I departed Fidenza this morning at 5:20 a.m. I noted as I left town that the days are getting shorter as there was more light at 5:20 two weeks ago when Gabe and I were hiking together.

The morning was uneventful as I wound down asphalt and dirt roads until I met a four-legged friend crossing the road 40-50 meters ahead of me. A large grey wolf (also known as the Apennine wolf) the size of a German Shepherd. I am climbing the Apennine Mountains today.

https://animalia.bio/italian-wolf/1000

The wolf moved quickly across the road paying little attention to me and slipped into the field across the road pictured below.

While startled a bit, I wasn’t shocked as a member of my crew of six, Mark, had also spotted a wolf the previous day in this same area (presumably the same wolf as it was the same time of morning).

The rest of the morning involved lots of ascents and descents with beautiful views along the way.

I decide to stop for a Macchiato, aqua frizzante, pizza and beer in Medesano. It’s a nice, long break of 1.5 hours.

I arrived Caselle at 5:30 p.m. after taking several small breaks along the way due to the heat. It’s tough to hike in the afternoon here once the temperature rises above 90 degrees. I think I will need to shorten some of these longer hikes so that I ensure I’m done by early afternoon.