First published: 25/02/20.

Jay T 3.0

Mount Etna

Mount Etna (Inscribed)

Mount Etna by Jay T

Last November I was rather excited that planning worked out and that my 200th World Heritage Site would be a natural site: Mount Etna. I had scheduled a day tour that would include an organized 4x4 vehicle drive into the core zone, but I had not counted on three factors: 1) November is within the off season for visitors; 2) the weather on the mountain can be unpredictable; and 3) my day tour was cancelled before I arrived due to a lack of other participants. I regrouped and joined a half day tour that also visited Taormina, but I couldn't help but feel let down about not getting a proper tour of the volcano.

Mount Etna is quite spectacular, dominating the east coast of Sicily. I had a great view of the snow-covered peak as I passed it twice by boat, and I had high hopes that it would be just as clear the day I visited. It was not to be. The small clouds gathering at the top of the mountain as I looked out at it from Taormina grew over the next hour, so that by the time my tour arrived at the top of the mountain I was shrouded in fog and beset by a steady wind (for which I was glad I was prepared with warm layers of clothing). The orange and yellow autumn woods made a beautiful contrast to the lava fields on the drive up the mountain, but all I could see as we completed a short hike near the top of the mountain was the red and black of volcanic rock, with some small snow patches. I suppose the view wouldn't have been much better via a 4x4 vehicle, but I can still wonder what might have been. Some day I will have to return. In summer.

Logistics: Roads provide access to the buffer zone of Mount Etna, but hiking or organized tours are required to go into the core zone.

Comments

No comments yet.

Log in to post a comment