Samnium Bikepacking Story pt.2

novembre 07, 2021

SAMNIUM PART. 2 - My journey starts from Campobasso and soon goes uphill, leading me to Isernia. I pedal on the hills still dressed in winter, the wind is blowing and intense current is coming down from the Frosolone mountain. It will be an intense day. I planned to ride about 350 kilometers divided into two days. Among the different villages that I meet along the way, one strikes me the most, Carpinone.

I can see it from afar while pedaling through an oak forest and right in the middle of the old village the Caldora castle, a splendid 15th century monument, dominates the houses below. Sinuous and slow under the houses, the Carpino stream gushes out and passes in front of a large natural cave, where I take a break. Curious as I am, I explore its dark and humid rooms where some small bats hang on the walls. Second stop Isernia, Samnite / Roman city, famous for the onion festival and for the homo Aeserniensis, an ancient primitive man of the area.

While touring in its historic alleys, I am soon surrounded by the smell of baked bread and rumors of people at the market in the square. Streets are in cobblestones, but the Journeyman doesn't find any difficulty and it whizzes fast up to the exit of the city walls, towards the high hills, towards the mountains of Mainarde. I head to Castel San Vincenzo, an ancient place of worship, then return to Longano, a town known for its excellent bread, which leads me on the Matese Mountains. A friend is waiting for me, Alfredo, we will make our way together. Country roads, woods, state roads. A mix of paths that the bike tackles with delicacy, the perfect steed for a fabulous adventure.

The climb is long, sometimes warm and pleasant from the sun, sometimes cold and wet from the snow. Cows bivouac along the way and we are always on the alert due to shepherd dogs barking around us. They sure have a bad reputation among cyclists. We are almost at an altitude of 1000m, you can feel the difference in height and also the kilometers traveled. We arrive at the lake of Gallo, an almost alpine scenery, then we coast the Matese lake, the highest karst lake in Italy. Here we decided to camp for the night chatting on the route traveled. The next morning we enjoy the dawn between the peaks of Matese and we resume pedaling along the "bufalara" mountain mule track, then we head towards Bocca della Selva, 1400mt.

We cross over into Campania, Covid restrictions do not suggest it, but we will be careful for the few miles outside the region. Pietraroja the town of Ciro the little dinosaur of the Matese is just few turns away and so it seems the long valley that stretches towards the Gulf of Naples. The climb is endless, then finally we start to descend. We run fast towards Altilia di Sepino.

The remains of the Samnite city, also mentioned by the Times as a tourist destination to visit, have been lying there for 2000 years, always silent with the exceptions of the noisy crossing of herds of oxen and sheep along the Pescasseroli-Candela tratturo. We arrive in Cercepiccola, where Pino, the master baker of the oven, awaits us. He is already working in front of the large oven, several bread cakes are placed in the baskets that will soon leave for the daily deliveries. Cereal bread, durum wheat and rye, walnut bread, dried tomatoes. Many varieties that await only true connoisseurs of good food. We have breakfast together, croissant and coffee.

Pino's very famous bread has the flavor of history and true tradition. He gives us delicious loaves, we load them in the shipping bags, Journeyman is not affected by the weight. From this point we will begin the descent that will take us to the a town famous for the Bread Festival, Gildone. Along the way we notice an elderly lady sitting on the bench in front of her house. We chat, Maria is 90 years old, she has just returned from the countryside where she has her garden. She greets us and wishes us a good journey, through Jelsi and its traglie, vast wheat fields, Tappino valley and Puglia on the border. Last stop and we will be home. The miller Dionisio awaits us at the Cofelice mill, a skilled flour expert, an alchemist of magical mixtures. His mill is a true historical memory around here. Campobasso is the finish line, also an historic city with its long tradition of pasta making art. We are almost in Tappino, where Andrea and Vinz are waiting for us for the another tasting. Pizza and ricotta. Their oven is an experimental laboratory in a cabin immersed in the oak forest.

Samnium is the search for stories to tell, Samnium is a cycling adventure ....