The night was windy and so is the morning. As I wake up, the clear sky slowly gets covered by clouds and rain can be seen on the horizon in the direction that I’m going in.
I set off to see how far I can come before the rain front hits me and indeed, the first two hours stay dry. Only on the downhill I put on my rain gear and ride down to Riola. Here, the rain stops mostly, it’s a bit on and off for the rest of the morning but nothing more serious than a strong drizzle.
It’s also refreshingly cool after all the heat, but as I reach a crossroads just after Montese, I still decide to ride away from the bulk of the clouds and out into the plains of the Po river. The ride out is on beautiful small roads and I exit along the Panaro river east of Modena. Down here, it’s sunny and warm again, and I stop for a long break, before continuing into the plains.
After a quick stop in Vignola, I mostly follow rivers and canals until sunset. The rain has cooled everything down enough so that it’s a very pleasant evening.
