When did the desire to undertake a pilgrimage trail first arise?
To be honest, the Romea Strata is my third experience; the first was the Camino de Santiago, followed by the Via Francigena. A long-distance walk is a milestone in life; you draw closer to it little by little until the moment finally comes to set off. I had the idea of Santiago in my mind for a long time, but I always found an excuse to put it off. That thought sat there waiting for three years. Then one day, I cornered myself and bought the flight. I’ve always been a mountain and trekking enthusiast, so on one hand, there was the desire to experience the sense of freedom that walking in nature for multiple days offers you. On the other hand, I felt this could become a great opportunity to face the deepest, most intimate part of myself—the part we rarely take the time to settle accounts with. In fact, every single expectation was richly rewarded.
How did you prepare, and what did you bring with you?
From one trail to the next, you realize that, just like in life, we are surrounded by things we could easily do without. You need very few elements to tackle an experience of this kind. Of course, good gear is necessary to cover yourself adequately and to walk while respecting your feet, which are your ultimate resource in these situations. I discovered that an 8 kg pack was more than enough. It’s not an enormous weight, but carrying it constantly on your back isn't easy during the first few days. The body has to adapt to this new alignment and rebels immediately. I remember that in the evenings, I couldn't wait to fling my load to the ground, but then something suddenly shifted. The backpack became a part of me—a house on my back, where you can imagine having closets, drawers, kitchenware, a bed... all enclosed in a small bundle. It offers you a certain security and never leaves you alone.
From a "technical" preparation perspective, I’ve always kept fit by taking long walks, although what truly deserves specific training is your eyes. In a world that moves so fast, we always think about how to tackle our days by defying time. But how much beauty do we miss living this way? That’s why I say that training yourself to observe nature, a starry sky, or to listen to sounds is just as useful as knowing how to move your legs to reach your destination.
Photo by Lucio Zaltron
Did you set off alone on the Romea Strata?
No, three of us set off together, although for most of the time, we tackled the trail individually, meeting up again in the evening.
Why is that? Shouldn't it also be a way to share a powerful experience with friends?
It actually is, but the choice to walk alone during the day can be seen as a form of respect for each other’s freedom. In this way, everyone was free to manage their own pace and live in harmony with their deepest self. Plus, the trail is also made of encounters with people who are sharing the same experience or who cross your path by chance. A group tends to close ranks, which is a very positive thing, but by sticking too close together, you risk isolating yourselves, limiting the opportunity to open up to others. In the evenings, however, we had a rendezvous at a designated spot, and it was beautiful to share the stories of the day, each one completely different from the next.
What reflections did you bring home regarding the environment?
Indeed, living an experience where you stay outside all day and come into contact with different places every day makes you see many sides of our country. Italy and this trail can gift you with glimpses of indescribable beauty, but on the flip side, they confront you with major environmental degradation. In the thoughts I shared day by day on my Facebook page and in a private diary, I talk about this theme often. The beautiful and the ugly, good and evil, sadness and happiness, the right and the wrong, are all part of us. They are territories to be explored and understood. They are elements to bring to the surface so we can see them better, tackle them, and make progress. They certainly cannot be ignored.
Your next trail?
I am currently working on designing an itinerary that I’ve named the “Cammino dell’infinito” (The Trail of Infinity). I launched the proposal on my Facebook page and immediately received quite a bit of support. The idea is to create a circuit that mirrors the well-known mathematical symbol for infinity, covering the entire province of Vicenza. This concept came to me during the Lockdown, and I thought of sharing it as a “post-Covid trail.”
These are routes to be walked slowly to rediscover, either alone or in company, inner and outer beauty, featuring stops at both secular and religious sites. It would be helpful to find local facilities and private individuals capable of providing hospitality, including mutual forms of exchange.
As of today, I have mapped out the first "loop" covering the upper part of the province:
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First stage: Vicenza - Biron - Rivella - Monteviale - Madonna delle Grazie - Torreselle, for a distance of approximately 18 km with an elevation gain of around +250 m.
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Second stage: Torreselle - Isola - Malo - Magrè - Schio, for a distance of 21 km with an elevation loss of around -200 m.
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Third stage: Schio - Santorso - Piovene - Arsiero - Pedescala, for a distance of 23 km with an elevation gain of around +100 m.
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Fourth stage: Pedescala - Rotzo - Roana, for a distance of 18 km with an elevation gain of around +800 m.
I am seeing a lot of interest; with just a single post, I’ve already gathered several agreements and, above all, proposals from people suggesting sections to add or buildings that could be converted into accommodation facilities. This gives us a concrete sign of how our territory could finally express its full historical and natural potential.
Is there a thought you would like to share with people who wish to walk a trail?
These experiences should not be defined as "feats," but rather as privileges that life reserves for us. The emotions I felt in Santiago, during the Via Francigena, and on the Romea Strata are truly difficult to explain. Within me, I experienced states of mind very close to those I felt when I became a father: anyone who knows what I'm talking about fully understands the difficulty of conveying those feelings with simple words.
Intimacy with oneself, the awareness that willpower can overcome any obstacle, spirituality, and inner peace are gifts waiting for you at every single step. All it takes is the courage and the momentum to set off.
Buen camino!