Day Six
Larino-Termoli and Another Fascinating Discovery at San Vito Chietino.
The next morning we planned to continue our ride from the spot where we had turned around the night before. Driving to that location we crossed the tracks where we had hit the triggering device. A railroad truck and two workmen were at the crossing and we could not believe it was a coincidence. They must have been responding to the signal our bikes had relayed to their offices and had come to determine what had set them off and repair the problem.
At this point we decided it would be best not to push our luck at getting caught and we decided to go back to Larino and ride in the opposite direction on the line that had been closed earlier. We put on at the station of San Martino in Pensilis and made the round trip to the station Guglionesi-Portocannone, a flat ride through farm land and vineyards.
This railroad line is an excellent prospect for future railbiking. It will probably not be reopened and because it was a well maintained mainline and runs through mostly open country it will probably not suffer the scourge of the blackberry.
Grapes were the main crop
in the valley leading to the coast.
At left, an unidentified hill town
can be seen on the ridge top in
the upper left corner.
The ballast in much of Italy
was a bright white rock.
This gave the abandoned lines
a clean, actively used look.
Finishing our ride early, we again headed toward Urbino, expecting to make the town by nightfall. Studying our map, we saw that we would cross two railroads along the coast that ran a short distance into the mountains, but no further.
We believed both of these might not be in use, since most of these shorter branch lines had been discontinued. We also noticed that one of these rail lines made a complete loop over itself as it descended to the ocean. Both were worth the time to check out.
We pulled off the freeway at the Laciano exit and drove along the railroad to San Vito Chietino. The line was once electrified but most of the overhead trolly wire had been pulled down, a sure sign of abandonment. The town appeared to be about 500 feet above the ocean. Following the road down to the beach below we were amazed to find the railroad swinging around the point of the hill on a long, curved, stone viaduct, high
Our Second Great Discovery
above the sea. It looked like a fantastic ride. Toward the bottom we found a side road and a good place to put-on. From here we rode up the grade and over the curved viaduct. The railroad then entered a tunnel and made a complete loop over itself, passing through a second tunnel and as it entered San Vito Chietino. It was an notable piece of railroad engineering. The views of Marina de Vitto below us and the blue Adriatic were gorgeous.
Below is the town of
Marina de San Vito.
Looping over itself the railroad descends on three levels
to reach its destination.
At right and below are views from the stone bridge that girdles the hillside providing a stunning panorama
of the Adriatic.
This is a view from the top level of the railroad. The second level can been seen
directly below, and the third level is where
it joins the mainline at the station below.
Most of our rides were finishing late in the day and we were lucky to to get settled into a hotel by 8 PM. Now that we discouvered this intriguing abandoned line we were sure we could ride the rest of the railroad which runs west into the mountains. This would give us plenty of railbiking the next day.
The rail line descends from
Vito de Chietino
at the top of the hill,
loops around under itself
and emerges from a tunnel
which is just out of sight.
Farther down the hill it passes through a second tunnel and then
circumvents the hillside on a high stone viaduct. After a sweeping horseshoe curve it meets the mainline in Marina de Vito.
The Electric line out of Marina di San Vito
