Breakfast was in the cafe next door to the hotel. It being Friday 13th, I set off in the wrong direction so ended up on the main road again for a while to Piacenza. Then I found some back roads through Cortemaggiore, Busseto to Parma, where it was interesting to see trolleybuses. I stopped for lunch in Parma's attractive Cathedral Square, and met a couple who were cycle touring. She was Polish, he was Italian. Then it was on through Montecchio Emilia to reach ...

Alarm was set for 0700, but I woke at 0530 and re-set it for 0745. Alpen for breakfast for first time on this trip (I was later to find it impossible to buy porridge oats in Italy). I wrapped a banana for later in the day. After retrieving the bike from the underground garage, I had another unsuccessful search for a map. Eventually at 10:00 I set off to do battle once again with the camions. Dead straight (Roman!) roads and a lack of mountains in view made for ...

I was the only one at breakfast, which consisted of tea, biscuits and jam but no butter!. Off about 0915, and the air was quite cold at first. Nice easy downhill until Borge San Dalnezzo where it levelled off. I avoided the centre of Cuneo by crossing a onw-way bridge in Borge San D the wrong way! Had a snack on the East side of Cuneo, then followed a minor road (but still lots of trucks) to Fossano. On the West approach to Fossano I took an off-road cycle track ...

After solitary 8am breakfast, I set off downhill from the hotel (in St Vincent les Forts) through the village. This was a mistake as I then had to cycle back up the height I had just come down, and more! However after a fair amount of climbing there was a surprising amount of downhill/flat to Barcelonnette. Beautiful scenery here, and just before Barcelonnette I stopped to video a light plane coming in to land in what must be the only bit of flat land in the area...

Breakfast at 8 in the hotel dining room with a few others, then packed, paid and off by 9. Weather was cool to start with but sunny, and warmed up nicely later on. Following the D542 then D942 I made good progress through the beautiful rolling countryside. Knowing that it can be v difficult to get lunch in France after 1330, when I got to the D1085 I had a look round the village of Monetier-Allemont, and found a nice cafe in the Square. Unfortunately the chap in...