I hiked the Path of the Gods this morning, or as I wanted to call it by the end, the path of the devils, lol. It was, by all accounts, a tremendously lovely hike. If not for a haze on the horizon the pictures would have been absolutely stunning – you’ll have to settle for “decent” as a result. 🙂

I need to work on my hiking “look” and posing skills

I met up with my guide, Fulvio Esposito of Sorrento Hiking, SorrentoHiking.com, in Plaza de Tasso, a very short walk from my hotel. Ours was a small group for the day, Fulvio, myself, and two adults from Canada, Susan and her son, Mark.

I’m pretty sure that Susan was originally from Eastern Europe but Mark was quintessential Canadian. Very pleasant and polite, not at all like so many of us rude, obnoxious Americans! J (I am neither, by the way.) I think that’s why it was so funny to me that Mark kept calling Fulvio “Guido.” Mark was not trying to be derogatory in any way but I think that term is generally used in a less than polite manner; at least it is in the states. I kept addressing Fulvio by his name, hoping that Mark would pick up on it. Fulvio finally corrected him. Mark apologized nicely, telling Fulvio he was sorry and that he thought that his shirt said “Guido” when in fact it said “Guida” for guide. That also made me chuckle because Mark kept speaking Italian on and off and clearly knew more than I did. But even I know that an “a” ending is feminine and Fulvio would not have been called “guida” anyway. 😉

Fulvio was a great guide and the tour price was exceptionally reasonable at 40 euros. The hike could have been done without a guide (not that I would have done that), but the extras you get with a guide are too nice to be missed. For instance, Fulvio showed us many wild herbs found along the trail: thyme, rosemary, oregano, arugula, mint, fennel, carob, etc. It was amazing how pungent those fresh, wild herbs were. Fulvio brought grapes for a snack and bought us our lemon juice / orange juice at the end of the hike at the “free bar,” as he called it. He also shared lots of local history. It was worth every euro and more.

A “table with a view” for our grape snack, kindly provided by Fulvio

The scenery along the entire hike was just breathtaking. There was a haze in the air from the humidity, so many pictures are not as blue as I would have liked them to be. Being there, however, was unforgettable. I recommend taking the hike as a once in a lifetime experience.

At least it will be for me, lol! I pride myself on being decently in shape, but wow, the hike was hard, lots of up and down and a significant hike up overall. It was rated as a medium difficulty hike. I hadn’t done a lot of preparation for the hike due to crazy work hours and super hot temps at home. The hike truly kicked my a**! I made it, but there were points towards the end that I thought the next step would be my last. (Last of the hike, not last, ever. I’m not THAT dramatic.) My thighs are pretty strong but they are hurting today. The hurt actually started yesterday. I can’t wait to see how bad they are tomorrow. Everyone knows the 2^nd-day muscle burn is the worst. I always worry about my weak, sports-injured ankles on a hike and I was very careful (i.e. slow) on the down slopes and steps. They held up but my knees were very achy by the end. Also my big toe hurt – not sure why, but besides that the boots held up very well. A day later, my thighs are very tight and my back hurts, but I wouldn’t have missed the hike. Check out the slideshow below to see what I mean.

I will always be a walker rather than a hiker. The heights don’t bother me, it’s the rocks, mostly, whether on a level path or making up the so-called “steps.” I also still miss the ability to look up more – when hiking, I have to watch every step carefully, sigh. 🙂 And I remain as graceless as a hippo out of water when I’m hiking. Is anyone graceful when hiking? I supposed some folks are; I am definitely not one of them. In any case, hiking takes you to places that walking cannot go, so I’ll continue to do it. When I feel the pain afterward, I’ll just remember the pleasure of being in an out-of-the-way place where my preferred activity, walkng, cannot take me.

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