Volterra to Pisa

Given that yesterday's day of rest turned into a day from hell AND that today's planned ride, from just outside Volterra to Massa Marittima, was the longest and hardest on our itinerary, we decided to pull a hard zag and head north for Pisa. The train system in Italy is good enough that we figured we'd have no problem getting down to Elba Island that way, though SPOILER ALERT that's not how it ended up working out.

Despite this being a chill day in the saddle, it was still the longest ride of the trip, so we got an early start and made the short climb from the farm to Volterra, where we stopped for breakfast and I made a new friend.

We both wished we had gotten to spend more time in Volterra, but we did catch of a glimpse the Roman Theater just outside the city walls on our way out of town. It was built sometime around the end of the 1st Century BC. 

Leaving Volterra, we enjoyed a long, scenic descent. It was bittersweet -- we were both too aware that this was the last of these we'd get to experience, at least on this trip. Still, it was some of the best riding out of all five days, and felt like a reward well-earned after yesterday's endless climb.

From there, it was about 40 miles (or 65 chilometri) to Pisa, mostly flat and more industrial than we'd experienced so far. We hit the outskirts of Pisa at about four in the afternoon, and it was fun to navigate our way to our hotel by bike.

As we got closer, things got noticably more touristy, until we turned a corner and BAM! this thing:

If you've never seen it in real life, it's wayyy closer and squatter than you would have thought, like the Disney version of what you were actually expecting.

We found the hotel and got the bikes into storage, and as part of the check-in process, the concierge asked to see our passports. I opened my handlebar bag only to find ... everything I expected to find ... except my passport. F--king idiot. We dumped out all the bags, but it was nowhere to be found. The concierge was understanding and let us check in without it, and we headed to the room to determine our next steps, which you can read all about in our next entry. 'Til then, ciao.

Bike route: 48.0 miles // 1,221 ft of elevation gain. https://www.strava.com/activities/993297872

Siena to San Gimignano

Our third day of riding, from Siena to San Gimignano, was supposed to be our first "PG-13" day (in the parlance of our guidebook), but after our first two days of "PG" riding, neither of us felt inclined to take on a more difficult ride. Fortunately, we found an alternate route that was much more manageable, with only one major climb.

Getting out of Siena was tricky -- cars, hills, traffic circles -- but soon enough we were back out in open country.

​A few hours riding brought us to Monteriggioni, a castle/town dating back a thousand years. Climbing the city walls yielded great views of the surrounding area, and it was neat to learn a little bit about the history of the place -- there's such a rich backstory to everything in this part of the world, which we just don't get in the states.

After a quick bite, we set out for San Gimignano. The ride included one of the standout decents of the trip. Imagine 20 minutes of tight switchback turns, like a roller coaster you control.

But, as we're quickly learning, what goes down must go back up, much more slowly. The climb up to San Gimignano was one of the toughest of the trip. We were lucky that clouds and even a few raindrops rolled in as we started our ascent, but this one was rough.  

In our own time, we made it to the top. San Gimignano is a cool town, similar in feel to Siena but much smaller. After we got checked into our BnB, we took some time to explore the town. We had drinks in the main square, then watched the sunset from the city walls.

Bike Route: 27 miles // 2,054 ft of elevation gain. https://www.strava.com/activities/987662637

Florence

We made it! Bikes arrived in perfect shape, and we were able to put them back together in the Florence airport without too much trouble. Big thanks to our friends at Seven Stars for packing them up so thoroughly.

Since then, we've been wandering the city on foot and bike, enjoying the art and architecture, as well as the food and coffee. Highlights include Brac for vegetarian food and Ditta Artigianale for coffee.

Michaelangelo's David

The Duomo

We'd both love to spend more time here, but the road beckons — we leave tomorrow on our bike tour. 'Til next time!