Monday July 6, Gradisca d'Isonzo to Duino Aurisina
We saw so much variety across 17 miles that it's hard to believe the photos below were all taken on the same day.
I lost my sun hat somewhere between the previous day's effort to outrun the rain and packing up in the morning, so we started with a walk to a grocery store in search of apples and a hat. We found the former, but not the latter. S ordered a new sun hat that would be waiting for me when we returned to Steinebach, but for the rest of the trip we shared his hat.
It was nice to see some of Gradisca's fortifications by daylight before we headed across the Isonzo river.
This photograph on a trail sign in Poggio Terza Armata, across the river from Gradisca, was our first view of the Adriatic from the trail, but it didn't really count.
Sound on to hear the doggie gossip chain announce our arrival as we climbed the hill. Alas, I started filming too late to capture the blue wiffle ball while it was still in the pug's jaws (look closely and you'll see it on the ground next to the coughing dog). We're laughing because it's hard to take a dog seriously when it can't decide whether you're a fetch partner or a mortal enemy.
The hills south of Gradisca are covered with stone walls, many built by Italian soldiers during WWI. Trail signage outlined much of the military history...
...while the small-town privately-operated Museo Grande Guerro in San Martino del Carso documents the devastation of the war on the environment and civilian population here.
Hello, Romea Strata.
Hello, Alpe Adria...
The climate shifted from humid in Gradisca to arid atop the ridge.
Trails and roads passed from scrub and woods to small towns.
Our first glimpse of the sea wasn't a great view.
A steep descent led us past WWI tunnels that enabled lookouts in multiple directions.
Our second view of the Adriatic, from the end of one of the tunnels, was better. The land beyond it is probably Croatia, with hills still blocking our view of Trieste and Slovenia.
The acrophobe found the descent to the river valley destabilizing but manageable. Being back on relatively flat ground meant I could stop and appreciate small details like this dor beetle.
Shout out to all of the public fountains we enjoyed, from Rizzios in the Dolomites to this one in Jamiano in Friuli.
Another long-distance trail: Verikala SPDT recognizes the centuries-long historic presence of Slovenians in Italy.
We had seen signs all day warning against starting fires in this part of Friuli. Our penultimate hill-climb showed us the consequences.
We reached the top of the ridge, and at last had a view of the Adriatic down the hill.
As we descended, the sea spread out before us. Here's a view toward Villagio del Pescatore in the front and the harbor of Monfalcone in the back, industrial ports where tankers bring oil from the Strait of Hormuz to pipe into Europe.
This humongous critter is probably a European Giant Steppe grasshopper (Prionotropis hystrix), listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.
After some more scrubby woods,...
...we emerged in Duino. After a mile or so tromping through a ritzy neighborhood full of houses that must have overlooked the sea, we saw a public access down to the water.
We reached the Adriatic. Actually touching the water was more complicated than we had time or energy for. Not shown to the left, around the small inlet--dozens of people diving of the rocky pier.
After celebratory Sprudel and tiramisu, we headed back uphill. There are two Duino castles, one from the 11th c. (shown here--the gate was locked, but S was tall enough to take this photo by reaching over the stone wall) and one from the 14th c. We got close enough to the latter to read that Franz Liszt performed there while visiting Rainer Maria Rilke.
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The Rilke Trail begins behind the 14th-c. castle.
No cars, no bikes, and especially NO BRASS INSTRUMENTS (or maybe just bugles) are allowed. Shhhh.
The Rilke Trail is about as scenic as a trail overlooking the sea can be.
10x zoom to appreciate the umbrellas at sea level:
The Sistiana marina. We stayed up high in Duino Aurisina and had a less glamorous but more budget-friendly view of the freeway through town. Tomorrow, Trieste.
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