Case Paternò Castello
The place
Refuge at ~1325 m (DB 1340 m) on the eastern slope of Etna, a former mountain house of the Paternò Castello family, Sicilian noble lineage descended from the Paternò house of Hispano-Provençal origin. Managed by the Regional Department for Rural and Territorial Development (formerly the Forestry Authority). Capacity for 8 beds, equipped with a water cistern, a fireplace, a kitchen and basic furniture. The rifugio once served as a woodshed. Set at the edge of the vast Cubania forest, a mosaic of dominant Corsican pine, poplars along watercourses, the endemic Etna birch, and beech woods at higher altitude. Access via a 4 km trail from Pietracannone (1150 m); 200 m elevation gain, ~2h30. Within the UNESCO Monte Etna perimeter.
Getting there
4 km trail from Pietracannone (1150 m), 200 m elevation gain, ~2h30.
The setting
Eastern Etna, Cubania forest, UNESCO Monte Etna, endemic birch.
