#09 Mountains and Sea

Saying goodbye to the Barolo Valley isn't easy. It's just so beautiful here, and the weather plays its part too.

But there's no time to waste; the journey continues.

Our next destination is Cuneo, the capital of the province of the same name. A province in Italy is comparable to a county in Germany. And the province of Cuneo is the fourth largest province in Italy. It stretches from the wine area around the Barolo Valley to the French border in the Maritime Alps. And that's quite large.

Before hitting the road, we still need to take care of two things:

1. Empty the toilet from the camper. As lovely as it was at the agriturismo, there was no way to dispose of the chemical toilet there. Thus, we had to visit one of the public parking spots in the neighboring village and use their disposal facility.

2. Buy wine at the Terre del Barolo wine cooperative. We drove the camper there and filled the remaining gaps under the seats.

And then finally, we hit the road and the camper takes us forward. We move along the small roads and experience how the landscape suddenly changes as we leave the hilly area around the wine region. No sign of viticulture anymore, just more forest area (perhaps the white truffles grow here in autumn?).

And always in view ahead are the snow-capped peaks of the Alpine giants. We are heading straight for the mountains, and the sight is fantastic. The border between Italy and France runs right through the mountains and national parks (Parco Naturale Alpi Maritime, Parc National du Mercantour, Parc naturel regional du Queyras, etc.). The places on the other side are still well remembered by me from our road cycling - Alpine crossing in 2017 (Tour des Grandes Alpes). Back then, we rode the classics Col du Galibier, Col de La Madelaine, Col d'Izoard, Col d'Iseran, among others.

Our further travel plans are aimed at continuing into the French Alps. This would close the chapter on Italy and Piedmont.

In fact, the weather will change here on Sunday and a broad rain front is expected. France will also be affected.

But Sunday is still three days away, and until then, we want to enjoy the good weather in Italy.

In Cuneo, we chose a parking spot right in the city – but still in nature by the river. Below the city lies a recreational area with a swimming pool, skate park, soccer field, mountain bike trail, and a camper site (Area Camping Parco fluviale). Here you can park for 8,- € with electricity, water, disposal, and close proximity to the city center. To manage the elevation change comfortably, there is a funicular that ends directly in the old town. Perfect.

Cuneo itself is an easy city to explore. It is laid out in a checkerboard pattern, with all streets running straight and crossing each other at right angles. The main street is called (as everywhere) Via Roma and is almost entirely lined with arcades. Cuneo is a city where you won't get wet while strolling in the rain.

The buildings and squares are spacious and impressive.

But somehow, we have lost our desire for cities. One always feels the need to see this or that. In reality, they end up being quite similar. Therefore, we both decide to cross Turin off the list. It would just be a larger and more hectic version of what we've seen.

We both have a need to do nothing and just go with the flow of the day.

As we conclude our stroll by grabbing an ice cream and sitting on the large Piazza Galimberti, our feelings are reinforced. The large square seems to be a popular spot for all kinds of car posing. Cars with loud music, fat exhaust pipes, motorcycles with lots of noise, and classic cars without emission regulations roar around the square constantly.

The afternoon spectacle is called “See and be seen”.

Thus our decision is clear.

Tomorrow we will drive on the national road SS 21 towards France. The border crossing is located at the mountain pass “Colle della Maddalena” at an altitude of 1991 m, but it should be good to drive.

But first, we want to find a parking spot on the Italian side in the mountains and enjoy the sunny day.

We succeed perfectly in the small town of “Sambuco.” The name is indeed fitting but has nothing to do with the well-known liqueur.

On our way there, we wonder about the particularly high truck traffic on this route. Almost all the large trucks are on the road, heading towards France or coming towards us. In the narrow village passages, this is managed with traffic lights – two of the trucks would never be able to pass each other in the village center.

When all these trucks drive here, it will also be easy for us to climb the pass.

The valley was initially very wide with buildings on both sides. This narrows as we go and the valley gets tighter. The few villages are located on plateaus that are accessed via steep roads. The village of Sambuco is one of these. At the edge of the village, a sign points to the “Area Camping”. On the very clean and well-maintained site, there is another camper, so we have the luxury of choosing from the available 8 pitches. Each pitch has an electrical connection, and at the end of the area, there is a disposal facility, fresh water, and a sink for dishes. Now that’s a wonderful place. And the best part: the sun shines here all day, until it disappears behind the mountains in the evening.

We set ourselves up and take out the camping chairs. Doing nothing is on the agenda.

And this is easy at this beautiful spot. One lets oneself be taken in by the landscape, gazes at the snow-capped peaks (this probably only works in this season; later in the year, the snow will have melted), and observes the budding vegetation. The trees are all still bare and see-through. First buds are visible and are being pulled out by the sun. Occasionally, hikers emerge from the woods and cross the parking area.

Everywhere there are also signs indicating hiking routes or bike routes. The area is a true hotspot for such activities.

Our movement radius today is limited to about 100 m around the camper (and that’s roughly the distance to the waste disposal).

This afternoon, we stocked up royally at the Conad hypermarket, so we won't go hungry in the next few days. Today, we will grill once again and prepare a lavish camper dinner with marinated carrots, carpaccio, boiled potatoes, and grilled bratwurst.

Outside, the moon is almost full, and it is supposed to drop to minus 3 degrees at night.

Oh dear, that's a case for the heater overnight.