Novi Ligure to Rapallo cycling
I wanted to explore Cinque Terre for a long time and I finally had the chance on a cycle trip from Switzerland to Italy. I was going south from St. Moritz, passing through Lecco, Milano and Pavia. I skipped Genova because as far as I remember that was a crazy city to be on a push bike. Too much traffic and not enough space on the road to ride freely.
Cycling the Apennines is another story though. They are beautiful mountains but less busy than the Alps. There you can still find true gems: hidden places to camp for the night, swim on a river or eat your cans of beans without any other human interference.
In a way those little mountains were more challenging than some Alps, mostly because it's a constant up and down in certain sections. Whatever you gain going up you are going to loose it soon on a brutal ascent.
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