Published on: 23 March 2013  | Last updated: 3 January 2020

From Gorino it’s over the lovely pontoon bridge and into the Veneto. The route follows the left bank of the Po del Goro with views over the old and new light­houses (sediment brought by the river means that the coastline is moving). Another pontoon bridge (this time over the Po di Gnocca) at Santa Giulia on the Isola della Donzella - an island formed by two branches of the Po. Here you pick up a stretch of the Anello della Donzella cycleway.

From here on there’s a superb stretch of coastline. The Sacca degli Scardovari is very atmospheric with the casoni (cabins built on stilts) for the mussel/clam farms. Look out also for the Ca’ di Mello nature reserve.

There may be a traghetto (ferry) service across the Po di Levante at Porto Levante, but I wouldn’t count on it. When I first rode this route in 2012 there wasn’t a ferry, and then in 2013 it was restarted, but when (2017) I came to recheck the inform­ation I was told that there wasn’t one at the moment. You could try checking with the Porto Viro tourist inform­ation office to see whether the position has changed.

If you’re unlucky and the ferry isn’t running otherwise there’s a bit of detour and a very short stretch on the SS309 to get over the river. It’s a horrible road but you’re soon over the bridge. There’s then another beautiful stretch, before you get to the Adige and another bridge.

There’s one more bridge, this time over the Brenta and we’re on the home straight into Chioggia. I liked Chioggia a lot, it’s a tourist centre, but it retains the feel of a working fishing port.

Options

If you are planning to spend a day visiting Venezia, then it might be a good idea to push on a little further. There are good transport links between Chioggia and Venezia, but there are places that are a little closer. See the next section for suggestions.

Connections

The route crosses both the river Adige and the Brenta. You can cycle along the Adige to Verona and beyond (see my article here). I’ve read that it’s also possible to ride along the Brenta to Bassano del Grappa and its source at the Lago di Caldazzo in the Trentino (this route forms part of the Via Claudia Augusta).

The provincia di Padova is promoting a route between Padova and Chioggia go to Padova in Bici: The salt and sugar route for downloadable maps (if that link doesn’t work try turismopadova.it: The Salt and Sugar Route). From Padova there are lots of possible cycleways and routes through the Veneto.

Map

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