Intraleo lava cave

This grotto dates back to an eruption that took place around 1550 (but we are not sure about the date). The entrance belongs to Adrano territory but it is 12 km from Adrano and 13 km from Ariel Refuge (south entrance to the pista Altomontana). This grotto has been previously used by humans, probably as a pen for sheep, today inside you can see a ”handcrafted” altar . The most interesting part of the grotto is the downstream part, that is divided in two canals . On the lower canal is not easy to walk, while in the upper one you can see 3 separated canals (here you can see the number 2 with indications ). It is impressive to think how nature has created these 3 rock “casings”, it gives you the impression of being inside a living organism. We go as far as we can along the 3 canals, we see some bats but we do not take pictures of them to avoid disturbing them. We would like to remind visitors NOT to use the flash inside the grottos. In some points on the walls we can see the so-called "rolls" , different layers have separated under the heat from the magma, while on the ceiling you can see the typical "dog’s teeth" , fusion phenomena of the ceiling that create small rock stalactites. Basically they are rock drops from the ceiling that have melted after the grotto had closed, a phenomenon probably due to the changes in the level or in the temperature of the magma during the eruption. The roots of the plants and the water leaks remind us that also this cave is destined to collapse under the action of forces less violent than the eruption that has created it but equally inexorable.