Aquileia, Grado and the Estuary of the Isonzo

This route, the final leg and the point of arrival to the sea, of the Ciclovia Alpe Adria [Alps to Adriatic bike route], is now feasible for the most part along a bike path or along local roads with little traffic; only the final stretch towards Monfalcone is along a provincial road that is very busy. There are three special points of interest: Aquileia with its basilica and its Roman ruins; Grado and its lagoon; and the estuary and mouth of the Isonzo River.

Leave from the FS train station at Cervignano del Friuli and go through the center of the village following the signs for Aquileia; immediately after you will find on the left the beginning of a bike path that follows adjacent to the statale [state highway] that goes as far as Terzo di Aquileia; once you have arrived at the turn-off into this village, the bike path is interrupted; we need to cross the statale and make a choice: either continue along what is the indicated bike route, which is even more rocky than a normal dirt road, or go through the village on a relatively quiet street.

After Terzo you will find the bike path again built of a rough base but overlaid with fine gravel in pretty good condition; as you come closer to Aquileia you will find sections that are more rocky. The bike path passes in front of the entrance to the ancient river port of Aquileia filled with Roman ruins (visitable without bike) and then loops around the Basilica Patriarcale. Aquileia, during Roman antiquity, was the most important city of the region called Venetia, becoming its patriarchal seat, but after its destruction by Attila [the Hun] it declined and today is nothing more than a farming town spread around the Basilica and the Roman ruins.

After Aquileia the bike path continues for the most part on a soft base with fine gravel as far as Belvedere where we find the lagoon and the causeway to Grado. Here you will find a just-completed bike path on the left [east] side of the statale; it is unpaved, not particularly ideal but at least bike-able. From this bike path you can enjoy a splendid panorama of the lagoon and of Grado; and, in the background, if the air is clear, the imposing spectacle of the Alpi Giulie.

Grado today is basically a small beach town filled with hotels, beaches and bathing establishments. Yet, there is a historic center of some interest. The bike path ends just before Grado; from there head towards the seashore, where you will find another bike path, that follows along the coastline, beautifully paved, which starts along the beach and then continues along the statale taking you towards the other bridge which connects Grado to the mainland.

Having crossed this bridge you end up on an unpaved bike path which after a few hundred meters veers to the right towards Valle Cavanata, a protected area formed by the lagoon and salt marshes and rich in birdlife. There are several locations for observing birds in their natural environment. The bike path then heads back towards the sea where it climbs up on an embankment and follows along the Adriatic, which here is very low and often reduced to a marsh of shoals and shallows. There are spectacular views of the Gulf of Trieste and the city itself which is visible in the distance.

At the end of the embankment you descend and continue along a narrow road as far as the tiny village of Punta Sdobba. A tiny harbor allows a glimpse in the distance of the mouth of the Isonzo. If you wish you can go across the foot bridge along the harbor and then a footpath through the marsh grasses to an observation tower.

At this point the only option is to return to the road where you came off the embankment and head north; after about 8 km/5 miles you will come to the Grado-Monfalcone road and after another 8 km/5 miles of a heavy-traffic road you reach Monfalcone and its train station.

Photos

The bike path after Cervignano The bike path near Aquileia Beginning of the causeway to Grado Green cyclists The beach of Grado The seaside bike path immediately beyond the island of Grado Valle Cavanata Within view of Trieste Punta Sdodda

Captions

The bike path immediately after Cervignano The bike path near Aquileia Beginning of the causeway to Grado; there is an unpaved bike path on the east side that is somewhat irregular Coming into Grado there are these curious green cyclists on one side of the usual rotary The beach of Grado; in the distance the Gulf of Trieste At Grado begins the seaside bike path, starting along the beach and then alongside the provincial road Coming back to the mainland you will see Valle Cavanata The bike path follows along the embankment along the sea and towards the mouth of the Isonzo; in the distance the Gulf of Trieste The miniscule village of Punta Sdobba has a tiny harbor on the Isonzo River a few hundred meters from the mouth of the river