Volcano Trail

Already known during the Egyptian civilization, the island has been part of the powerful empires of the past, such as the Greek and the Roman ones. Having been a cross-roads for different cultures and civilizations, Sicily owns a huge architectural heritage. After being dominated by the Romans, the island has been ruled by Byzantines, Arabs and Normans. Afterwards, Angioini and Aragonesi preceded the long reign of Bourbons, until 1860 when Sicily was joined to the recently born Italy. The climate is temperate all year round, characterized by hot summers cooled by sea breeze over the coast and mild winters.

THE AEOLIAN ISLANDS: The scientists define the archipelago as a “volcanic arc” and explain the origin of the islands with the continents drift theory. The African continental clod is supposed to get nearer and nearer to the European one, placing itself under the European clod. As a result, a seismic area has been formed. This zone is characterized by some fractures over the lithosphere where the magma comes from. The Aeolian arc is about 140 Km large. The region that includes all the 7 islands is made up of a huge plain, belonging to Mar Tirreno, 3600 mt deep from where volcanoes have risen, thanks to lave emission. The actual shape of the Aeolian Islands is the result of a volcanic activity lasting 360.000 years.

VULCANO: Being already famous in the past for the activity of its volcano, the characteristic attitude of this volcano has been defined as “volcanic” and internationally adopted to indicate the explosive and destroying temper of the phenomenon.

LIPARI: Lipari is the main island of the archipelago. Mt Pilato forms the North-East end of the island and give off flows of pumice and obsidian stone. In Lipari valley a stange round rocky bastion lies. During the Greek period it has been called “Acropoli” and during the Middle Ages “Castle”.

SALINA: It is the wildest island of the archipelago and the first to have been included into the Monte Fossa delle Felci Natural Reserve, the highest mountain in the Sicilian minor islands and the second in the Italian islands. All around another crater, still visible, now a few km under the surface of the sea, the small village of Pollara has been built. It is possible to swim in the middle of the old mouth of the volcano.

STROMBOLI : It is the only European volcano in constant activity and one of the five permanent active volcanoes all over the world. Its temper is so representative that it has been given the name “Strombolian activity” to any similar volcanic phenomenon. The island, 924 m high, is the perfect volcanic pyramid that rises from a sea bottom, 2000 m deep.

ETNA : Mt Etna is not only the highest active volcano in Europe but also a mountain where it is possible to find recent lave flows where no living creatures have yet settled and older flows where groups of larches, beeches and birches have grown. Mt Etna is often erupting: during the last 30 years an average of an eruption every three years has been reported. This eruptions lasted from 5 days to more than a year.