Description of the attraction
The Cavagrande del Cassibile Nature Reserve is an area of immense geographical, anthropological, archaeological, hydrological and speleological importance. It spreads over an area of 2,700 hectares in the Sicilian regions of Avola, Syracuse and Noto. The Kassibile River, or Kasiparis, as the ancient Greeks called it, flows through the territory of the reserve - over the millennia, it has formed here a number of deep canyons, stretching for 10 km.
The first inhabitants of these places were Siculs - protected by inaccessible sheer cliffs and having access to water, in the 11-10th centuries BC. they founded two small settlements here. One was located in the north - its ruins can still be seen from the observation deck, and the second - in the opposite direction, in the south. Hundreds of graves have come down to us, cut right into the rocks, one next to another on six parallel levels.
At the very end of the valley, the river has created a complex system of small cascades with clear and crystal clear water. The best way to get to the most beautiful of them is from Avola Antica - the road will take about half an hour. If you go beyond the cascades, you can come to the settlement of Diei. And in order to enjoy the beauty of these places even more, it is worth going a couple of kilometers further towards the source of the river in the town of Priza, where the lake is located, the water of which is used at the hydroelectric power station. On the way, you can cross a number of completely wild and untouched territories and see various plants emitting a wonderful aroma - sage, thyme, fragrant rue, mint and oregano, as well as blackberry bushes, ivy and oak trees, which create some difficulties for inexperienced travelers. Along the bank of the river there are spreading trees - Mediterranean willows, white and black poplars, branched combers and amazing oriental plane trees, the oldest of which have a trunk diameter of 1.5 meters. The Cavagrande Canyons are the westernmost border of the sycamore distribution.
Among the typical inhabitants of the reserve, you can name the olive warbler, which inhabits the undergrowth, a small bird typical of the Mediterranean maquis thickets. Peregrine falcons and kestrels are often seen in the sky, as well as falcons soaring in the air on spread wings.
