May 2: Labro to Greccio

Previous day: May 1: Ferentillo to Labro

Today we leave Labro to walk to Greccio, which On Foot Holidays classes as a "medium to hard" difficulty hike: 5 hours to cover 17 km, with a cumulative uphill distance of 750 m (plus a like amount downhill).Tonight, we stay at Hotel della Fonte.

Today looked to be another tough one because of a stiff climb both at the start of the day and at the end. In fact, almost as much hillside-climbing as the two previous days combined.

Labro street

Typical Labro street.

The day started well with a nice breakfast with our hosts, Luk and Nele. Fresh-baked bread (best we’ve had by far), delicious fresh-baked croissants stuffed with fruit puree, simple but satisfying omelettes, good coffee, and good conversation. They told us a lot about the frustrations of coming from a country (Belgium) where the government emphasizes efficiency to a different country (Italy), where... not so much. Labro’s a small town, and more than 1000 years old, and much has been conserved, including the divisions between the burghers who live within the walls and the farmers outside, between the burghers who want more efforts to promote tourism and the burghers who don’t, between those who have lived here their whole lives and those who have left and returned, and so on. There’s a very clear hierarchy of power, including the major, chief of the carabinieri (military police), priest, etc. etc. And like everywhere else, there are many complainers. For example, a large group don’t want to buy anything at the bar or pizzeria, but then they’re the first to complain when these businesses fail and there’s nowhere to drink or buy pizza. The tragedy of the commons, sort of, writ small.

The most amusing bit of gossip was about the family that has lived in the castle for 900 some years, apart from a brief departure for Brazil during the second world war, which earned them black marks from most of those who stayed in the village. (They have little practical power these days, but they’re still “notables”.) There was apparently quite the scandal with this family, as the woman who inherited the castle married two Belgians—simultaneously, sort of—and had children by both husbands. (For additional entertainment value, her second husband was a younger man, and cousin of the first.) So there was some kind of amicable menage à trois going on for many years. Much entertaining banter about the relative virtues of having two husbands or two wives. (Opinions were, predictably, divided along gender lines.)

They also showed us pictures of the B&B before it was restored, and it was basically a ruin. It took them 15 years (!!!) to get it restored to its current lovely state, including early years when the stones and other materials were brought to the site one trip at a time by a local worker with a mule, “negotiations” with the government historical properties people to get the necessary permissions, dealing with irate neighbors (since the properties uphill were sold with the promise of a valley view that the new construction blocked), contractors who failed to come on the promised date and then booked a time a month later (when they might or might not come), and on and on. But they persevered, and the results are certainly lovely. I had a great time with them. I’d happily return there to stay and explore the town in more detail. With a map. (Lesson learned!)

Got off to a late start, around 10:30, because we’d chatted so long over breakfast. We were still quite tired from yesterday, but the hike started easily with a long, gradual descent to the bottom of the valley southwest of Labro. Lots of barking dogs, who in turn alerted other dogs further down the track via the bark telegraph, so they’d be ready to greet us. Most were fairly wary but not unfriendly, but at one place, a pack of five largish dogs descended upon us barking their heads off; one was brave enough to actually approach and let me pat her, but the others hung back. No snarling, but it became a little intimidating being surrounded by large barking dogs. In the end, completely innocent.

Looking back at Labro from the road south.

On the other hand, it became less amusing when a short distance down the road we came across what appeared to be the lower jaw of a sheep lying in the middle of the road. One assumes someone fed scraps to the dogs, but who knows? There might be a sheep serial killer lurking in these seemingly calm hills and valleys.

We’ve been barked at a great many times, but by and large, none of the dogs have been particularly threatening. I’m not sure whether Italian dogs are just particularly mellow, or whether their owners are careful not to leave the dangerous ones unleashed. Speaking of dogs, I forgot to mention another dog incident yesterday: We came to a field of sheep with two dogs on the far side from us, lounging in the shade, but clearly keeping an eye open. I made a bet with myself that as soon as we approached to take a photo, they’d come running over to tell us off. Which they did—only they were clearly lonely, and jumped up on the fence, barking and wagging and begging to be petted. So we did, and when they were done, they returned happily enough to their guard posts. Somehow that seemed very Italian.

The day began hot and sunny, particularly compared with yesterday, and by the time we got to Colli sul Velino around noon—last stop passing through villages before a stiff uphill climb into the woods, where we’d spend the rest of the day—we were parched. So we stopped at the local gelateria/snack shop and picked up a beer (a Menebrea “blonde” = ale) that rehydrated us nicely. (I’ve read that marathoners like beer because it gives them stamina and faster recovery times. I’ll take that on faith, as it would be disappointing to research that story and find it untrue.) Also a small packaged ice cream (vanilla on a stick with chocolate coating) just to take the edge off.

We traveled further downhill into the valley bottom, then up into the woods that cover the local mountains. This part of the day became a long slog, with many steep uphill stretches and a need to be very careful where we put our feet because there was a steep dropoff to our left for most of the trip. One badly placed foot and you could slide quite a long way before stopping—probably wrapped around a tree. Not actively dangerous, though it would have been in the rain (dramatic foreshadowing!), but definitely required attention. The combination of heat and still air made it a sweatbox, and the trail wasn’t particularly well blazed in places, requiring further attention to ensure you didn’t stray off onto a side branch and end up lost somewhere in the woods. We followed the instructions carefully, double checked that we hadn’t mis-stepped whenever it was unusually long between blazes along the trail, and resorted to GPS whenever there was any doubt.

Blazed forest trail

Blazed forest trail (they weren't usully this clear).

Sometimes a long slog is well worth the effort because it takes you places few others are willing to go or leads you to special views that you’ll remember a long time. I’m not sure today meets that test; the woods were dark and monotonous, with few views of the surrounding countryside. Lovely fresh air, nice smells (apart from sweat-soaked us), pretty flowers, and gossipy birds (including cuckoos and woodpeckers), but not enough to rescue this part of the hike.

The last part of the itinerary gave us two options: another stiff climb to the top of a peak, followed by a descent to the local Franciscan sanctuary complex and then a further ascent into Greccio, or skipping the sanctuary and just walking along the paved road. We’d had enough of the woods by then, and were tired enough adding another hour of climbing didn’t seem an attractive option. In the event, we missed the turnoff that would have led to the peak and found ourselves on the road instead. Thus, the decision was made for us, since there was no way we were going to retreat and try again. As we started the winding ascent to Greccio, loud thunder boomed above us; the sky had been threatening rain for some time, and we stopped immediately to put away the camera, get out our rain gear, and cover our backpacks with their waterproof covers. We were right below San Francesco’s complex when we did this, and I’d been watching the sky carefully for the last half hour, so I saw the storm coming. We double-timed it to a shed just below the sanctuary that offered enough of an overhang to protect us from the rain, which came down hard, accompanied by more thunder. Thanks to St. Francis for the timely intervention.

Shoshanna checked the weather forecast, which predicted scattered thundershowers for the next several hours. Looking at the sky, I figured we could wait out the current downpour for another 15 or 20 minutes, then have time enough to reach Greccio before the next storm cell came along. So when the rain slowed to a steady but light drizzle, we marched on uphill. We made it most of the way to Greccio before the rain returned, gradually becoming moderately heavy, and made it into town before the rain got bad. Since we were only about a kilometer from town, I decided to walk without my hood and let the rain wash my head and face. Can’t remember the last time I did that, and it was just as pleasant as I’d remembered, though Shoshanna had to do the sign reading, as my glasses were running with water.
We arrived at Greccio and checked into Hotel della Fontana, which was fortuitously on the near end of town. The guy at the desk looked a bit bemused at our appearance, bedraggled and dripping water everywhere, but smiled when I introduced us as “Signore Hart, Signora Green, and signori Acqua”. Upstairs for a much appreciated long, not shower, and letting our legs stop throbbing before dinner, which will be in the hotel. This shower was designed by someone who likes showers, with lots of water pressure and heat (though they’ve turned off the heating system for the hotel in preparation for the summer), and even a shelf for your shampoo and soap. One minor problem: I would have preferred a couple extra inches of shoulder room.

Dinner was pre-arranged by On Foot as part of our room price, and it was both huge and good. Wine was (again, weirdly) cold, but it was a red Gordiano, a regional Sabine wine, that was decent: fruity, but with good body and a less harsh finish than the wine at Restaurant Eco yesterday. Antipasti was sliced tomatoes with fresh mozzarella, toast drizzled with really good olive oil, and lightly roasted eggplant and zucchini, with a bowl of decent bread to mop up leftover juices. Primi were fettucine with porcini mushrooms and an olive oil dressing for Shoshanna, and thick broad noodles in tomato sauce with cherry tomatoes and black olives for me; it was supposed to be a little spicy, but turned out to be fairly tame. Secondi were roast pork and potatoes for me and eggplant parmesan for Shoshanna. Dolci were tiramisu for me and strawberries in whipped cream for Shoshanna, followed by a shared decaff caffè americano. Of course, we shared everything else too.

Shoshanna’s knee has been bothering her, as has my plantar fasciitis, so we’ve pretty much decided to skip tomorrow’s hike and catch a lift with our luggage to Casperia, where we can relax and just tour the (small) city at our leisure. Tomorrow’s scheduled hike would be at least 6 hours (closer to 8 based on our times thus far), with a brutal climb to start the day, and a long and painful descent thereafter. Exercising the better part of valor (i.e., discretion) seemed wiser.

Next day: May 3: Greccio to Casperia