Travelling towards Roccella Valdemone on the hotel bus we
alighted at a lay by before entering the town. The path ascended
immediately and soon we a good view of Mt Etna – the summit peeping
through the cloud for a brief time. Turning onto a less obvious path
we climbed through woodland past many orchids and other wild
flowers. The route continued mainly upwards until we reached Casteluzzo where we stopped for elevenses,
enjoying good views in all
directions. We continued on an undulating route along the ridge to a
viewpoint with a cross overlooking Malvagna. After a brief stop we
descended steeply on an eroded path and met up with the 'D' group
at the bottom. As we continued the path deteriorated and was very
overgrown in places. A short road walk took us into Malvagna where
we stopped at Bar Antica to eat our lunch.
A short, very breezy road section took us down to the river which we
crossed to climb up to a contouring path. We followed this through
woodland and lush vegetation then along easy tracks to the point
where the other group had been dropped off. Further easy paths,
sometimes surfaced, took us towards Castiglione. After crossing the
Alcantara River we continued along metalled tracks into Francavilla,
stopping at Bar Fortuna for a drink before returning to the hotel. |
Climbing up from the lay by we have good views of Roccella Valdemone . .
.
and across to Mt Etna . . .
still with its cloud blanket . . .
and zooming in to the summit cone
There are a number of orchids around here . . .
as we make our way through woodland . . .
before stopping to take a layer off
More orchids abound . . .
of various types . . .
and shapes
"Two minutes" - time to leave our refreshment stop . . .
and look for the camouflaged gate in the fence
Reaching the end of the ridge Malvagna comes into sight . . .
but I take time for a photo with Mt Etna in the background . . .
and another by the cross
The 'green cone' sits in front of Mt Etna
The two groups meet up . . .
before we continue down . . .
to Malvagna where Bar Antica provides the ideal spot for lunch
After crossing the river . . .
and taking in the local flora . . .
we head on to Francavilla with the ridge we walked along now in view behind us
A host of golden caterpillars!
The castle at Castiglione