Sep 29, 2023, Assisi to Spello
After spending two nights in Assisi we set off in the early morning on the second half of our Italian thru-hike making our way toward Vatican City and Rome. I wasn't nearly as enamoured of this second half of the cammino as I was of the first half. Whereas we enjoyed repeating the walk from Florence to Assisi I would not consider repeating the walk from Assisi to Rome. In fact, with the benefit of hindsight, I'd probably have skipped this second half. As you might imagine, the closer you get to Rome the more urban the surroundings become. The terrain is also less mountainous and we like mountains.Carceri
We left Assisi by what the Cicerone Press guidebook ("The Way of St. Francis") author, Sandy Brown, describes as the harder, challenging route. This route goes through Eremo delle Carceri at which location we arrived just before it opened to the public. The route wasn't particularly difficult, except when we had to leave the Eremo grounds. The impassable gate was locked so we had to climb uphill and breach the stone wall as many have seemingly done before us.
We continued to Spello where I had booked "Casa Berti" for €120. I was finding it increasingly difficult to book accommodation along our route so this place was outside the old part of town but it was a large apartment with three bedrooms only a 15-minute walk from a large supermarket. We bought food there to make our own dinner and everyone got a good night's sleep.
Sep 29, 2023, Spello to Trevi
The next day we left early to beat the heat. The weather was warming up and we were hiking at lower elevations. I couldn't find anywhere to book in Trevi, the nominal end of today's stage. There was a festival going on in town and everywhere was booked. Instead, I found a place a little north of Trevi, B&B I Martelli, with two bedrooms and breakfast for €101. Our occasional hiking companion, Rosa, also got a room in the same place.
We arrived mid-afternoon and it turned out to be a pretty nice place. The host even invited us to use their kitchen to cook our own meal. Rosa went into town for dinner and later complained that it was crazy busy. She didn't enjoy it.
Sep 30, 2023, Trevi to Poreta
We waited for breakfast but it wasn't that great. We should have left earlier to beat the heat.
I thought todays' walk was very dull with nothing really memorable. We stopped outside the closed Franciscan Hermitage and made lunch in the shade. Inside the gate, a small dog kept barking at us.
I had booked Villa del Cardinale in the tiny village of Poreto for only €90 but with one shared bedroom for the three of us. Consequently, we didn't get a very good night's sleep. The owner was very nice and let us use his kitchen to make dinner for ourselves. We bought food from the tiny shop across the road. Rosa found alternate accommodation nearby.
Villa del Cardinale included breakfast, which the owner prepared for us. He was very anxious that we were pleased with his breakfast and kept hovering over us to make sure we were satisfied. It was a little unnerving. We'd have much preferred that we be left alone.
Oct 1, 2023, Poreta to Spoleto (2 nights)
Today's walk was a little more interesting than yesterday's but not by much. We passed through the tiny hamlets of Bazzano, Bazzano Superiore, and Bazzano Inferiore but there was little of interest.
In Spoleto we booked an apartment for 2 nights, La Bracceschina, that I booked directly with the owner. It was pretty nice, had a full kitchen, and was centrally located.
After walking around Spoleto we discovered that there was a system of underground moving walkways that facilitated moving around this small city. "Over the Hills" are getting lazy!