what time we were not sure. We had vouchers from her to have breakfast at the bar down the street, so we headed there to wait.

Our host had taken Suzanne’s walking sticks upon our arrival and stuck them in an umbrella pot with a big smile, as in isn’t this clever? I had a bad feeling the moment she put them there. If that happens again I think a pair of shoes should also reside next to the sticks so we remember!

That took an extra hour. While it was lovely sitting inside the bar we could have been walking.

We ran into Sarah on the road. She’s walking the entire 20 miles today. Cudos to her!

We walked into a tiny village of Vignoni with an old church that was open. We went inside and the local cat followed us in. It was strange seeing a cat inside a church.

It was a slow start and the steep hills worked against us for a while.

We made it to Bagno Vignoni, a lovely very small town with a hot springs pool in the center of the small town center. You could feel the heat! We stopped for a coffee, juice and riccherelli cookie. So delicious!

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Back on the trail we crossed a pedestrian bridge over the hot springs which was beautiful!

The climb that followed was a doozy. Even at my pace I did not make a mile in 30 minutes. Probably 45 minutes if I didn’t stop to wait. I know this is a tough climb for Suzanne but the reward at days end is a hotel room with a hot springs spa. That will be so worth the effort!

Now for the bad news. My plan was to take an alternate path into Gallina so we could take a bus to Bagni San Filippo which is not on the Via. I stood at the end of the road at 3:30 and watched the bus roll by. The next one was 4 hours later.

The path today had been so steep that the pace was even slower than a normal day. If we had not forgotten the walking sticks we would have made it, but…

We found an open bar and with the help of the waitress she called a taxi for us. An older gentlemen with a 4-door Fiat drove us to our hotel. 25 euro for that ride vs 6 euro for the bus. At least we are there.

We arrive, checked in and asked about Suzanne’s bag which had not yet been delivered. After a short while I received confirmation that it was indeed delivered – to tomorrow’s destination!!! And they have no one “in the area” to transport the bag to us tonight. So sorry for the inconvenience.

So Suzanne has nothing clean to put on, her swim suit is not with her and we are at a hot springs hotel! This was a treat for her. I did suggest she have a foot massage. Her feet are good but her ankles and calves have been swollen and sore. She said the massage was awesome and it felt so good!

Here at the hotel we are in separate single rooms. I can’t figure out why because both rooms have what appears to be two twins put together. It must be a way to make money. On top of the separate rooms (which I accepted when I made the reservation) we are on the 1st and 3rd floors. I put Sue on floor 1 and I took the upper floor. I don’t mind the stairs and we’re saving her legs for the trail.

After her massage Suzanne was cold so I asked for a bathrobe which helped. By the time I talked her into going into the hotel’s hot springs pool it was closed! Our timing today simply stinks!!

I left her in her room and went out in search of food that I could take away. I found the local bar hangout directly across from the natural springs and ordered a hot salami and cheese panini, chips and a large beer to share. Mmmmm mmmmm good!

The natural springs look so amazing I wanted to step in and sit a while. Maybe tomorrow?

So at this point (the end of a long day) the plan for tomorrow will be I will walk and Suzanne will sleep in, use the hot springs pool if no one else is there (due to improper clothing available), take a quick shower and put on the same old clothes she wore yesterday. Then she could find the local bar here, have a bite or two and then catch the bus at 1:30 to meet me in Radicofani.

Guess what?! There is NO bus service on Sunday…

I didn’t have the heart to tell her before she went to sleep. When I checked the Rome2Rio app I did notice it gave me options for October 6 and 8. I can’t believe I paid no attention to that!

I thought about asking her to walk with me and while the route is short it is very steep. Hard on tender knees and sore calves. So I got out money for a taxi and went to sleep. This morning I woke up and decided to taxi with her which means we can sit in the hot springs together and enjoy some of the benefits of all this drama.

I will continue this story later today!

We are trying hard to…

#enjoythejourney #viafrancigena