Alcantara Gurne (small lakes)

The "Gurne dell'Alcantara" are 16 small lakes carved out by the river inside the basalt rocks.They are part of the park of the Alcantara river, but the dug basalt undoubtedly belongs to our volcano, so we decided to include them among the natural wonders of Mount Etna.

They are located in the territory of Francavilla di Sicilia and can be reached in many ways. One of the shortest path it the SS185 road - Via Francavilla (the road that leads from Giardini Naxos to Francavilla di Sicilia). Go past the crossing for Motta Camastra, after about 1km there is a road on the left leading to the village of "Gravà", take this road and turn right at the next junction to cross the whole village, after about 1km the road becomes dirt, we can park the car and head towards the beginning of the trail, on the right.

After the first part of the path, we arrive at an iron staircase leading to a section of the trail along the river Alcantara, close to to a former power plant. After the plant, you can easily enter into the river bed and, depending on the water flow intensity, you can walk inside it or on the side of the river.

Throughout the path there are many Gurne, of various sizes, and some places where you can take a bath (especially if you appreciate fresh water ...). There are also places where the river has created some small gorges.

We walked up the river for about 1.5 km, those who want to continue the walk along the Alcantara before turning back. The path has been mapped and described by Turedos, one of the most active members of our community!