Day 10 – The Etna takes my soul

Yesterday we thoroughly enjoyed the pool. It was good to get some rest; nothing was necessary, everything possible.

Also happy to get away from the chaos that Sicily is now and then. In my opinion, Sicilians are even more Italian than the Italians themselves.

Glad we had opted for a guided tour by bus. We could also drive ourselves with a rental car, but we would certainly have felt sorry. After all, after a week of touring the island, it is clear that the Sicilians have their own interpretation of the traffic code. This mainly consists in parking as close to the destination as possible: this can be on zebra crossings, the sidewalk, double parking or even triple parking, preferably in the busiest streets of Palermo. Furthermore, the law of the strongest applies, whoever gets there first has priority.  A Sicilian doesn’t’ mind a dent or two nor scratches on his car.  One tip for those who can't control themselves: don't rent a car that is too big.

Happy with the chosen trip. 24% of Italy's historical remains are  located in Sicily. As is now clear, they were invaded by many folks but each of them left behind something that contributes to the identity of the island: from the Greeks they got the figs, olives and viticulture, the Arabs brought almonds and pistachios, and the Spaniards taught them the tomatoes.

Still I am left with one mystery : the Sicilian women are so slender. How they do that with all that pasta and those dulces, I really don't understand (and they start eating them since breakfast).

Today it is finally time and a second attempt is made to climb  Mount Etna. The past few days he has shown himself defiantly, then again he showed all his splendor, only to shroud himself in clouds a little later.

But today he reaches out. There are no clouds to be seen and in good spirits we leave the bus terminal at 8.30 am with destination the reffugio in Nicolosi at 1,923 m altitude, the same place where we were stranded last week.

In this beautiful weather, we finally have a view of the vineyards of Etna, located on the volcanic terraces. In total, Sicily has 500 wine varieties, of which the Etna wines form a large share. The bus makes its way through the bended road, further and further upwards. The vegetation changes into chestnut trees. We pass the last villages where we still see the devastation of one of the heaviest eruptions of a few years ago, which was also exceptionally accompanied by an earthquake.

From afar we can already see the refuggio. We also clearly see the lava flow from the 2001 eruption that wiped out entire parts of this area as well as destroyed the reffugio itself and the cable car. In the meantime, a new car park was built and the reffugio and the cable car were repaired.

Because the weather is perfect now, I immediately take the cable car to an altitude of 2,450 m. The ride takes about 15 minutes. Beneath my feet the beloved and hated lava passes by and the ride continues up the flank of Mount Etna. I enjoy the beautiful views in silence and impatiently look forward to what awaits me above. Hard to believe that this is also a popular ski area in winter.

The jeeps are waiting for us at the end station of the cable car. 

I am gazing at the surroundings: the absolute nothing. Through the desolate moonscape, the road continues zigzagging upwards until we reach the highest accessible point, at about 3,000 m altitude. The highest peak of Mount Etna is at 3,340 m, but after an accident in 1979 that killed nine people when large rocks were thrown out in an eruption, the last 300 m are off limits to tourists. There are four active craters on this summit. 

A guide is waiting for us, because it is strictly forbidden to go out here yourself. At this point we also have a incredible view of the summit craters. The peaks are shrouded in a mystical, wafer-thin curtain of smoke. This vapor consists of 80% water, but also sulfur and other gases. The guide takes us on a forty minute walk along some craters. However, the guide has  a warning. Mount Etna has been particularly active in recent days. Three days ago, for example, the shaft of one of the summit craters collapsed in a major explosion. In addition, a number of explosions took place yesterday that we could even hear as far as Taormina. Yet the guide immediately reassures us. Lava is flowing at such a slow rate, inch by inch, that even if it were to erupt now, we'd still have plenty of time to take pictures of the lava and have a cup of coffee before heading out. With this in mind, we start our walk past a number of craters that have caused serious eruptions in the past. The first thing we see are the lava remnants of the last eruption of April 27th. Since then, Mount Etna has been quiet for a while… until now. Last year there was a lot of activity with as many as 39 eruptions, about one every ten days. The lava we are standing on is about 10 m thick and was produced during the eruption of 2002. Even the mountain hut disappeared under this mound. Four craters aligned together erupted together. 

Until now, these four craters were considered inactive, but some time ago water vapor rose again from one of them.

Now it appears that Mount Etna has one last challenge in store for me. The guide takes us on a walk through these craters, and we have to climb, but also descend on the narrow ridges. The sweat of fear breaks out, I only see abysses (the deep craters) next to me and a narrow strip in front of me where we have to go. This one is covered with lava, sand, pebbles, bigger rocks etc. I carefully step foot by foot, but feel like I'm sliding. Shoe size 40 doesn't really help now. People are falling all around me and I'm really not comfortable with it. Right now I'm missing my walking sticks. But I pull myself together, I have to get through it... Oh yes, Mount Etna takes my soul…

Forty minutes later, after slogging, sliding, ascending and descending, admiring the environment, occasionally enjoying it, I arrive safely at the starting point. The guide has one last surprise : he scrapes away the top layer of old lava (eruption 2002) and we can feel at it. The bottom layer still has a temperature of about 40 to 50° C. Scary.

Two hours later I am back down in the reffugio. I enjoy the sun on a terrace. Since I still have some time left, I decide to hike again to the Silvestre crater, which I did the first time around, but this time without rain. After my excesses upstairs, this is almost child's play. I am rewarded with a beautiful view of the deep crater.

At 3 pm we leave the mountain of the mountains, and I can't shake the thought that Etna is like a cat that is quietly purring, now and then growls, but that it won't be long now before he will lash out his claw.

There is one more thing on the agenda: to light a candle in the duomo of Taormina, for our family and our friends, wherever they may be in this world.

The remaining days we will spend quietly in Taormina, enjoying la dolce vita.

Oh, and for those who are still in doubt: Sicily is Italy at its most Italian, the Mediterranean at its most beautiful, classical antiquity at its oldest, food at its best and natural forces at their fiercest.

Ciao.

Note: Mount Etna erupted violently a few days after our return home.