Via Claudia Augusta and the River Po | Ep 9 | VillaFranca di Verona to Ostiglia and Ferrara

Frankfurt to Venice Cycle Tour Days 23-25

Frank and Daphne continue their quest to reach the end of the Padana branch of the Via Claudia Augusta cycle route. Starting the episode in the historical town of Villafranca di Verona, we head out into the flat and fertile agricultural landscape and see our first rice paddies - vital ingredient for all the risottos in Italy! We encounter lots of tractors and trailers hauling in the harvest as we make our way along varied pathways to the port town of Ostiglia (known has Hostilia in Roman times) on the River Po and the end of the Via Claudia Augusta. We're lucky to even find a hotel in this unexciting town that marks the beginning (or end in our case) of the historical Roman road.

From Ostiglia to the wonderful city of Ferrara, we follow the banks of the Po and very quiet countryside on part of EuroVelo 8, highlighted by one really excellent campground. Ferrara with its rich history was a great place to spend a few hours before continuing along the Po to a small town where we overnight in a hotel, now only about 70 km from Chioggia and the Venetian Lagoon.

Ride Segments:
Day 23 - Villafranca di Verona to Ostiglia 58 km
Day 24 - Ostiglia to Stellata (campground) 41 km
Day 25 - Stellata to Polesella 54 km

Accommodations:
Day 23 - Hotel Ristorante Cioè, Ostiglia
Day 24 - Lucciole Nella Nebbia Camping Villaggio Turistico (Fireflies in the Fog Camping Village)
Day 25 - Hotel Enjoy, Polesella

Useful Resources:

Euro velo 8 Italy section - https://en.eurovelo.com/ev8/reaching-...

Bikeline's "Via Claudia Augusta" guidebook. Still only available in German, but the maps are great
official Via Claudia Augusta Website: https://www.viaclaudia.org/en/via-cla...
For info on the VCA shuttle service which Nancy used from Torbole to Munich - https://www.viaclaudia.org/en/bicycle...

Website: https://www.viaclaudia.org/en/via-cla...
Great info here although a bit clumsy to navigate




0:00 Intro
0:48 waking up in Villafranca di Verona
2:01 Starting the ride day 23
4:13 Rice fields
8:09 First Via Claudia sign of the day
8:32 An interesting grassy path
14:21 Reaching the River Po and Ostiglia!
15:39 The last Via Claudia Augusta milestone
17:58 Grappa served in style!
18:24 Day 24 ride begins in Ostiglia and along the River Po
26:00 Stellata Fortress
26:47 Finding a great campground
28:17 Starting Day 25 in camp
30:42 Ride continues on EV 8 along the Po
35:16 Reach Ferrara and tour the city
40:13 leaving Ferrara
43:07 Crossing the Po to our hotel for the night

All music from Epidemic sound