Alcàntara gorge

A side trip to the geological wonder of the Gole dell'Alcantara just outside of Taormina, Sicily

The basalt walls of Sicily's Alcantara Gorge. While a lava flow just inland form Taormina was cooling some 4,400 years ago, a 230-foot-deep fissure appeared in the basalt.

The basalt on either wall of the fissure fractured into convoluted, trapezoidal prisms, and the water that has been flowing down this gorge from Etna's snowy melt-off ever since has polished these fantastic overlapping shapes to a deep, otherworldly luster.

The sun shining down this 15-foot-wide chasm creates a play of light and shadows on the 50-meter (164-foot) high walls that is reflected off the icy, icy water of the stream gushing and burbling its way through pools and tiny waterfalls.

The tiny beaches at Alcantara. Many visitors wade or frolic on the small stony beaches at the gorge's outlet. Intrepid geology buffs, however, will want to brave the freezing waters to wade upstream at least a few hundred feet, where each bend reveals a remarkable new kaleidoscope of luminous gray shapes.

The gorge itself is only about 400 meters, or 1/4 mile, long, but you don't have to walk it all to get a good sense of it.

Admission is a steep €8, but at least that does include the elevator ride back up (you have to walk down) after you're done exploring.

How to get to Alcantara Gorge

The gorge lies off the SS185 toward Francavilla in Sicilia, just before the village of Motta Camastra, about 13 km (8 miles) inland from Giardini (18 km/11 miles total from Taormina).

If you don't have a car, you can rent a scooter in town and make the ride in about 45 minutes.

An Interbus bus (tel. +39-0942-625-301, www.interbus.it) makes the hour-long trip here five times Monday to Saturday (don't bother on Sundays; it takes a change in Randazzo and nearly four hours total).

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