Cinque Terre coastal walk

One of the charms of Cinque Terre is the coastal walk between the 5 towns of Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore.

I read that it took 4 and a half hours to go from Montesorro, where we were, which is the start of the trail, to Riomaggiore. We try on our first day to tackle the trail. A coastal walk should be pretty easy - only a 90 minute walk and we'll be at a less Jersey Shore-esque beach (we hope) and there we'll get some sun. We don our bathing suits, dresses, and as for footwear, Ann chooses sandels and I go with flip-flops.

Walking partly up a mountain, we are slightly out of breath but hopeful until we come up to a little hut and a sign. 10 Euros to walk the trail and it can't be done in flip-flops or heels. With a sigh we head back down to the beach at Monterosso where we unwisely bake our skin to a shade of lobster red.


The next morning, we decide to try again. Our skin is an overcooked salmon colour - an improvement on yesterday but not by much. I only have one t-shirt so it wis that and a pair of leggings with trainers for our coastal trail adventures.

[caption id="attachment_1395" align="aligncenter" width="168" caption="This is just the beginning"][/caption]

Now I know I'm out of shape. But the first 15 minutes of the walk almost floors me. Of course, I'll attribute that to the nearly vertical stair climb we have to undertake. You see only a few stairs above you, think you're nearing the top but when you get there, there are more, and more, and more. We are climbing up a mountain.



We do reach a top of sorts but the trail continues like a wave on the side of the mountain. We trudge on in 30 degree heat, full sun and no breeze. The bits of shade we do find we rest in for a moment and then carry on.

[caption id="attachment_1394" align="aligncenter" width="168" caption="Taking in the view (AKA resting)"][/caption]

One thing we can't do, was complain. On the trail in front of us, and in our wake, are mostly retirees - some not in the best shape - but I don't hear any of them moan. They take a break when they need to and rest when they can. Have snacks and water and walking sticks. Most of them have sturdy boots. That's what I want to be doing in my 60s. And flying in a private jet. You should always have a few dreams in there.

[caption id="attachment_1392" align="aligncenter" width="168" caption="We're all hitting the trail"][/caption]

And suddenly through a break in the trees we can see Venezza in all it's glory. And glori-ful it is.



But once we sit and drink water and look above at the next climb to the next town, we think 90 minutes of walking is enough. Maybe it's time to take the train back and write postcards and have dinner and write this post. So we do.