Gurne of Alcantara
Davide Mauro - CC4.0
The Gurne dell'Alcantara are sixteen small lakes with a rounded shape located in the Gole dell'Alcantara River Park, in the stretch between Castiglione and Francavilla di Sicilia.
These lakes were created by the waters of the Alcantara river thanks to its incessant erosive action operated for millennia on the lava bed of the river.
These bodies of water create the ideal habitat for the life of aquatic plants such as the Buttercup brush and the Duckweed, typical of more continental climates.
With its surprising carpet blooms, the water buttercup is the first of the marsh plants to announce the advent of summer.
The path that allows you to visit it also leads to the remains of a 5th century Greek settlement B.C founded by settlers from Naxos whose finds are exhibited in the Antiquarium of Francavilla di Sicilia, in the ruins of the medieval castle of Francavilla di Sicilia and in the disused Patanè & C hydroelectric plant.
