On our rest day at Conza della Campania we wanted to visit the “Parco Storico e Archeologico di Conza” which was just a few hundred meters away. So we could walk to the park which was located on a mountain. This sight consists of the remains of the town Conza. On 23th November in 1980 a massive earthquake occurred in southern Italy. The town Conza was almost completely destroyed and therefore they built a new one down in the valley called Conza della Campania.

The memories of a terrible disaster in Conza

It was spooky and interesting at the same time to walk along the street and see these abandon houses. In some of them you could look inside through open windows or doors and see the relicts of the people who lived there. There is one apartment and a youth hostel where you could stay in this ghost town and on the top of the mountain is a restaurant.

When we came there the owner greeted us friendly and of course we had some lunch. On the terrace we had a stunning view on the mountain ranges and the food was also delicious. Later we walked to the city and got us some supplies at the local supermarkets. After dinner we went to bed because we wanted to start early again.

Leaving Conza della Campania

The first goal of the day was the town Lioni. There we would turn back on the local bicycle track which we had to left to go to Conza della Campania. We had different options to get to Lioni but we chose one of the main roads. In this area there was not much traffic going on, so we thought it would be fine. We made great progress but along the road there wasn’t much to see. When we arrived in Lioni we took the first chance and drank a coffee at a small cafe.

The start of the panorama tour

A few kilometers behind the town we turned to a small street which led us through small villages and we passed some farms. It was a remote area and we had a few beautiful views at the surrounding mountains. Some moments later a climbing segment started. It wasn’t too steep and on the asphalted street it wasn’t too tough to cycle, but of course it took some time. However, when we reached the top we had a beautiful and stunning view on a valley and a very high mountain range. Of course we did some photo stops.

On a very steep downhill passage our path led us into the valley and of course on the other side of the valley the climbing started again. But this time we climbed around 400m altitude in around seven kilometers. One of the longest climbing segments on our tour. But good for us that the street was in good condition and it wasn’t too steep. Also almost no traffic was going on. From time to time we needed a break and could enjoy the view. Of course when we were on the top at the small town Montemarano we had again a stunning view and could see very far.

Lunchtime followed by a pleasant downhill part

In the town we ate our lunch out of our bag at a playground on a bench. A few meters away we also could refill our bottles at a water station. The stage was quite challenging and even though we made good progress we thought Napoli would be too far to get there on this day. So we decided to book a Bed & Breakfast in Avellino. When we continued the next kilometers were ups and downs and our street led us along mountains which were between 1000 and 1432 meter altitude. Quite impressive, but good for us that we didn’t have to climb them.

After the final climbing we again had stunning views into a valley and could see our goal of the day in the distance. A more than ten kilometers long downhill segment followed which we enjoyed after all the climbing. We passed several little towns and after some unpleasant last kilometers on bumpy cobblestone we arrived at or accommodation. The hosts were super friendly and we posed for a facebook photo before we entered and got everything explained. We parked the bicycles in the basement and were happy about the very well equipped room.

Route

The total distance can be viewed on the “Sabbatical 2021 – Europe” page.

Download file: Sabbatical2021_058_Conza_della_Campania_to_Avellino.gpx