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 5 May, Saturday - The Once Imposing Cisa Pass
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5 May, 2007, Saturday (Day 15), Pontremoli - In centuries past the Cisa Pass was the last great natural obstacle standing in the way of Pilgrims marching towards Rome.
Today the pass is not much of a challenge - whether you arrive on foot or by car - and if you happen to be there on a rainy Saturday in early May it might seem downright anti-climatic given the dearth of people, the deserted bar and the shops selling trinkets. But if you are living the Via Francigena and doing your best to enter into the spirit of what makes this a potentially wonderful cultural-religious-naturalistic part of Italy's history you can't help but be slightly moved. Though a relatively modest 1,100 meters, the Cisa Pass is the highest spot on the Via Francigena in Italy once you come down from the Grand Saint Bernard Pass on the first day.
Carl, Claire, Claudio and I were joined for the day's walk by Joakim (who walked with me for a few days last week), Otta and Cesare (both of whom live in Milan). The Swiss would have had us on the road early, but the Milanesi didn't arrive until 9 and it was another 45 minutes before we started walking.
Some cement, but mostly a great path up to Monte Valoria and then down to the pass. Suddenly as we passed into Tuscany the trail markers vanished...rather than go on myself again about that, I'll refer to Carl, but first a quick word about the weather, views, Pontremoli and dinner.
It rained on and off for much of the day, occasionally very hard though after yesterday it all seemed rather easy to deal with. And when you see these valleys covered in a dense sea of dark, lushish green that rejuvenates with each glance you'll know all that rain is worth it.
Two quick pieces of advice: 1) come to Pontremoli, it has a beautiful historic center dotted with bridges, churches and buildings that recall a forgotten past; 2) when you are here eat at La Filastrocca, where I had testaroli (an astoundingly simple yet delicious local specialty that is vaguely reminiscent of pasta and is usually topped with pesto), spaghetti allo scoglio (i.e. with shell fish) and a mixed fried fish plate (full fish, not random chopped up pieces).
On to Carl, who I should note is prone to preciseness and the fact that he grew up in Switzerland is almost irrelevant because he was destined to be a precise kind of guy. His preciseness can be quite endearing, especially when you become exasperated by a world of impreciseness.
Name: Carl Lasser
Age: 25
Nationality: French and German
Home: Lausanne, Switzerland (Lake Geneva)
Field of Work: Electronic Engineering
Me: What are your thoughts on the marking of the trails today and in general on the Via Francigena?
Carl: It's a little bit sad that you change regions and then suddenly there are no signs. It's like you enter another country. Fornovo to the Cisa Pass is the only area that we have come across so far that is really well marked. So that means 30K with markers and we have already done 400K in Italy.
Me: Do you think things can improve?
Carl: So there is a lot of work to do. Here and there they put just a bit of white paint, but it helps. Today it was a bit sad when we asked a guy about a certain path and he said it hadn't been used for eight years. What does it cost to keep a path in decent condition. They keep the roads well, why can't they do a path? They could get more tourists who maybe won't do the whole Via Francigena, but maybe a piece at least. From what I have seen and heard, I think we'll have to wait ten years to get things better.
Me: What do you think can be done?
Carl: The solution if you want more people to walk is to do something to improve the paths. Near the Cisa Pass there were arrows, why can't that be done everywhere? Take the risk, make some paths and promote it and maybe more tourists and pilgrims will come. If you do nothing, nothing happens. They want people to do the Via Francigena, but they don't want to do anything for it.
There isn't the culture of walking here. If they had it, they have lost it. Today we asked a guy for directions and he said it was 200 meters and it turned out to be more than a kilometer. You ask somebody the way and they direct you to the Via Emilia. That's great but I'm on foot I don't want to take the car. Only one guy gave use good directions that weren't on the Via Emilia or a similar type road.
Me: How is it different in Switzerland?
When you hike in Switzerland it's not necessary to take a map, but it's recommended, because most trails are well indicated and you follow the arrows. In most region especially ski resorts you go to the tourist information and you get a small map with all the trails of the region, and you can take shortcuts between the different trails. But when you are walking the Via Francigena and you have a big pack you'd like to have the trail marked. When you are walking everyday you can't be too adventurous otherwise you will never make it to Rome.
Trip details: Berceto to Pontremoli, 26.4K, altitude change: 571 meters up and 1,128 meters down.
State of the route: to the Cisa Pass a bit of asphalt and then a very nice, well-marked path (except for a bit of confusion at Monte Valoria with a fallen sign) with Via Francigena signs. After the pass the markers disappear and it's asphalt (though not busy) for the rest of the way to Pontremoli.
Weather report: rainy, again. 14 degrees C on departure at 9:45 am, 8 on Monte Valoria, 9 at Passo della Cisa and 17 on arrival at 5:30 pm.
Medical report: excellent, nothing to report except a bit of pain in the right knee on the downhill. |
 Near the Cisa Pass |
 Carl, Claire, Cesare, Otta, Claudio, Joakim |
 Going towards the Cisa Pass |
 Coming down from Monte Valoria |
 The Cisa Pass |
 On the road after the Cisa Pass |
 With Joakim |
 Testaroli al pesto |
 Fried Fish at La Filastrocca |
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Supporting the Project: |
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In collaboration with: |
Assessorato al Turismo e alle Attività Termali della Provincia di Pavia |
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Viaggiare in Puglia |
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L'Arte di Vivere
con Lentezza |
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