La Motta d'Ora to an island near Tornavento
Distance: 40km
The temperature last night was challenging me: too cold to sleep without sleeping bag, too warm to sleep in the sleeping bag. As a result I kept on waking up, slipping in and out of the sleeping bag. Otherwise, it was a peaceful, uneventful first night in Italy. Not that I expected anyone to show up in the middle of the forest.
Under the dense canopy of the chestnut forest, it is still pitch black when I leave and only gets a brighter once I step out of the forest and into the city of Gavirate. I navigate through the morning rush hour, take a wrong turn eventually, which takes me to Lago di Varese. I like it there and instead of turning back, I decide to follow the lake on a cycling path. As the trail notes are warning me about overgrown, impassable tracks further down, I continue along the cycling path even longer. I'm already lacking motivation (I'll get back to this shortly) and definitely don't feel like bush bashing my way through. Therefore, I follow Lago di Comabbio on its eastern side to finally rejoin E1 on the Ticino River.
Except for the first part along the river, where I have to walk on the road, the hike is rather nice. Easy to walk, straightforward to navigate and plenty of aircraft to admire flying in and out of Malpensa Airport. Only finding a suitable place to camp is not that easy. The first place, which looked promising on Google Earth is way too exposed. After checking Google again, I mark some possible locations. Luckily, the second place I marked seems to be a bingo. A hidden, quiet parking lot on a island near Tornavento. Only a single fishermen is around and I can't imagine he would bother.
Coming back to what was bothering me today: my lack of motivation and enthusiasm. While the first days on the trail are never easy for me, this time is particularly difficult to motivate myself. To be honest, deep down I wish to have finished this autumn's hike already. And I am not sure why. Maybe it's the next couple of days laying ahead of me. Flat, boring, plenty of roadwalk, dogs. Maybe it's that stark contrast to the amazing hiking experience at the beginning of E1. Maybe I simply hiked too much lately and done with it for the moment.
Having been barked at at least a hundred times and nearly been run over by two Fiat Pandas during the last two days doesn't help to boost my hiking spirit.
But for the moment, I just keep on tracking. I'll give it a few days (when I will hopefully reach the Apennin) and then reevaluate. Many things can happen until then.
Write a comment