12:10PM: It is likely too early to declare our early start test run a success, but so far we’re happy with having cool temps and roads to ourselves!
Alarm went off at 4:30AM and we sunscreened in the dark, getting downstairs by a little after 5AM, where the night security guard made us coffees and had pinched some cake from somewhere for breakfast. Waited out a highly localized storm and were on the road at 5:39AM.
The first 20KM were a slow, cool, humid, glorious time with roads all to ourselves and the post-rain dampness creating the illusion of a jungle ride amidst Ligurian hills. Philipp even donned a jacket for the descent, and we twisted to just past the 40KM mark – halfway – before stopping for another round of coffees and focaccia (5E total). This is usually the time that I’m procrastinating putting on sunscreen before we even start.
Hit what felt like morning rush hour but might have just been narrower roads with more trucks headed into La Spezia around the 60KM mark, but things widened out and calmed down as we honed in on the beachy home stretch toward Marina di Massa.
Wouldn’t be an early start without one argument, predictably about where to have the day’s third coffee and camp out for a bit before we could check in at 2PM. At 11:30 settled on a focacceria that served pasta starting at 12PM. We ordered some focaccia to tide us over but were overwhelmed with the result (basically, a whole pizza’s worth of bread dough with prosciutto tucked in, 7E each) so will now set our eyes on the neighboring gelateria to tide us over until naptime.
Tomorrow’s track and housing is already sorted, so if we can get some afternoon rest in we should have a carefree evening to tour the town’s restaurants and pedestrian area. It has the feeling of Santa Barbara or other temperate walking city with lots of trees and outdoor dining.
Total distance/elevation to date: 3458km/25’917m
Rest days: 13
Route and Stats
Relive Video
The 1948 Tour 
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