OCTOBER 2018 : ITALY : VIA DI FRANCESCO : DAY 8 : Pieve Santo Stefano - Sansepolcro : 25 kms - 7 hours

Another beautiful day on the trail. 19o and clear. Mark opted to catch the bus today ( buses leave every hour) as it was a 25km walk with no chance of modifications.And I ..... joined the Danish group and walked the 25kms in the same time we walked yesterday. They are a very organised group. Two leaders - one ahead and one behind, guidebooks, GPS, word of the day, songsheets ..fast but so friendly.

    

I left Mark after breakfast

We met at reception

Word of the day distributed - today it was Spiritual

8.15 am and off we go

Past the church and main landmark of Pieve Santo Stefano

Under an underpass 

Up a forest trail

Views of the reservoir, Lago di Montedoglio, we will be crossing (in several hours)

Some steep gravel sections

A song after a morning break

Spectacular views

Winding down to the reservoir we saw some fabulous homes

Bridge across the reservoir

After the bridge some great views back over the reservoir - the colour of the water was amazing

A stretch along the highway

Then down an earthen path to the reservoir 

Suddenly we were in an agricultural area. Our first in a week. A tobacco crop.

We had lunch by the reservoir

Then a straight path for 12kms

Large tobacco estates

Foraging for walnuts

Entering the outskirts of Sansepolcro

Some of the group opted for coffee at the first bar

A few of us continued on 

First sight of Sansepolcro - it gave no indication to the fabulous town

We are staying in the walled section of this medieval town

A gorgeous room - our garret for the evening

Many churches - this is the courtyard for the Church of St Francis

This fresco, The Resurrection by Piero della Francesca, is from 15th century and considered the one of the greatest of the Renaissance period.

Lots of restaurants amongst Baroque and Renaissance architecture

A photo opportunity down every alley and through every archway

Wonderful fashion and homewares. Sansepolcro is the largest town on the region and has a certain sophistication.

Some quirky artwork

We had dinner here just inside the city walls

And I’m not dieting...

M&M