Safe Return Doubtful

54 km (34 miles) – Total so far: 1,531 km (951 miles)

No surprise therefore that on the toughest uphill of the tour, I was at the end short of water. Could be that this was her cunning, haglike double-play. 

For 35 kilometres the road gradually climbed through a scarred and burnt Sicilian countryside. Many farms had been abandoned and clearly many bushfires which perhaps had destroyed crops. After crossing the Simeto river the land was a lot more fertile; oranges and lemons grew, and there were cattle. Then the climb up to Troina began in earnest, from 400 to 1100 meters in 15 kilometres. I’ve climbed like this before of course, but there was no shade and the sun was high. There had been no shops or bar/cafes at all, so the only water I carried was 2.5 litres, a combination of what I had from yesterday and tap water. People don’t drink the tap water in the south. However, I made good time, and with some relief, arrived at the first mini-market in Troina just after 13:00 hrs. 

I had heard there was a huge hotel here, in which very few people ever stay. It was a couple of kilometres further than I had been shown, but very welcome. It’s 40 euros a night, and 4 star, very splendid indeed. I’m not quite sure why it’s here, perhaps for conferences, but quite why companies would want to meet at the top of a 15 kilometres road filled with hairpins and steep curves I’m not sure. In Gaggio in the north, the high places were very popular with old people who want to escape the heat. But there were thermal waters also. There must be more than a 100 rooms, and there are 3 cars in the car park. Maybe it will get busy later. It reminds me of the huge hotel on the Isle of Arran in Scotland. I stayed there with some friends several years ago, and similarly it was quite empty. It was run by an eccentric Indian guy who insisted on us watching him cook dinner in the vast kitchen, before changing his chef’s uniform to that of a waiter and serving us. 

Distance 54.5 km, Max speed 43.3 km/hr,  Moving time 3 hrs 40 mins,  Moving Average 13.7 km/hr,  Left Santa Maria Agriturismo at 9:20 hrs and arrived at Troina at 13:30 hrs.  Elevation 1020 metres

Solar panel farms feed the grid, this one was a kilometre long – and I saw several on today’s journey.

Some orange trees remain, but many are burnt by a bushfire and the house has been abandoned – typical of the first part of the day.

I’m in focus – must be the speed that the background isn’t.

Cactus house.

Sheep farming – very similar to Cumbria.

Troina in the distance – 15 kilometres away and 700 metres to climb.

Rarely have I been so happy to see a Sicilian mini-market. Water!

Troina – a bit closer his time, but still some climbing to be done.

Troina was a Greek town dating back to 7000 BC. Parts of the 4000 BC wall still remain, recently unearthed, or else they probably would have been destroyed along with much of the rest of the town on August 6th 1943. It was a 7 day battle between the Allies and the Axis powers. Fighting the battle in 40 degrees of heat.