The Bailey Planet : Trip to the Cinque Terre - Part 2 (Monterosso, Vernazza and Corniglia)

Well this was an unexpectedly difficult (but amazing!) day!

I'm almost 100% sure Grant threw this shirt away after this day was over. It was a HOT day. As you can see, we ventured out quite early on our trek to Vernazza.

We couldn't even see the sun at this point, we were up so early! They say if you're going to do these hikes, you should go very early. If you want to hike the entire trail, it's about 12 kilometers (or about 7.5 miles) to go from Monterosso to Riomaggiore. You could easily do it in a day, but not when the heat index is over 100 as it was on this day. Which is another reason you start early!

I think the 7.5 miles is the length of the Blue Trail, which is partially closed (more on this later) so it's actually probably longer than this. But you certainly could do it in two days!

You're rewarded very early on in the hike with a beautiful view of Monterosso.

Are we sweating yet? Well, at least we still look cute at this point.

Little did we know this would be the first of many stairs we would take.

Look at that incredible water! I already was ready to take a dip!

The views on this trail are spectacular and make the entire hike worth it.

We ran into a few people (followed, passed, got passed, got passed going the other direction) along probably the first half of the hike to Vernazza. But after that, we only saw a few people in passing. The heat must have deterred people! It's kind of nice to see other people. Everyone is just miserable, battling the heat.

At the very least, they did have these signs - call 112 if you have an emergency and let them know what post you are at so they can come rescue you.

All three of us are in really good shape, and you definitely must have the stamina (and plenty of water) to do this hike in the summer. And take a lot of breaks along the way, which is exactly what Todd did after I took this picture of him.

At this point, we felt like we had been hiking for a long time, but we could still see Monterosso. Look at the grape vines behind us! (But don't touch!)

This was literally Grant's sweat as he stood there when we took the picture above this.

But wait... what are those boats in the water? Yes. We can't see Vernazza yet, but surely we are getting close, right?

You can definitely get a sense of how high we were - which was crazy since we had literally started at sea level. The difference in elevation is about 711 feet (or 217 meters).

We'll just throw some rocks down here and you can make your own way down.

EEEK THERE IS A LIZARD! So cute!!!! He's in the shade of the diagonal pole.

Look! Real ground and actual railings for protection! And... bamboo? Oh no, that's horribly invasive!

Once we got past the super hilly first half of the trek to Vernazza, the rest wasn't TOO difficult. It became a bit more challenging in the landscape - like this random bridge that appears to be put together with mud and rocks. I'm sure it's fine! The American in me is like... where are the railings!? (The German in me is like, meh, we don't need no railings!)

As you can see, the entirety of the Blue Trail between Monterosso Vernazza is just about 3.7 kilometers, or about 2.3 miles. At this point, we were already melting and we were only about a quarter of the way done with the hike.

The terraces were built to grow grapes, citrus fruits and olives.

This kid took it for the old parent team and wore the heavy backpack all day. Definitely a way to train for the upcoming cross country season!

The Cinque Terre National Park and all of the plots within it have around 7,000 km in stone walls - which is the equivalent of the Great Wall of China!

Ok, we are pretty far from Monterosso now. Are we getting closer?

Wait, we are! This was the first time we really spotted Vernazza!

Dang. That's pretty awesome.

But we've got to keep moving if we want to get to Vernazza. On this particular section, we had to go single file, but walk sideways. I'm sure this is fine.

I love this picture. I don't even know why. What's he thinking about? Probably about how sweaty he is. But my little giant boy looks so small among the Cinque Terre hills and terraces.

I also look small among giants. BUT... LOOK! I see it! Vernazza!

Seriously, that is SO pretty. This little fishing village dates back to 1080 (yep), and was a port for naval defense from the 1200s until the naval base was built in La Spezia in the 1800s.

Three of the sweatiest human beings on the planet. But seriously, look at that view of Vernazza. This is the money shot, right here.

You can tell he's just done with this hike! Of course, he ran out of water about halfway through so... But check those flowers out!

Here you can see the bell tower of the Church of Santa Margherita d'Antiochia which was built in 1318.

We finally entered the actual town of Vernazza, and it looks so Italian with the narrow streets, laundry hanging on the line, and green Lego shutters on the windows. If you know Legos, you know what I'm talking about!

These are the boats we could see from Monterosso and look - that's Monterosso in the distance! We hiked all this way!

We literally giggled with excitement when we got in the water in Vernazza! We planned ahead and wore our bathing suits (well, except Grant, who did not, despite the fact that we told him multiple times that we would be jumping in the water as soon as we got to Vernazza). But it's ok. Boys shorts dry fast! I sat with our belongings while Grant and Todd cooled off first.

I can't believe we were just hiking up in those terraces! And the train from Monterosso was conveniently passing by at the very moment I took this picture.

The water was chilly and I. DID. NOT. CARE. Caveat: This is chilly by Colleen standards. Grant and Todd thought it was great.

After our cool down in the delightful Mediterranean waters, we were hungry for some lunch so we went to explore Vernazza. It was very busy in this high tourist season.

I also got bit by a mosquito on... my knuckle. WHAT. Only me! So, in Vernazza, I went to the Pharmacia and got some antibiotic cream. It must have worked because it was half the size the following day. Also- I have my mother's and grandmother's hands. Only, theirs were not as swollen as mine were on this particularly hot day.

Finally! Some lunch! We had to wait for the 5 Terre Bistro to open, but it was definitely worth it.

Todd had the pesto lasagna and he said it was probably the best meal he had on our trip! Grant and I both had the delicious Ravioli al Ragu.

We had a nice German Forst beer with our lunch too!

But after lunch, it was back out on the streets of Vernazza to do some exploring.

I am not sure my body can handle more stairs, but here we go.

We hiked up to the Castle Doria for some more amazing views of Vernazza.

What a beautiful view but what's with the mini tsunami coming in there?

That's a hotel and restaurant down there. Bet those views are amazing!

Too bad I don't know anybody who owns a sailboat here. There are also ferries that go between the towns but we stuck to hiking and trains to get between the five Cinque Terre communities.

That's where we were swimming earlier, in front of the Church of St. Margaret of Antioch. The little bell tower to the left of the main octagonal tower was an expansion that was done in the 1500s, destroying the original wall. It kind of looks out of place, doesn't it?

You can really get a good view of the expanse of the terraces from here. Somewhere between 900-1000 AD, people began to settle here and the terraces were formed in the following centuries. Interestingly, we saw olive and lemon trees mixed in with the grape vines, but east of here as you head toward Corniglia and beyond, they really only grow grapes.

It was really hot up at the Castle Doria so we were once again longing for the cool water.

At this point, we decided to head down the stairs to hop on the train to Corniglia.

I liked this couple's little courtyard. Just two seats, no need for anymore. A glass of wine, no blazing sun, what more could you ask for?

Yes, we know we could have hiked to Corniglia BUT ARE YOU INSANE??? Heck no, we are taking the train.

Welcome to Corniglia! This is the third (and centrally in the middle) town in the Cinque Terre.

But unfortunately, Corniglia is the one town that does not have any part of the town down by the water. The whole thing is... up. So, time to tackle more stairs in 100 degree heat.

Are you kidding me? We have to go up all of these stairs? This staircase is known as the Lardarina, and there are 382 steps (33 flights) to the top.

When we finally made it to the top, you can see how far we hiked just from the train station, about 325 feet up.

Only about 150 people live here, so it has a much quieter feel to the town. The Chiesa Di San Pietro (Church of St. Peter) was completed in 1351 although there had been a smaller church here dating back to around 1000. All that stone you see is local to the area!

There is a nice little courtyard in front of the church.

And there's a beautiful rose window above the entrance to the Church of St. Peter. Can you see the cobblestones in front of the steps? I think it's a flower (maybe a compass?)

It also provided relief from the blazing sun! I love all of the colorful paintings on the ceiling. Definitely more baroque in here!

We were hot and tired so we went across the street (street? There are no cars here!) to A' Càneva for a drink. Gimme whatever spritz you have that has lavender in it.

I hope their underwear doesn't fall on us!

Time to explore the town although there isn't much to it!

Wait, what are those people eating over there? GELATO!

I've been craving mint chocolate chip ice cream for weeks now (no, I'm not pregnant, that ship sailed long ago!) - this gelato from Alberto Gelateria totally hit the spot!

Everyone enjoyed some gelato in this cute little courtyard. Makes you wonder how old that wall is?

That's a random sheet choice! Just re-emphasizing my famous family quote - "Don't forget to look up, there's so much to see!" Like random American and British flag (and tube station signs?) sheets!

After a refreshing gelato break, we headed back out to explore more of Corniglia. If you head up and south, you're bound to get some good views, right?

Corniglia isn't the same without you!

We came upon a courtyard behind the Oratorio dei Disciplinati di Santa Caterina where kids can play soccer (see the picture above this one) and you can get some spectacular views of the Mediterranean. Oh and thank you, tree, for your shade.

Me and my cuties - that is Manarola behind us in the background.

This guy was unafraid of humans and definitely wanted a snack. He was posing for us!

There is no official Blue Trail hike between Corniglia and Manarola (due to landslides that have closed the trail) which is unfortunate because apparently it was quite easy. Instead you have to take this much longer and higher route up and around, through Volastra, which is a town above the Cinque Terre. The easy route is the only one that's currently closed between all of the towns. There is a helpful map and information about the conditions of the trails here: https://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/en/cinque-terre-current-situation

We wandered around Corniglia a bit more, admiring the 14th-18th century buildings and green Lego shutters. (Just Google green Lego shutters and you'll know what I mean!)

Time to head back to the train station! I'm looking forward to a shower and some dinner!

Grant led the way back down the Lardarina.

Going down is certainly easier than going up, but you can even see here that the steps themselves are not very steep. There are also benches that you can stop at to rest if you need to. Allegedly there is also a bus that can take you to the top of Corniglia, but we thought we'd torture ourselves with the stairs.