In the upper northern flank of Mount Etna, at 2900 metres above sea level, is the Valle del Leone, a small valley facing the sea that overlooks the larger Valle del Bove. From here you get one of the best views of the volcano. In fact, it is the best place to observe the northern border of the Valle del Bove, formed entirely of the volcanic products of the Elliptical, a large eruptive centre that developed between 60 and 15,000 years ago.
Changing our line of vision just slightly, the Valle del Bove can be seen in its entirety. A breathtaking sight where, from over 2900 metres above sea level, you can easily see the sea at a very short distance!
If we move our gaze slightly right again, we can observe what has overlooked us from the moment we reached the Valle del Leone: the summit craters of Mount Etna. The nearly 3400 metres of height and continuous outpouring of gas give us a clear idea of just how alive the volcano is under our feet.
If we turn north, we find an unexpected panorama: the view of the whole of northern Sicily and the entire archipelago of the Aeolian Islands!
Finally, concluding our 360° tour, we notice a house with a dome: this is the historical Etna
Observatory
, one of the highest observatories in the world on an active volcano, recently restored by the Italian National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology.
