Foliage in Sicily, 5 tips for your out-of-town trip
Autumn is a season made of colors and shades rich in light. The trees become yellow before getting ‘naked’ and white due to the snow in winter. This is the magic of unique and almost enchanted landscapes you can still experience for a few more weeks. Where can you enjoy the foliage in Sicily? Here are 5 tips suggested by Sicilian Secrets.
Just a natural miracle, this is how the autumn transformation can be called. Nature slowly falls asleep before awakening in spring, immortalise all of this in a shot. The foliage in Sicily has something special, ready to find out where to enjoy it?
Cade una foglia che
par tinta di sole, che nel cadere ha
l’iridescenza di una farfalla.
– Ada Negri
Malabotta Nature Reserve (Messina)
The first stop to put on the list is in the province of Messina, between the Peloritani Mountains and the Nebrodi Mountains. Here is the Malabotta Nature Reserve, a magical place not only for the landscape but also for the surprising megalithic site. Passing the wood full of hazelnut, oak and chestnut trees that in autumn are dressed in deep red and brown, you reach the Agrimusco district. The power of water, wind and time are manifested on the stones, modeled in curious shapes. One word is enough to describe it: charming!
Sant’Alfio – Etna (Catania)
Moving towards Catania, we can discover another place to enjoy the beauty of the foliage in Sicily. We are close to Mount Etna, in Sant’Alfio, where the centrepiece of the autumn metamorphosis is the birch. This plant is dressed in brilliant golden color, in this area it has found the perfect conditions to grow and vegetate, giving life to a sort of fairy-tale woods. Shimmering.
Bosco Ficuzza (Palermo)
I have a nice childhood memory of Bosco Ficuzza. We went there every year for the usual day-trip to collect chestnuts with schoolmates, a special day that allowed kids to ‘touch’ the flavors of this season. Even nowadays we can enjoy the richness that this nature reserve offers, located less than 50 kilometers from Palermo. The biodiversity of the forest, especially from October to early December, brings visitors into an unforgettable sensory experience. Flora and fauna embrace each other giving a kaleidoscope of sounds and colors.
Piano Battaglia and Mount Mufara (Palermo)
People who love cycling can take advantage of a nice ride to immerse themselves in one of the most suggestive foliage in Sicily. Piano Battaglia, waiting to get white and entertain the Sicilians with sleds and snow balls, takes an autumn break to be photographed. Going up from the provincial road, once you reach Piano Cervi, continue for a jump among hollies, beeches, maples and downy oaks. Are you seeking a breathtaking spot? Don’t miss Portella Arena, a natural viewpoint overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea, the hinterland and the woods of Monte Cervi. Stunning! Fifty, one hundred, one thousand brushstrokes of November.
Bosco della Tassita (Messina)
Last tip for a day-trip to the countryside! Not far from Caronia, at 1,450 meters above sea level, you will be in the heart of the Nebrodi Park and in particular at Bosco della Tassita. As the name suggests, the yew trees (in Italian they are called ‘tassi’) are the kings of the landscape. Here is a tidbit: they call it the Tree of Death, because apart from the fruits, the other parts are toxic! To see all this with your own eyes, just follow the trekking path that takes about an hour. It is definitely worth it.
