Our last day was warm and sunny, the perfect end to a great week of cycling. Save for that dumb, rainy day, we lucked out with the weather: jackets in the morning, short sleeves in the afternoon. The ride was a loop around Gavi with a stop for lunch and visit at the Fausto Coppi …
Category: Piedmont
Cycling in Piedmont: Day Five. Welcome to Gavi and a Farinata Lunch
The fifth day of the trip took us from Cremolino to Gavi, a village and a beautiful wine region. We said arrivederci to Casa Margherita and started out on a 33.5- mile ride that took us through more rolling hills with vineyards. The ride, of course, was every adjective I’ve used to this point: tough, …
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Cycling in Piedmont: Day Four. Sunshine, Lunch in a Vineyard and a Visit to Acqui Terme
Our fourth day of the Piedmont sojourn was sunny and bright with a delicious lunch at an agriturismo in a vineyard and three short steep climbs and more than three other long climbs. So it was just a typical day. Don holds the day's itinerary. We started from our lovely accommodations at Casa Margherita, where …
Cycling in Piedmont: Day Three. Steep Climbs on a Rainy Day and Italians to the Rescue
Day three of the Piedmont bike trip turned into quite an interesting day. We had a 47-mile trek, long climbs, steep climbs, a wipeout on an invisible oil slick and an Italian couple who came to the aid of one of the group. And it rained. The ride was long because we left Alba and went …
Cycling in Piedmont: Day Two. Truffle Hunting and a Trip to Barolo
Itinerary for the day We started the second day of the Piedmont bike tour with a truffle hunting excursion in the woods. Tour leader Cristiano Bonino introduced us to a longtime dog trainer, puppy-in-training in tow, and we learned how they train, how they introduce the dog to truffles (put pieces in their food) and …
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Cycling in Piedmont: Day One. Around Alba and a Trip to Barbaresco
Cristiano holds the itinerary for the day, with a few edits. I made these signs a week before the trip. Some things change! Our first day started with bike fittings in the hotel garage. We all sent in our measurements but once you’re on the bike, it’s all about adjustments. Then we wandered around Alba …
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Piedmont Cycling Trip: A six-day adventure in the land of Barolo, chocolates and truffles. And hills. Lots of hills.
My second cycling trip to Italy was just a bit different from the first one I took three years ago. In 2019, I went to Puglia, the heel of Italy, where it’s basically flat. I was new to cycling trips and it was the perfect mix of flat roads with a few climbs. The touring …
A Weekend in the Langhe: Barbaresco, Barolo and Alba
My Italy adventures continued this summer with a trip to Piedmont, in the wine region of Langhe, home to two of Italy’s most famous wines, Barolo and Barbaresco. It’s the classic picturesque Italy I’ve come to expect – small hilltop towns that look like they’re right out of central casting for a romantic movie, manicured …
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