Our bikes, lined up along the fence at the Rifugio. It was unnecessary to chain them up.
Le nostre bici, parcheggiati al Rifugio. Non era necessario l'uso del antifurto.
A quiet night’s sleep, in the comfortable dormitories of the Rifugio del Diavolo, saw us ready and refreshed for today’s 82 km ride to Pescasseroli, the pass known as the Forca d’Acero and thence to the train station at Roccasecca, just north of Cassino. Unfortunately two of our team, having suffered considerably from the heat on the way up to the Passo del Diavolo the previous afternoon, were disinclined to attempt the Forca d’Acero and decided to return to Celano and the train back to Rome. They could not have known that the road up to the Forca passed through extensive forests and was therefore shady.
Alessandra getting ready to go.
Dopo una notte tranquilla di sonno ininterrotto nei dormitori del Rifugio del Diavolo, ci siamo preparati per il tragitto di 82 km verso Roccasecca, passando per Pescasseroli e il passo della Forca D’Acero. Purtroppo due dei nostri, dopo la salita difficile del giorno precedente, hanno deciso di tornare indietro verso Celano e il treno per Roma. Non potevano sapere che la salita verso la Forca passava, in effetti, per una foresta ombragiosa e quindi al riparo del calore schiacciante.
Al Rifugio: l'incontro per la partenza
After breakfast we said our goodbyes and drifted down the road to Pescasseroli, a comfortable 11 km away along a downhill slope. Pescasseroli is a picturesque Abruzzo market town of antique origins with an attractive “centro storico” or historic centre. We saw the birthplace of the celebrated Neapolitan philosopher and historian Benedetto Croce, author of ‘La Storia del Regno di Napoli’ (History of the Kingdom of Naples). We were in time to see a procession of veterans from the “Alpini” regiment, laying to rest the remains of an Alpine trooper killed in Bari during World War II and only now brought back to his home town for burial.
A typical track through the Abruzzo National Park.
Dopo una piacevole prima colazione ci siamo salutati per poi iniziare una tranquillissima discesa di 11 km verso Pescasseroli. A Pescasseroli, una cittadina pittoresca nel cuore dell’Abruzzo, abbiamo visto il palazzo dove nacque il celebre filosofo e storico napoletano, Benedetto Croce, autore, tra altre opere, di “La Storia del Regno di Napoli”. Inoltre vedemmo la cerimonia degli alpinisti che si sono riuniti in chiesa per accogliere i resti di uno di loro, caduto a Bari durante la seconda guerra mondiale. Solo adesso i suoi resti sono tornati al suo paese natale.
Pescasséroli: The house where the Neapolitan philosopher and historian Benedetto Croce was born.
After a second breakfast at an outside café, it was time to move on. The weather was idyllic – warm and sunny – but promised to be hot on the climb up to the Forca D’Acero pass, some 15 km away. Fortunately, as already noted, the road passes through dense forest so there was plenty of shade. We did not, alas, have time to visit another noted attraction of Pescasseroli: the Wolf Sanctuary, dedicated to ‘Canis lupus apenninicus’, which, along with the bear, is another resident of the National Park, and equally heavily protected by law.
Pescasséroli: typical house
Dopo una seconda colazione ad un café all’aria aperta, era l’ora di riprendere la strada. Le condizioni meteorologiche erano ideale, con sole ed un caldo non esagerato. Da temere era la possibilità di un caldo eccessivo per la salita verso la Forca, ma, in effetti, la strada passava per la foresta come già notato. Purtroppo non abbiamo avuto il tempo di visitare un altro luogo turistico di Pescasseroli: il Santuario dei Lupi, che, some gli orsi, sono superprotetti.
Veterans from an Army Alpine regiment march through Pescasséroli.
The road wound its way up through the forest towards the pass. We left behind us the little town of Opi, perched on its rock. The forests provided ample shade and we experienced none of the weariness of the day before, partly because it was still morning, which is the best time of the day for major climbs.
Storing hay near the village of Opi, in Abruzzo.
La strada, per una serie di grandi tornanti, saliva verso il passo. Abbiamo oltrepassato il paese di Opi situato sulla sua roccia. Affrontando la salita di mattina, abbiamo evitato il calore e la fatica della giornata precedente.
The hill village of Opi, in Abruzzo.
By lunch time we were at the Forca D’Acero, named after a species of tree, the sycamore, which grows abundantly in the mountains.The name of the pass has somewhat sinister overtones, suggesting that at one time a sycamore tree growing there was used as a gallows. It was a good moment to reach the pass, as there was a restaurant at the top serving pizza, pasta and local dishes of stewed wild boar, ‘porchetta’ (roast salted pork), grilled lamb and other specialities. We sat down to a well deserved and reasonably cheap lunch at about €12 each. This particular locality is known for its semi-tame foxes which will, if you’re lucky, come out of the woods to do the rounds of the tables for tourist handouts.
Alessandra and Aldo on the climb up to the Forca D'Acero pass.
Siamo arrivati alla Forca d’Acero per l’ora di pranzo. Ottimo il momento: c’è un ristorante che serve piatti tipici quali pasta al cinghiale, pizza, cinghiale stufato e porchetta, accompagnati dai soliti vini tipo ‘Montepulciano d’Abruzzo’, e le birre. I costi, a qualche €12 a testa, sono contenuti. In questo posto, le volpi, ogni tanto, escono dalle foreste circostanti per farsi nutrire dai turisti.
Arrival at the pass of the Forca D'Acero
Lunch over, it was time to press on down the other side of the mountains in the direction of Roccasecca, still over 50 km away. The going was decidedly downhill – indeed, it often felt and looked as though we were stepping off a giant stair from the mountain onto the plain below. At such times a cyclist becomes mildly anxious about the state of the brakes. We were certainly glad that we had chosen to do the route from east to west through the Abruzzo and not the other way round. The road described a series of huge loops as it descended towards the plain. Every loop offered fantastic scenery.
Coming down the mountain: the first hairpin bend.
Terminato il pranzo , era l’ora di riprendere la strada e scendere dalle montagne. I fianchi delle montagne sono talmente ripidi che si ha l’impressioni di scendere un’enorme gradone, dalla montagna alla pianura. E il momento di chiedersi se i freni ce la faranno. La strada prosegue in una serie di tornanti larghi ed ogni tornanti offre un’occasione per ammirare i paesaggi. Purtroppo si vedeva che senz’alcun dubbio il tempo stava per cambiare.
Mike Ivy and Aldo Bises at a rest stop.
Unfortunately this was the moment at which the weather decided to break. For some time heavy clouds gathered on the summits and an hour into our journey they delivered their promise of heavy rain – indeed hail. The others had got ahead. I was caught out in the countryside and had to shelter under a large tree. However, the rain lasted under half an hour and I was able to catch up at the next village.
Storm clouds gather over the Abruzzo.
Infatti I cielo si è aperto per depositare una quantità impressionante di acqua e addirittura grandine su di noi; sono stato costretto di cercare riparo sotto un’albero mentre glia altri avevano già raggiunto un paese. Dopo poco più di una mezz’ora, però, potevamo proseguire la strada verso Casalvieri.
Porcupine quills by the side of the road to Roccasecca. Hystrix cristata, a native of Africa, is thought to have been introduced to central Italy by the Romans.
At the foot of the mountains we chose the road to Casalvieri and Roccasecca rather than the alternative route via Atina to Cassino. The former takes you through a narrow defile in the thickly wooded hills and is much more scenic as well as being relatively free of traffic. From Castelvieri it is an easy run through to Roccasecca with no serious climbs, and we easily made it to the station with ample time for refreshments before catching the 19.30 train back to Rome.
The road through the gorges from Casalvieri to Roccasecca, near Cassino.
Raggiunto il piede delle montagne, si poteva scegliere tra la strade per Atina e Cassino e quella per Casalvieri e Roccasecca; quest’ultima è di gran lungo più tranquillo e offre paesaggi stupendi lungo il suo percorso per le gole. Inoltre non ci sono dislivelli preoccupanti. Siamo arrivati alla stazione di Roccasecca ben in anticipo della partenza del treno per Roma alle 19:30, il che ci ha permesso di rinfrescarci al bar.
Waiting for the train to Roma at Roccasecca.
Scheda tecnica/Ride summary
Distance from Rifugio del Diavolo to Roccasecca: 80km
Time: about 3 hours total on bikes; departure Rifugio del Diavolo around 10.00, arrival at Roccasecca around 18.45, with stops at Pescasseroli and Forca D’Acero.
Tempo impegnato: 3 ore circa in sella, partenza Rigugio del Diavolo alle 10, arrivo staz. Roccasecca alle 18.45, con soste a Pescasseroli e Forca D’Acero
Roads: not too much traffic except around Pescasseroli
Strade: non eccessivamente trafficate salvo nella vicinanza di Pescasseroli
