Safe Return Doubtful

44 km (27 miles) – Total so far: 1,476 km (917 miles)

Certainly it’s getting tougher to get out of bed at 7:30 hrs these days, in order to ride in the cooler period of the day. There are even times when that “comfort zone” looks attractive again.

I have to be brutally honest and face it that not a lot of interesting things happened in the last few days along the beaches, and hold my hand up and apologise to the reader (for the sort of writing – “Have the new paper clips arrived yet Enid?”). On a journey such as this there will be times of relative sameness. If too many interesting things happen, they would cease to become as compulsive; the norm rather than special, and that in itself would become mundane. 

On such days the reader may prefer I write in this style: – suddenly I rounded the corner and…. nothing happened. There was no naturist beach for young Scandinavian women only, there was no cool breeze from exactly the right direction, there was no bar advertising Happy Hour with Summer Lightning at 2 euros, no mosquito free fly zone, not a sausage, nothing. 

Much more interesting day today however! Initially some fine city riding with all sorts of adventures. Assertiveness is the key;shouting abuse at those double parked or just hesitating, banging on roofs of those who don’t indicate. Certainly as stimulating as a troublesome and rough off-road downhill. The Etrex GPS is great for finding the way out of these cities. Catania was much bigger than I had thought, with 300,000 population. After that, some freeway riding, illegal – but the only way I could find out of town (besides, a lot of illegal things happen here, referring to the Cosa Nostra).

Then it was rural, and a gradual uphill to Misterbianchi and what should have been great views of Etna. In this extreme heat however, there was a haze and only the outline was possible to see. Climbing higher made the view slightly better, but very little. Then back downhill towards Paterno and an early finish in a pre-arranged and excellently priced Agriturismo at Santa Maria di Licodia. Great to have a finish at 13:30 hrs! 

Short biking days are possible and quite necessary from here on in; it topped 41 C mid-afternoon today. The authoress Andrea Camilleri is one of the big reasons I’ve come to Sicily. Her many books (and TV series) are set in Sicily and amongst her best is August Heat, in which everyone is either on vacation, or just sits round complaining about the heat, except of course her James Bond style hero Montalbano, who is either running on the beach, chasing beautiful women, or catching the criminals. 

My mosquito theory. Similar to that of Brontosauruses. The amount of litter is directly proportional to the amount of mosquitos. Evidence – nowhere have I encountered so much kerbside litter, and nowhere I experienced so many biting flies, led by the mosquito. 

Distance 43.7 km,  Max Speed 45.9 km/hr,  Moving time 2hrs 57 mins,  Moving average 14.7 km/hr, Elevation gained 456 metres.  Altitude here 269 metres asl.  Left Catania at 9:55 hrs, arrived Santa Maria at 13:37 hrs. 

Leaving the city of Catania this morning – the city flourishes (relatively) in Italian industry despite a turbulent past. It has been destroyed twice by earthquake in the 12th and 17th centuries, also in 1600’s subject to Etna’s fiercest eruption.

For a city of 300,000 people in the biggest vacation week of the summer it stays very busy.

Back in the high life again –

Mount Etna from the pension – Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in the world – it erupted 18 times in 2011 spraying lava at least 200 metres into the air on each occasion – its last eruption was 12 days ago. That only encourages the tourist factor – the chair lifts to 2600 of its 3350 metres, the little train that runs around it.
Its the best view I’ve had – hazed by the heat. 
After biking in Iceland one time I returned via the Faroes. I was there for a week, and because of the sea mist didn’t see more than 10 metres in front of me. My synopsis that it was a beautiful place was based on decent wildcamps, a good bar, and the locals telling me how impressive the cliffs were. 

The place I’m staying has camping but it’s only marginally less than a room – room has ac so I’ve gone for that – Agritourism is basically bed and breakfast in farmhouses, with local cooking.