Hidden Sicily

After our arrival at Catania airport, we drive (2.5 hours) to the town of Gangi in the sourthern flanks of the Madonie Mountains.

Our lodgings are in a country house just outside the town with 360 degree views across verdant farmland and once we have unpacked we can sit on the terrace with an aperitif to breathe in the vibrant Sicilian air. If we are lucky we will hear hoopoes calling across the valley.

After an abundant breakfast, we drive up to the town of Gangi to visit.

In 2014, Gangi was voted one of the “the most beautiful towns” in Italy. Built over the peak of a hill, it looks from the distance something akin to a carapace and, in the early Spring, usually with the backdrop of the snow-covered peak of Etna. It is surely one of the most unforgettable sights in Sicily. Unsurprisingly, it has featured on several recent BBC television programmes on Sicily – most notably, Michael Portillo’s Great Continental Rail Journeys (though there is no station at Gangi!) and Alex Polizzi’s Italian islands.

We stroll through the charming back streets and stop by the mother church to admire the remarkable painting, the Triumph of Death by Zoppo di Gangi – the moniker of the 17th century painter, Giuseppe Salerno. We visit several of the other churches, recently restored and exhuding a quaint Baroque charm.

After lunch, we drive through the Sicilian countryside to Sperlinga.

The very name, “Sperlinga” derives from the same root as the Greek word σπήλαιο meaning “cave” – think of our English word “speleology”: the study of caves.

Perched on a bluff of rock overlooking the town, its handsome castle, dates from Norman times and is notable for having rooms, staircases and stables carved out of the underlying rock. Today, inside the entrance to the castle, there is a small exhibition of how these cave-dwellers might once have lived – including a loom and some kitchen utensils. An interesting detail is that the second of the rooms has an obvious “door” high up in the wall, suggesting perhaps that once the floor lever was higher than at present and at some time in the past, the room was made higher by excavating the floor.

In the twelfth century Sperlinga became home to an influx of Lombards arriving in Sicily from Northern Italy. Even today, their mark still remains on the local dialect – known technically as a “gallo-italic” dialect.

Evening meal and overnight in Gangi.

Pyramid Orchids

Bourbon Hunting Lodge, Ficuzza

Gangi

We begin the day with a couple of hour’s drive to Mussomeli through fields of ripening wheat and spring flowers. In Mussomeli we visit the Castello Manfredonico and one of the most iconic castles in Sicily. The castle seems almost to grow from the rock on which it is perched.

After lunch we drive to the slopes of Monte Cammarata, one of the most prominent peaks of Western Sicily, and learn about the story of ice-making in Sicily, before we continue our journey to Sant’Angelo Muxaro.

Evening meal and overnight in a refined retreat near Sant’Angelo Muxaro.

We spend the whole day exploring Sant’Angelo Muxaro. The village has an ancient history and we visit the cave where, during the 18th century, four gold and silver bowls from the 7th century BC were found – one of which is now in the British Museum.

However, most of our visit is concentrated on the present day in the hands of a local expert and is a real chance to experience the feel of a Sicilian village. We visit the bakers to see how the bread is made. And we visit one of the local farms that produces wine, olives, pistachios, almonds and other local products.

Evening meal and overnight in a refined retreat near Sant’Angelo Muxaro.

Parco dello Zingaro, Scopello

Departing from Sant’Angelo Muxaro, we drive to Santo Stefano Quisquina and visit the extraordinary Teatro Andromeda. This modern structure has been built on the hillside in the place where the local shepherd once took his sheep to pasture – and where he observed they followed the motions of the constellation Andromeda. The views out over the coast over the Agrigento province are beautiful.

In the late mornign we more on to Corleone where we have lunch.

Another short drive through some stunning scenery brings us to the Bourbon royal hunting lodge of Ficuzza. There is a chance to visit the hunting lodge and also to take a short walk in the woods. There is a chance to visit before driving on to our lodgings near Piana degli Albanesi.

Evening meal and overnight near Piana degli Albanesi.

Mussomeli Castle

In the morning, we visit the town of Piana degli Albanesi, and Portella della Ginestra before continuing on to Scopello, a tiny village that once housed a thriving tuna fishery, wonderfully captured in Gavin Maxwell’s 1953 book Ten Pains of Death.

Evening meal and overnight in Scopello.

Sicilian cart

On our final day in Scopello, there is a chance to either relax by the pool, or else take a walk in the nature reserve of the Zingaro Park.

For those who do not want to walk in the Zingaro Park, there is a chance to visit the Museum of Rural life at Custonaci. Or alternatively, you can sit in the village square of Scopello and drink in the atmosphere.

Evening meal and overnight in Scopello.

Drive to Palermo in time for flights.