Day 44, Friday 27/4:

After a fairly leisurely start to the day, Patsy and I set out by ferry to Carzano on the Island of Monte Isola. The main modes of transport on the island are bicycle and motor scooter. Only government cars and busses are allowed. We had planned to catch a bus to Cure, which is near the Sanctuary of the Madonna of Ceriola, at the summit of the island, 600m above sea level. However, when we finally located the bus stop we found that the next bus was some two hours away. We decided to walk instead. We found a walking trail that we suspected to be correct, however it was not until about 500m in until we saw a sign. 

The walk was very pretty and with the temperature hovering in the mid twenties, it was the warmest weather we have had since leaving Adelaide. We reached the summit after about 2.5 hours of walking to be greeted by a large group of Italian high school students, sprawled out in every direction, smoking cigarettes and leaving piles of rubbish behind them for the teachers to pick up. From the walls of the church it was possible to get a near panoramic view of the lake and surrounding townships. We were even able to see Philip through the zooming lens of the camera. We headed back down, this time towards Peschiera Maraglio, at the opposite end of the island. Along the way we stopped to find a geocache near a helipad, which was unfortunately in very poor condition. Down down down we trod.

The walk became particularly steep and rocky so we had to slow down somewhat. As Patsy and I were admiring a newly constructed house in the countryside, I turned around to spot a half-meter snake, similar in appearance to he highly poisonous Red-belly Black Snake of Australia, right next to us at shoulder height on the bank of the cutting for the trail.

 This caused us to rapidly retreat to a safe distance as it scurried off into the grass. It was probably harmless, but one never knows. In Peschiera we stopped for a late lunch of focaccia beside the lake, which was very nice. I inadvertently ordered a shandy, which was not so nice… We caught the ferry back to Salzano and walked home from there. We had left over pasta marinara for dinner.