We contracted an unofficial taxi near the train station to take us up to the base of Mount Etna.
On the way we saw houses that had been buried by lava in the 2001 eruption.
From the base camp you pay to ride up the Gondola to the upper camp, from where you board large wheeled bus type vehicles that take you up to some of the lower craters that are still steaming.
The gravel between the snow is still warm to touch.
We had a wonderful day despite the fog at the top. It was a quite surreal scene wandering around the crater in the fog, snow and steam.
The fog cleared for a little while which gave us some spectacular views.
The taxi driver also took us to a good discount supermarket on the return trip so we were able to stock up.
The taxi ride was €90 but we gave him €100 due to the supermarket stop.
Howard and Jayne [ Just Imagine ] 24-Jan-2008
Lower Goldola station (Excursion)
Top camp (Excursion)