Majella tour 2½. - Day 1

Unlike every other trip over the last few years, where I've gone in with a mellow vibe and every intention to relax and really be absorbed by the landscape of a particular itinerary, this time I went at it like war. This was not the time to smell the flowers (although I still stopped to take some photos), or isolate every living scent. This time there was only one smell: gasoline.

Having missed out in June, I was not amused, and determined to see it through. So, the first thing was a change of strategy, with a new approach route for day one, a "base of operations" in a hotel (more on this controversial topic later) right on the loop, so we could begin day 2 with zero waste of time or energies.

I am not a fan of hotels, but the convenience is undeniable; at least for me it's not a question of comfort - my tent and my gear will always be cozier than some random place with a wonky mattress and tacky landscape "paintings" hanging on wood-paneled walls - but there are two aspects that make this an acceptable strategic compromise: you ride with far less luggage on the bike, and you are right there on the loop at the start of the second day, as opposed to camping out in Santo Stefano di Sessanio which adds 70 miles, just to reach the loop and return to the campsite, a lot of them rough and demanding, definitely a cost to be factored in.

I have been following a new route that crosses the towns of Palestrina and Capranica Prenestina, eventually merging with the Tiburtina state highway; this seems to be a suitable meeting point for those coming from Rome, and gives us the option of using the autostrada or one of several country roads fanning out from that point. For me, it means a 45-mile warm-up across a lush green landscape of hills and valleys; perfect.

Once on the autostrada, I catch up to Alessio at one of the rest stops and we continue, as usual, towards Campo Felice. For the first time though, we actually stopped in a couple of places along the way to take in the landscape. These photos give you a good idea of what it's like, but being there is quite the experience:

Alessio stares down those ominous clouds, it must have worked as we only felt a couple of raindrops later on when we stopped for a "light" lunch.

A little further along, past the "Valico la Chiesola" pass, the view opens out onto the Campo Felice plain. This is definitely one of the highlights of the day:

I'm told these are called "crocus" and they are where saffron comes from. Huh.

We glide down to the plain below and stop for food and drink. It's always windy around here, and cloud cover means it feels a lot cooler than the stifling heat we've experienced in the city.

We take off again headed for Campo di Giove, which will be our base for the following day. The weather at this point is perfect.

Notice the Speedmaster. Alessio's watch takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'.

All goes easy, save for one minor detour somewhere around here, luckily nothing bad:

We reach "Hotel Belvedere" in the late afternoon, the bikes are stashed away for the night and we are warmly welcomed by Gino and his mother, who looks after us that evening with portions that are twice too large. Ready for a good night' sleep and ready for the following day's tour.

Our room looks out onto the south-western flank of the park; it is only a fraction of it, and it takes up our entire field of view. This thing is immense.

My gloves still had the faintest soupçon of wet dog from the previous weekend, but by the end of the first day they seemed to have aired out completely.

We're ready.