Under the Tuscan mud.......

As I review yesterday it occurs to me that perhaps, just perhaps, that grimey  2 km. I slogged through wet, gooey field mud is what zapped my energy. Face it...2 kilo of wet clay mud, per boot, had to have been the final culprit of a long tough day!  And, at the final 4 km before arriving in Ponte d' Arbia, I manage to catch my boot and down I go......slow motion.....saw the ground coming up....all the while praying I don't land on my face. End result: bruised ribs far too tender for backpacking for a few days.  Egads, what a day!

Torrential downpours  outside of Siena, complete with thunder and lightening...
".Oh great " I am thinking as I march along with metal poles in hand, a lightening rod at the ready....
Left the upcoming field path a mucky yucky mess!  It was a day that waterproof pants ( although donned too late) and ponchos were made for! And then......sun.

Momentary bursts of warm sunlight  kept the chill away and shone the Tuscan hills verdant shades of green and blue .  Glorious, beautiful colors in a vast open countryside. I am in the middle of a land inhabited by few.  Aliens could land, swoop me up and be gone in a flash.....no one the wiser.
And then  grey rolls in again......raindrops threaten..... and the deluge begins. Rains reminiscent of my days on the Adriatic in the town of Rovinj Croatia........water falling from the skies as if poured by bucketloads dowsing a fire..... This was yesterday's trek.

And, as with all adventures, plans change.  As the fall has me moving ever so gently today, I will be bussing for the next couple of days......resting, seeing the countryside from a different perspective......making sure that I can continue this marvelous trek, on foot, into Rome in two weeks time!

Stay tuned......I know something wonderful awaits!