What have I gotten myself into? the route to Alto blu, Mortola Superior, Italy…

For 5 days and almost 85 miles climbing up and down the Italian Alps, I’ve been trying to think of how to succinctly describe this unique adventure. What I’ve come up with is that it was like I was an extra in a French multi~genre film, without subtitles. The genres included drama, adventure, mystery, romance, terror, action, comedy and surrealism all set in the beautiful, bucolic hills of the Ligurian region of Italy. 

It all started back in St. Agnés, France. After collecting the final member of our group in a small village along the way, we were off. Following old Roman roads, mule trails and streets we were headed to Italy and back. An early trot and canter helped me to shake off a few nerves and begin to enjoy the wildness of the hills. But I still didn’t quite know what to expect.

We stopped for a picnic lunch in a pasture on the Balcon above Menton.

We secured the horse reins and allowed them to roam and enjoy lunch on the hillside. Here is my trusty friend, dear Uslaine, all geared up to go, with my “banana” {which will eventually disappear, one of the mystery segments} on the back of the saddle. This black nylon, weather proof bag was for my clothes and personal items as was the leather saddle bag hanging beneath it.

As the horses wandered we sat down for a lunch of lentil salad, cheeses, sausages, bread and the last of the tomatoes from the garden. This lunch set the tone for the plot that would unfold. This trip was a opportunity to enjoy the rustic, alpine beauty of this part of the world in a simple, natural and authentic style.

After lunch, the adventure really began. We started an intense climb {I called it bouldering, my french colleagues called it jumping}. Whatever the term, we were suddenly clattering up limestone cliffs in 2~point (lifting our seats above the saddle and forward to keep the weight off our horses so they could use their hindquarters to get us up the mountain}. This is when the title of this post started running through my mind…. “what have I gotten myself into”??

When the trail leveled out a bit, the guide announced we had successfully crossed into Italy, and we didn’t even have to show our passports {comedy}. Almost immediately, we were received with an eruption of gunshots over our heads. Thankfully, these horses are well trained and were only startled for a second before carrying on.

The next eruption was a heated conversation between guide and hunters in rapid fire French and Italian regarding the appropriateness of shooting. It is hunting season in these hills and shot gun shells, feathers and distant gun fire were present for most of our days.

I don’t have any photos to share of this part of the trip because I didn’t dare take my hands off of my reins.

We came across old stone ruins like this throughout the trip, evidence of hundreds of years of pastoral life and the Transhumance. I especially like this shot because between the ruins you can see our last views of the tunnels of the autoroute and the Mediterranean.

The owners of Altoblu welcomed us warmly. Of course, I was immediately drawn to the color scheme. This cozy little B & B is a grand canvas for the wife, Luciana, who seems to have absolutely unlimited artistic talents. Here is a set of porcelain plates she made.

#lessonlearned,
14.11 miles travelled.