Ivrea to Viverone

[Bob from L.A. !]

Got up and out intentionally late because today I needed to buying new hiking boots without fail.
As luck would have it, there was a Decathlon store several miles from Ivrea so I left Ivrea in time to get there right at opening.
My "new" shoes I had bought before leaving home now had over 1000 KM's on them, were tearing on both sides and the soles were getting severely worn. (See photos).
Once I bought my new one's I went into the Italian countryside where I passed numerous villas amongst the vineyards.
A number of hours later I passed Lake Viverone and eventually made it to my Air B&B.

 

[timr]

I wore out a pair of new shoes on my trip also and replaced them, a bit further on in Pavia, in another Decathlon. Where would we be without Decathlon??

That was where I also broke my personal record for losing sunglasses. I bought some at the (out of town) Decathlon - the €3 kind. I had left them in a bar within 2 hours!

 

[Bob from L.A. !]

I had never heard of Decathlon, but during my planning and research for this trip I found they were somewhat like the U.S. version of REI and plotted each one on my itinerary so in case I needed something I'd know where to find one.

 

[Tassie Kaz]

Here are my Salomon's the night before I walked into Rome. Much further & I would've been putting cardboard in as inner-soles but they lasted the whole distance...2120km!
Sadly we parted ways at a Roman rubbish bin just outside Vatican City... After such faithful service they deserved a better send off, but what can you do?

 

[Bradypus]

Here are my Salomon's the night before I walked into Rome. Much further & I would've been putting cardboard in as inner-soles but they lasted the whole distance...2120km!
Sadly we parted ways at a Roman rubbish bin just outside Vatican City... After such faithful service they deserved a better send off, but what can you do?

I wore leather work boots but they were in slightly worse condition than that by the time I reached Rome. Sole beginning to part company with the uppers and worn through in places. Some stitching falling apart. I must have looked like a cartoon tramp! On the day after arriving I found a hardware shop and bought another almost identical pair. I did think about some formal cremation ceremony on the banks of the Tiber but settled for a bin in the street outside too.

 

[Bob from L.A. !]

LOL!
I also felt a bit of guilt letting my worn boots go after they took good care of me (my feet) for such a distance.

 

[Stephan the Painter]

I would be so Worried 2

Got up and out intentionally late because today I needed to buying new hiking boots without fail.

No problem breaking them in? I would be so worried that I would get blisters or other problems. But I guess you had no choice….

 

[Corned Beef]

There's a Decathlon app so you can check the location of the next store and then check stock availability. You can even click and collect. It's saved me a couple of times (Pontallier and Viterbo)

An app to have on your phone?

 

[Bob from L.A. !]

@Stephanthepainter - None as of yet. I believe I have put 30 miles on them since yesterday morning and after just a few minor lacing adjustments everything seems to be working well.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

View attachment 149700
Here are my Salomon's the night before I walked into Rome. Much further & I would've been putting cardboard in as inner-soles but they lasted the whole distance...2120km!
Sadly we parted ways at a Roman rubbish bin just outside Vatican City... After such faithful service they deserved a better send off, but what can you do?

Wow, Kaz it looks like they still had some decent tread left.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

LOL!
I also felt a bit of guilt letting my worn boots go after they took good care of me (my feet) for such a distance.

It's always a sad day for me when I finally have to decide to say goodbye to my Camino footware.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Bob, I have a question. So far are you enjoying the first half of the Via F. as much as the last half you had walked from Lucca to Rome? I loved the latter and not sure I would be compelled to start from Canterbury like you have done.

 

[Bob from L.A. !]

Hi Chrissy -
Boy, that's a tough question.
Canterbury and Dover were easy. I enjoyed both

Once in France, as we've all heard, the infrastructure is just not as frequent to make it easy. The stages must be stretched out to locate a bed, in combination with staying within our 90 day window to accomplish the whole thing at once. At one point I had 4 consecutive 20 mile days

I also found the general public, in comparison to Italy, are not aware of the VF. ( I have heard its getting better though).
Getting closer to Switzerland the stages got more scenic and shorter in daily distance.
Also, as talked about earlier, Switzerland is really expensive in comparison to France, Italy and Spain.
Once in Italy the entire trip took on a different complexion.
The signage got really good, the people were knowledgeable about the VF and were much friendlier.
Also, The food in Switzerland and Italy has been fantastic whereas France was about average. (Just my opinion).
All in all this is a great bucket list experience and with each passing day I am getting closer to Rome.

 

[Tassie Kaz]

Wow, Kaz it looks like they still had some decent tread left.

Yep...they were excellent; bit grotty, just starting to wear thru the sole but the stitching was still in great shape.
I also went thru a few walking pole tips!


Are you carrying a pole/poles @Bob from L.A. ! ?

 

[Bob from L.A. !]

I am not on this trip

 

[timr]

.

I would be so Worried 2

No problem breaking them in? I would be so worried that I would get blisters or other problems. But I guess you had no choice….

Interesting.

I bought very expensive shoes of a well known brand for my VF, a direct like-for-like replacement for my earlier ones which I had found terrific. And they were perfect to wear straight out of the box.

But they only lasted 1000km - the sole of one of them wore down, in a way that has never happened with any other shoes, before or since. I think it was defective, and if I had been at home would have returned them to the maker, but inevitably in Pavia I threw them away.

Decathlon (which again I say, i love) is sightly the 'cheap and cheerful' end of the market, with a wide range of own brand stuff - Quechua. But the quality is fine. They are great for running kit and generally clothing and rain gear.

I tried on several and couldn't easily decide but one of them (not own brand) had my own surname (Redmond) as its model name. Not sure why, It is a town in Oregon, the state where Columbia Sportswear is based. There is one in Washington State too. Anyway I decided 'this was a sign'!

Still today they are €69 on Italian Decathlon. They cost less than a third of the shoes I had thrown away.
And I put them on and carried on and they were fine immediately and I carried on walking to Rome and was still wearing them when I got to Brindisi and then they saw me through Albania, North Macedonia and Greece. And then they fell apart.

I have tended to believe you get what you pay for. But it has made me seriously wonder about paying a huge amount for shoes......

I have to say the most recent shoes I bought were more expensive. As i get older I do believe in paying a little for comfort. But for shoes bought 'on the hoof' (sorry) my namesake shoes were great.

 

[Bob from L.A. !]

IMO - Quality shoes are the most important thing when considering a long walk.
A good pair, you are happy and comfortable in can make or break an entire trip.

 

[mspath]

IMO - Quality shoes are the most important thing when considering a long walk.
A good pair, you are happy and comfortable in can make or break an entire trip.

Indeed.

Late January 2009 in Pamplona
it was pouring rain/sleet when leaving the cathedral my boot sole separated from the upper! What to do? From the cloister courtyard came an elderly priest. He took one look at my sole-less boot and said "Senora please come with me".
Under his huge umbrella we arrived at a old-fashioned sports store nearby. The priest knew the matronly saleslady and together they both fitted me with new boots! When leaving the shop the priest kindly wished me 'buen Camino' and made the sign of the Cross.
...Ever since I recollect that those new soles arrived via the kindness of a most special soul.

 

[Bob from L.A. !]

You know the saying. "The Camino provides".
While that can get lost in translation or get passed off as a humorous cliché, I wholeheartedly believe in that saying since my very first Camino many years ago.

 

[Stephan the Painter]

Decathlon (which again I say, i love) is sightly the 'cheap and cheerful' end of the market, with a wide range of own brand stuff - Quechua. But the quality is fine. They are great for running kit and generally clothing and rain gear.

Does not surprise me. I bought a lot of stuff at the Decathlon, and I found their quality surprisingly high.

Metaphorically(?), I always have a little saying about wine: it's easy to make a good $30 bottle of wine. What's really tough is to make a good $5 bottle of wine.

I wish they had Decathlon in the US.