Abruzzo and Via Appia. Regina Viarum starting at Scanno
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
531 km
Riding-time estimate
9 h 39
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
From Scanno it runs 531 km to Scanno; allow about 9 h 39 of riding. On the way it passes The Via Appia in Fundi, Appia. Regina Viarum, back through Via Appia. Regina Viarum and back through The Via Appia in Fundi. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,350 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Abruzzo
The high Apennines of Abruzzo are the least tamed part of central Italy. Most of it lies within the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, created in 1922, one of the oldest in Italy, where the Marsican brown bear, a distinct population found nowhere else, still survives in small numbers. Apennine wolves, chamois, red deer and golden eagles live here too, and in autumn the roaring of stags carries through the beech woods.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abruzzo is where the day begins. Next is The Via Appia in Fundi.
2. The Via Appia in Fundi
The Via Appia, the queen of Roman roads, runs straight through the middle of Fondi, and the town's grid of streets still follows the plan of the Roman settlement it once was. Built from 312 BC to link Rome with Capua and later extended to Brindisi, the Appia crossed the coastal plain here, between the mountains and the sea, and Fondi grew up around it as a stopping place. In the historic centre, the main street follows the line of the ancient road, and stretches of the Roman walls survive, built of huge polygonal blocks. The Via Appia was recognised by UNESCO in 2024 as a World Heritage Site, with Fondi as one of its components.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Via Appia in Fundi comes up about 175 km into the recorded legs. Next is Via Appia. Regina Viarum, 60 km on.
3. Via Appia. Regina Viarum
South of the Alban Hills, the Via Appia drops onto the Pontine plain and runs dead straight for mile after mile, as if the Roman engineers had laid it with a ruler, which in a sense they did. This was the Regina Viarum, the queen of roads, begun in 312 BC by the censor Appius Claudius Caecus to link Rome with Capua, and later extended to Brindisi. Here, near Sezze Scalo and Latina, the road crossed the Pontine Marshes, a malarial swamp that defeated would-be drainers from the Romans to the popes. Travellers sometimes took a canal boat alongside the road instead, and the poet Horace complained about the mosquitoes and the frogs keeping him awake on that very journey.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 227 km into the recorded legs you reach Via Appia. Regina Viarum. Next is Via Appia. Regina Viarum, 61 km on.
4. Via Appia. Regina Viarum
The Romans called it the queen of roads, and in 2024 UNESCO agreed, listing the Via Appia from Rome to Brindisi as a World Heritage site. Begun in 312 BC by the censor Appius Claudius Caecus, it was the first great Roman road, built to move armies south toward Campania and later extended to the port of Brindisi, the gateway to Greece and the East.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abruzzo closes the day.
Leg by leg
Abruzzo to The Via Appia in Fundi
Abruzzo → The Via Appia in Fundi is 175 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
The Via Appia in Fundi to Via Appia. Regina Viarum
The Via Appia in Fundi → Via Appia. Regina Viarum is 52 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Via Appia. Regina Viarum to Via Appia. Regina Viarum
Via Appia. Regina Viarum → Via Appia. Regina Viarum is 37 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Via Appia. Regina Viarum to back through Via Appia. Regina Viarum
Via Appia. Regina Viarum → back through Via Appia. Regina Viarum is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Via Appia. Regina Viarum to back through The Via Appia in Fundi
back through Via Appia. Regina Viarum → back through The Via Appia in Fundi is 53 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The Via Appia in Fundi to Abruzzo
back through The Via Appia in Fundi → Abruzzo is 176 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.