BAC Le Marche - The Adriatic Coast to the Sibylline Mountains 2010

Please visit today's slide show

Breakfast this morning was at 7:00. The good food continued. For the first since Riccione, we had fresh fruit – melon, pineapple, apples, grapes and cherries just picked from the hotel’s trees. Mixed with home-made yogurt, this was a real treat. We also had several pastries and cakes that were made by the pastry chef. Cereals, breads and excellent coffee rounded out the meal.

I started the day’s ride a little after 8:00. I was the last to leave. Ann had Ron and Ellen Cohen as passengers in our car. They decided to take the day off.

The ride had lots of short climbs and one long one. There were some steep pitches. I managed to use all of my low gears and spent several walls in my lowest. The weather was very warm and sunny. We didn’t have as much ridge riding as in previous days but we still had outstanding views.

I managed to pass most of the group – some on the climbs and some when they were stopped at the side of the road making sure that they made the right turn. I stopped at a supermarket in Gallo where I bought an apple and a liter of water for .81 Euros. I ate the apple right away and poured the water into my water bottles. I had finished 1 1/2 bottles and needed a refill.

When I left Gallo, I encountered the longest climb of the trip so far. It was 6 miles with 1300 feet of elevation gain. There were a few steep pitches, but most of the climb was gradual – similar to riding up the lower part of Mt Diablo.

When I went over the top of the climb and started down the other side of the ridge, I got a wonderful view of Urbino.

I continued down the hill after taking a photo and calling Ann to wait for me to go to lunch. Then I climbed into Urbino and pedaled on very rough cobblestones to Albergo Italia in Urbino.

Here is today's route.

After I cleaned up, Ann and I walked over to the nearby piazza and had lunch at an outdoor cafe. She had a Greek salad while I had lasagna. Prices here are much cheaper than in the other towns on our route. It might be because of the large student population. Urbino has the largest private university in Italy and the students outnumber the locals.

Ann and I went shopping for fruit after resting in the hotel for a while. I soon petered out after we had gelato and went back to the hotel for a nap. It didn’t happen because the air conditioner kept turning on and waking me up. I finally turned it off and opened the window to let in the breeze. I can hear the birds singing.

We took over an osteria across the street from the hotel for our Happy Hour. It wasn’t open yet, so it was extra income for them. Ann and I were planning to eat dinner there. It was not open when we were hungry, though, so we ate at Trattoria del Leone instead. It was a small two-room restaurant in a very old building (they all are old in Urbino). We shared a table with Julie and Tom while our Maryland friends occupied another one. I had tagliatelle in a red sauce with ground meat and roast pork in a rosemary sauce. Ann had gnocchi in a pesto sauce and a salad with rocket lettuce with mushrooms and pecorino cheese. Everything was good and reasonably priced. We got there a little past 7:00 and were out by 8:30. This is early by Italian standards.

Our path back to the hotel passed the main square. There was a loud buzz at the piazza with dozens of college age students milling around for their social hour.