フランカヴィッラディシチリアのおすすめランニングルート

This is really a really beautiful spot!!

Very cold water all year round. Very busy in summer. After rain in winter, the gorge is partially closed due to the risk of floods.

A wonderful and wild road

The formation of the Alcantara riverbed can be traced back to around 300,000 years ago, although the current configuration of the river in the gorge section is mainly the result of the lava flows that occurred in the last 8,000 years. The interaction between the river water and the underlying magmatic mass played a crucial role in this process, causing accelerated cooling. This phenomenon has generated a series of irregular fractures, some of which have a chaotic arrangement, while others show a more regular geometry. Among these formations, we can identify prismatic structures of various configurations, including those known as "woodpiles," "harps," "rosettes," and the impressive vertical formations called "organ pipes," which can reach remarkable heights, even up to 30 meters.

Known as "the quastallum" by the Arabs, Castiglione di Sicilia stands on a hill between the Alcantara valley and the Etna park, offering breathtaking landscapes with orchards and lava flows. It has a history dominated by the Arabs and subsequently by the Normans and Swabians. The village is known for its honors and its beauty, recognized with a regional decree in 1994. The castle of Lauria, which dominates the town, was born as a defensive fortress for the city; well built as it was, on the sandstone rock, and surrounded by powerful defensive walls, it constituted a perfect military defense both inland and throughout the rest of the Alcantara valley. From the start of your visit to Castiglione di Sicilia, it will not be difficult for you to notice how this village is closely linked to the medieval period, both for the narrow streets that characterize it and for the presence of a castle on top of a hill ' of stronghold.

These are real canyons formed by very high lava walls. We are in one of the most spectacular places in Sicily: until the 1950s the site was unknown, perhaps for this reason it has been preserved so beautiful and intact.

It is a characteristic medieval center located between Etna and Alcantara.

From here begins the climb called "Mareneve" a name that already alone tells the 1100 meters of altitude difference which in 17 km, lead from just over 500 to over 1600 meters of altitude.