Wednesday 1 November. It’s rainy in Sicily. The Northern part seems better, so today it will be Messina. From Toarmina to Messina the coast road brings us first to Forza d’Agrò a nice mountaintop village. The second stop is Savoca, also on top of the mountain. Known for the film location Corleone in The Godfather. A bit touristic, but also cool to see.
Messina is quiet. No one on the street. Strange for a bigger city. It’s All Saints, so shops and restaurants are closed and everyone is at home with the family.
Thursday the weather is quite sunny so on the road to Etna sud. We drive into the clouds, but now and then the view is clear. Near the cable station a path leads to the crater of 2001. A 20 minutes climb shows the crater and a beautiful view on Mount Etna. In the mountain hut a movie explains the several eruptions of Etna. And for 15 euro you can buy the movie on … VHS. Well, no thanks.
To the west we drive through farmland and enjoy the colourful woods. Next stop is Castiglione di Sicilia, again a village on top of a mountain. Nearby are the Alcantara falls. Small falls, but the river cut deep into the lava stone. We try the farm road, but it’s a dead end. Back to the main road and have a bit of a walk to Gravà, other falls. The trail leads along fruit and olive trees, the landscape seems from another time. Main attraction is the gorge of Alcantara, a bit more to the south. First many stairs down to the river. Take of the shoes and walk into the gorge. At both sides high walls of strangely formed volcanic basalt rocks. Amazing, even with the cold water.
