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.