This year we (Giorgio, Marco, Tom, Ottavio) decided to leave with our MTBs from home, so Friday May 26 we start from Rivarolo Canavese direction Turin Train Station to take the train to Genoa. Arrived in Genoa in a few minutes we arrive at the boarding for the Moby ferry, with the bikes we are the first to go up and so in a short time we are in the cabin to leave our bags and we enjoy our quiet night of navigation toward Porto Torres.
Day 1: Saturday May 27
At 9.00 we disembark and start our adventure in Sardinia; direction Stintino. Once in Stintino after about two hours we embark on a rubber dinghy that is the shuttle between the town and the island of Asinara. The dinghy had been booked long time before, there are several agencies that practice this type of transport and prices are almost aligned. Disembarked at Fornelli, we ride along the island to Cala D'Oliva where there is the only place to sleep on the island (Cooperativa Sognasinara). A former prison guards' dormitory at the time when the island was prison. The place is beautiful because you are immersed in the Mediterranean landscape with its colors and flavors which envelops you.
We do not waste time so we leave the bags in the room (dormitory with six beds for only four of us) and take back the MTBs to get to the most northestt place on the island Punta della Scomunica.
We look at the view, and as the tiredness starts what's better than a nice dip in the crystal clear waters of Punta Sabina.
We return to the hostel, we change clothes, we have dinner (which was also abundant and good) and then visit the village of Cala d'Oliva thinking back to the time when it was inhabited by many families all directly or indirectly related to prison work and also to the beach house where the judges Falcone and Borsellino spent their "holidays".
Day 2: Isola Asinara - Alghero (99 Km, Sunday May 28)
After breakfast we leave again to return to Fornelli where our rubber dinghy is waiting to bring us back to Stintino.
Disembarked in Stintino we take the road towards Alghero. We do not take the fastest and busiest, but we stay more on the right, better for cyclists.
We arrive in Alghero in the afternoon we find a B&B where we leave our MTBs and we start to visit the city, especially to find a restaurant to recover energies..
Day 3: Alghero - Torre del Pozzo (86 Km, Monday May 29)
The next day, early in the morning, we leave to direction Bosa. The coastal road to get to Bosa is all up and down hill, to be honest, Sardinia is all up and down. However, the landscape and the almost absence of traffic repay our efforts. We pass Bosa where we had stopped for lunch and take direction Torre su Puttu.
We stop at the
B&B Andrea and Valentina, which we highly recommend, place bike friendly and especially good rooms and wonderful welcome.
Day 4: Torre del Pozzo - Dune di Piscinas (98 Km, Tuesday Mat the 30th)
We have a hearty breakfast and set off in the direction of Oristano. We pass the city and arrive, taking the road from Arborea to Marceddi. we find a small kiosk where they sell groceries, we make sandwiches, we stock up on bananas and water and moving a few meters we are on the shore of one of the many ponds in the area, to tell the truth more than a pond is a bay where the road dam closes it with bulkheads.
After lunch we pass on this barrier and we find ourselves on the opposite bank; direction Piscinas. The road to Piscinas is truly fabulous, as being in a fairytale, dunes that make famous the town..
We arrive at the
Campsite Sciopadroxiu, located between the dunes and the Mediterranean scrub; we rent rooms that are ideal for us, we have the place to wash the bikes and roll out the uniforms, but first of all there is a restaurant inside where dinner is really wonderful.
Day 5: Dune di Piscinas - Iglesias (71 Km, Wednesday May the 31st)
The next day we leave and here the road gets a bit 'hard because you have to climb up to Ingurtosu, up to the junction of the SS126. From there turning right and going for a few kilometers a slight stretch, we begin the descent towards Portixeddu. The asphalt is nice so we draw the curves even if the bags do not help us.
From Portixeddu we reach Buggerru; stop for drinking, unfortunately in Sardinia it is not easy to find a fountain, so a bar or a grocery store are essential to fill the water bottles.
We start uphill and then descend again and then go back down again. We arrive at the top of a small valley where we begin the descent towards Masua. Luckily we do it downhill, arrived in Masua we have the brake pads that smoke. We resume and pass Nebida, Fontanamare and finally Iglesias. This piece of coast is really to be tasted and above all you should visit what remains of the old tuna or quarries now in disuse.
In Iglesias we stop at a B & B in the center of the village, convenient to visit the area and find a place to have diner.
Day 6: Iglesias - Sant'Antioco (74 Km, Thursday June the 1st)
In the morning we leave from Iglesias with destination Portoscuso, we embark on the ferry and arrive on the island of Carloforte. We take a short tour of the island and have lunch at one of the many restaurants along the harbor. Return to the ferry to get to Calasetta.
From Calasetta we arrive at Sant'Antioco; we find a B & B leave the bikes, we change and we start to visit the town.
Day 7: Sant'Antioco - Cagliari (120 Km, Friday June the 2nd)
Long stop Sant'Antioco-Cagliari. We pass the narrow isthmus that separates the island from the mainland, despite having almost 110 km to go we do not leave behind Teulada, and Pula. Initially we thought we would stop in Cagliari but then at the last moment, seeing the timetables, we speed up to arrive in time at the Cagliari station and take the train to Olbia. The only drawback of the day and that to do before we have shortened the path to the Stagno di Cagliari; the road is very busy with cars and trucks, in those about 15 km we found two accidents: better to avoid. However we arrive safely and especially in time to catch the train to Olbia. Arrived in Olbia we choose a B & B that is not right in the city center but close to a take-away pizzeria; tonight, pizza for everyone.
Day 8 and return: Olbia - Santa Teresa di Gallura (67 Km, Saturday June the 3rd)
The next day we leave for Santa Teresa. We do not initially take the national road SS125, but climb up from Santa Lucia, we avoid a bit 'of traffic. So we arrive in Arzachena, we pass Palau and in the afternoon we are in Santa Teresa.
We stay at the B & B Jolie, comfortable and well furnished with a 4-star breakfast.
Right in front of the B & B there is the pizzeria La Lucciola, of two of our former work colleagues; obligatory stop to enjoy their delicious pizza and above all to remind us of the old times and anecdotes of when we worked together in the same company.
Day 9: Santa Teresa - Porto Torres (105 Km, Sunday June the 4th)
The following day we reluctantly greet them and leave for the final destination; Porto Torres for boarding. On the way stop for lunch in Castelsardo admire the view and enjoy the sun of Sardinia.
So we arrive in Porto Torres; let's go buy some souvenir.. pecorino and bottarga and then since we are in Sardinia ... big roast pork ...
We embark ...
In the morning after we arrive in Genoa, we take the train back to Turin and then last ride home; in total 850 km.
The Routes
The following day we reluctantly greet them and leave for the final destination; Porto Torres for boarding. On the way stop for lunch in Castelsardo admire the view and enjoy the sun of Sardinia.
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