My head sinks into the pillow, but I can't switch it off. It would probably be easy to recreate the feeling I have right now at home. All you would have to do is put a pressure cooker on the cooker, switch it on to medium heat - and then try to fall asleep next to it. Okay, the size comparison is a little off. I'm not trying to sleep next to a saucepan, but in the Rifugio Bruneck. The log cabin is located halfway up the northern flank of Mount Etna. The four main craters of the volcano up there are currently filled to the brim with glowing lava, mountain guide Salvo had already told us at the airport. Our plan to bike up to the crater rim was "possibile", but also "un poco pericoloso". It was only in July of this year that the north-east cone of Mount Etna produced a spectacular firework display. No one was harmed, but since then the mountain has been rumbling and the authorities are currently warning of "lots of minor tremors and an increasing risk of bombas at the craters". "Bombas", as Salve explains to us, are boulders the size of nuts or car tyres that the volcano can hurl several hundred metres from its mouth.
Five o'clock - the alarm clock finally rings. The sky is steel blue. The others have hardly slept either. The excitement is too great, but we all agree that we want to drive to the crater rim today and look hell straight in the eye. But then we have to set off straight away, because there are still 2000 metres of altitude difference between us and the summit, and our rucksacks are heavy. In addition to warm clothes and plenty of provisions, we also need to take some bandages. The lava-ash ground may look finely ground, but on closer inspection it contains razor-sharp splinters. The tyres can take it, but not human skin. But first we crank uphill on a black pumice surface. The chains on the far left, because the gradient is tough right from the start. It takes us three hours just to reach the high plateau at an altitude of 2,800 metres. From here, the view sweeps across the Strait of Messina to the hills of Calabria. And at the very back, in the haze, there is even the fountain of fire from Stromboli, which is spitting vigorously at the moment. We have to keep going because the icy wind is already sapping our energy reserves. It's only 500 metres up to the steaming crater of Bocca Nuovo. Driving is out of the question, its flanks are too steep for that.
I think I've felt a vibration under my feet for a few steps, but I haven't said anything yet. But now the rumbling of the ground is so clear that everyone stops, startled. There's no question that we've been in the danger zone for a long time. There are no other tourists here. Shall we carry on? Yes, come on, keep going. It's not far now! We pass fissures in the earth from which toxic sulphur vapour hisses. That doesn't make breathing any easier. The incline is now so steep that you want to use your hands, but the ash sand is almost too hot for that. The mountain itself hums and cracks as if it wants to shake us off. But that only spurs us on even more. We fight our way up the hot sand through the stinking steam as if possessed. Our feet are burning with heat, hopefully the soles of our shoes won't melt. Only another ten metres, five - then we look over the edge of the crater as if electrified. A huge cauldron. It bubbles and seethes, it steams and stinks - it must be hell. A blast of boiling hot steam shoots into our faces. Only now do we realise the danger we are in. The side walls of the crater could collapse at any time. There's a bang - large boulders fly into the sky from the south-east crater, one of which hits the ground just a few metres away from us.
Now Anne has had enough: "Let's get going!" We now have 2000 metres of descent ahead of us. At first we just let it go straight ahead, then we dare to make turns in these huge, virgin ash fields, just like when skiing deep snow. We pass side craters and recently cooled lava flows. It is only over a cappuccino in the Rifugio that we realise what an intense experience this has actually been.
INFO ÄTNA
The precinct
The Etna massif, which is around 3400 metres high, has a total circumference of 250 kilometres. There are so many paths and hiking routes that you can spend several days hiking in all directions. However, you should always choose your tours according to the wind direction to avoid the sulphur vapours.
Best touring time The summit region is snow-free from May to October. Tours to the craters are only permitted with a guide!
Info B&B, www.sotto-ilvulcano.it
