Two red cones above the village of Nicolosi mark the spot where, in 1669, Etna split open and sent a river of lava all the way to Catania and the sea. Today a pine-wood path circles them, with views over the city the lava reached.
The eruption of 1669 was the most destructive in Etna's recorded history. A fissure opened low on the mountain, above Nicolosi, and lava flowed for months, burying villages, surrounding the castle of Catania and pouring into the sea.
The vents built the Monti Rossi, two joined cones of red cinders rising to about 949 metres just north of Nicolosi, the gateway village for the south side of Etna. Today they are covered in pine woods and protected as a park.
A path loops round and up the cones, with glimpses into the crater and views south over the lava fields to Catania, the Ionian coast and, on clear days, the Plain of Catania to Syracuse. It is a gentle, shaded walk that works in any season, and a fine winter walk when the higher slopes are under snow.
Short and well trodden. Several paths cross the park; any loop works.
From the northern edge of Nicolosi, enter the Monti Rossi park and follow the forest track uphill through pines.
Paths climb the loose red cinders to the crater edge, with views into the twin craters and out over the 1669 lava fields.
Loop back round the base of the cones to the village for a granita or an arancino.
AST buses run from Catania to Nicolosi in about 40 minutes. The park entrance is a short walk from the centre.
Nicolosi is on the road up to Rifugio Sapienza: combine it with the Schiena dell'Asino or the Crateri Silvestri.
Look for the 1669 lava still visible around Castello Ursino, which it surrounded, in the city centre.
Catania practical notes →
The best free viewpoint over the Valle del Bove.
Lifts, a 4x4 and a guided walk to the top.
The 2002 eruption cones and a birch-wood loop.
An old stone path down the cliff to fried fish.
Wading a basalt gorge, and pools in a canyon.
Wikimedia Commons photographs are used under their licences; Pexels photographs under the Pexels licence.
