VENETO TRAIL 2023 PART 7 - Finito

The last and final day of cycling for the Veneto Trail 2023. I got up quite early at 3am, unable to sleep further, and gazed upon the stars. “Such a beautiful sight,” I told myself, and captured a few photos. It was as if imagining the scene from Lion King, where Simba looked up to the sky…

I sat and continued to stare in awe, and just basked in that peaceful moment as I watched the first glimpse of sunlight. Oh, what a wonderful world. We then packed up and had a simple breakfast. Too bad no hot drinks for the cold morning. It was barely 10 degrees overnight. Thankful that weather was fine and there was no rain nor strong winds.

Started the final day of our journey going up and up and up. It was a beautiful moment where we stopped at a cafe on top of a hill and met other riders. A few local passerby hikers were giving their encouragement and were glad to see a combination of nationalities in that place itself. We then started a few really brutal downhills, and interesting sections passing by a herd of cows grazing.

Finally hitting the few tenths of kilometres towards the end, the ride was all flat through tarmac, gravel and bike paths. As the garmin navigation showed the end point on the display, it was such a relief and the adrenaline pumping in towards the final moments of the ride, till we see the green banner of Veneto trail in front of our eyes. Thanks to Luca for being there to take the official photos for us. The pasta and cold beer were just tremendously refreshing.

At the end of the day, it was a bittersweet moment as we realised…”this is it! The end~ finito!” We are proud of ourselves and to everyone who have participated in this event. It was really a challenge covering not only physical strength, but a test of mental will. It was also a test of navigational skills and pre-planning to get the maximum out of everyday. We met and gained a few friends along the way, and also stopped to talk to a few locals who simply wanted to have a short conversation with us. We admired the beauty of the land, the vast greatness of God’s creation, and how amazing all that has been put together in place.

As we rode back to the hotel with aching bodies and legs, we couldn’t keep off a smile on our faces as this was such an enriching journey, priceless in all its facets, certainly etched in our hearts and minds forever.

Grazie Mille, Veneto Trail. You have truly captured our hearts.

[lazlo]

Hey thanks for the cool tour. I hope to be there 2025! 🙏🏻

[pecent]

Thank you for the wonderful compilation! I also cycled this trail this year. Previously the Tuscany Trail and then the Salt & Lake Trail in Austria, but the Veneto Trail was by far the most challenging!!! Each trail is so unique that I want to repeat them in 2024. Infected with the bikepackingtrail virus! ;-)