The Sicily Divide (more or less)
Previous: Avignon to Palermo
Having landed in Sicily without much of a plan, we took inspiration from the Sicily Divide to guide our amble toward mainland Italy.
The Sicily Divide route is spectacular, but it’s not a route that we would have entertained on our normal bikes. It proved challenging even on our e-bikes (900+ m climbing most days, with 1520 m on one day requiring battery top-ups over lunch, for the first time), and we ended up taking some easier shortcuts. We managed to pretty much avoid riding in the rain, but a lot of rain had preceded us. As a result, we encountered some muddy sections that gummed up our wheels and ground us to a halt. We soon defaulted to sticking as much as possible to Strade Provinciale (SP roads), which were all fine, with little traffic. We suspect that outside winter, the unsealed paths we avoided, and the muddy roads we didn’t, would be fine (and the SP roads busier?).
But first, a pause in Palermo
After arriving on 25 January, we began with 6 days in Palermo: a city worth getting to know. We did lots of walking and eating, and one day trip on our bikes to the beautiful Mondello Beach (22 km). It was a nice urban ride along bike paths and mostly relatively unbusy roads: a gentle introduction to Palermo’s roads, which can be a bit crazy.
Our first lunch was with the locals in a busy ristorante in the Mercato di Ballarò. We had a special night out at Doba, starting with an aperitivo on the terrace, before retiring to the warm inside for an impressive meal. Sadly for the next few days Maree was unwell, so Chris had to head solo to the opera (a semi-modern take on Otello) at the Teatro Massimo.
We extended our stay a couple of days, which gave Chris the opportunity to become a breakfast regular at our local kiosk, and enough time to receive all the packages he was waiting on.
On our last day in Palermo, we spent more than a few hours wandering the Palazzo Butera, including lunch on the terrace in their cafe: our best gallery experience ever.
On our last night we headed out into the streets in search of a restaurant, but also in search of a recycling bin for the cardboard boxes we had accumulated during our stay. None to be found, unlike just about everywhere else we have been in Europe. A Palermo local governance mystery that we had no time to solve.
Day 1. Palermo to San Ciperello.
Feb 1 2025 (30 km, 880 m up, 530 m down)
Lots of traffic on the long straight road out of Palermo before turning up the hill to Monreale. Many Palermo drivers certainly seemed to be in more of a hurry than we were used to. After a look around the piazza at Monreale, we headed onto some quieter back roads for the steep climb up to the 800 m pass. The view down the glacial valley and its fringing craggy mountains gave us an inkling of what we had let ourselves into for the coming week. It was a fun roll down the hill to San Guiseppe Jato, where the drivers seemed to still be in a hurry. There and San Ciperello, where our B&B waited, both seemed less prosperous than Italian towns we had encountered to date. The one restaurant open on a Saturday night back up the hill in San Ciperello was full of local families having early dinners at 7 pm. For the first time in a long time, we didn’t feel like odd foreign early eaters, and the staff were very hospitable. They treated us to a free dessert. Our alarm clock next morning was Eduardo over the road.
Day 2. San Ciperello to Sambuca di Sicilia
Feb 2 2025 (73 km, 941 m up, 1007 m down)
A nice days riding through undulating country on back roads mainly. Camporeale, 15 km in, presented our first 20% gradient of the trip, which caused a bit of stress all round, but gave us some practice in the granny gear on red (and on the final pitch some practice using the bikes’ walking mode). We chose to take a short cut south from Camporeale to Poggioreale, rather than follow the Divide Trail to Gibellina. cycle.travel suggested a very sticky dirt road at the 26 km mark, but a man who lives near the intersection told us it was closed. Just as well. We had to stop back on the main road and spend 10 minutes unclagging the tyres. The detour around on a more major road was fine. Very quiet and good quality. When we were reunited with the cycle.travel route, it suggested another sticky unsealed road running more or less parallel to the larger Strada Statale (SS) 164. We elected instead to ride ~7 km along the SS. It was ok - not much traffic and not nearly as terrifying as the Cagliari autostrada, and each time we caught sight of the alternative unsealed road, we were sure we had made the right decision.
We detoured up the hill into Poggioreale for lunch at the one bar in town that was open. It was good, and we sat under an awning in the park over the road, looking out onto a forested area, which was pleasant. After lunch, back on the Divide trail, we tackled the long climb up to a not super-inviting Montevago, and along the ridgetop to the more prosperous Santa Margherita di Belice, where we stopped in the impressive Piazza dedicated to Giusseppe di Lampedusa, author of The Leopard.
From there it was good quality backroads into Sambuca di Sicilia and our nice house for the night. Sambuca seemed a lot more prosperous than the towns we had passed through so far. We managed a good, non-typical dinner at LA’enobanco, where we chatted with Laura, the German proprietor, and Annalisa, an American expat. It was a good day.
Day 3. Sambuca di Sicilia to Santo Stefano Quisquina
Feb 3 2025 (should have been 56 km, 1300 m up, 910 m down, but ended up being 70 km, 1532 m up, 1059 m down)
We had wanted to limit the day to a manageable 1000 m climb to Bivano, but the one accommodation option we could find there wasn’t available. So we had to set our sights on a bigger, longer climb to Santo Stefano Quisquina, which would require finding somewhere to top up our batteries during the day. With yesterday’s sticky roads fresh in our minds, and a night of fairly solid rain, we set off in the early morning sun down the road out of Sambuca, choosing not to take the Divide trail, which was marked as unsealed on the map. But, much to our surprise, 2 km out of town we crossed a shiny new red, paved cycle track, which we figured had to be worth following.
But we figured wrong. (At least in winter, after a night of solid rain.)
The red paving lasted maybe a km or two before turning to solid white gravel. The gravel was fine at first, albeit already showing signs of slippage in places, suggesting the trail is going to take some maintenance. It took us through some spectacular countryside, but then, at a low point, we foolishly rode through a mud slide across the gravel track.
Half an hour later, having scraped wheels and inside of mudguards clean we set off again. We felt a little wiser, but not yet wise enough!
A rest stop sign at the next intersection promised picnic tables, but there were none to be had. There was however a concrete apron with puddles that gave us an opportunity to wash off a bit more mud. While we were doing that, a flock of sheep were driven up along the cycle trail ahead, and once they had gone we could see that the Divide Trail deteriorated into more mud from there on. At this point we had the choice of heading up the hill on the SS188 or up the smaller unnamed sealed road that rejoined the Divide Trail 5 km on.
Not being as wise as we should, we chose the smaller road which was fine for a km or so until we hit another deathly mud patch. We foolishly thought we might be able to walk the bikes around the grass verge, but still we ended up with mud filled mudguards jamming the wheels. Before scraping them out, we looked further on to find that the supposedly sealed road became unsealed a little further on. So we retreated back to the SS188 after another half-hour of scraping.
The SS188 was moderately busy, but OK, and with some hesitation, half-way up the hill to the impressive hill town of Giuliana, we turned off onto the smaller SP118, and thankfully it turned out to be fine.
The next moment of hesitation came just outside Burgio, where the route suggested looping around onto an unsealed path (once a railway line) under the SP118 that led through a tunnel into Borgio. The path was full of puddles, but it was firm and non-sticky, and the tunnel was dry and a good way to enter Borgio.
Our re-charging destination was the hilltown of Lucca Sicula. We had identified a pizzeria that Google claimed was open 24 hours at the top of the town. But of course when we reached there it was closed. So, with our hearts breaking just a little, we rolled back down the hill to the piazza where we had spotted an open bar. We threw ourselves at the mercy of the bar owners, and they happily let us charge our batteries for 45 minutes while we sat over coffees and snacks in the afternoon sun. So, at 3:15 we set off again up the hill with 22% more charge in our batteries.
The road to Bivona was through some wild mountains, and as we climbed the hill the weather was looking threatening enough for us to stop and put on the full wet-weather gear for the first time all trip.
But as threatening as it looked, we only encountered a smattering of rain before riding through Bivona, gritting our teeth at the lack of accommodation. Beyond Bivona, the clouds parted to give us a clear view of our destination,Santo Stefano Quisquina, 6 km up the road. We reached there just as the sun was setting and as our batteries dipped to 27% charge. Our Santo Stefano host welcomed us to our comfy room and gave our bikes a nice room to charge overnight. We found a pizzeria up the road and the friendliness of the man who served us was a happy end to a challenging day.
Day 4. Santo Stefano Quisquina to Mussomeli
Feb 4 2025 (42 km with 911 m up 871 m down)
Well, our take-is-easy ethos seems to have warped somewhat. After the mammoth ride to Santo Stefano, today’s paltry 911-m ascent seemed like a relatively easy day. Certainly we welcomed a complete absence of mud on the roads today.
It was a beautiful sunny morning to climb the hill out of Santo Stefano for 4 km, and we rested in the shade to cool down for some time at the top of the hill. From there it was a gentle undulating ride along the high valley for 10 km or so. Very beautiful.
We stopped in a large picnic area along the way to do some maintenance on Maree’s bike, and it started to feel a bit colder. The ride down the hill to and beyond Cammarata was a buzz. We stopped and had a coffee and a long conversation with the old fellow who runs the bar at the lookout on the outskirts of Cammarata.
The road out the other side of Cammarata was busier than we were used to (the SP26-D, which we took rather than the unsealed Sicily Divide trail, which we were sure would have ended in tears), but we soon turned off to the quieter road up the long hill (SP25) to Mussomeli, rejoining the Sicily Divide trail after a couple of km. Truth be told, it was a bit of a struggle getting up the hill, but we got there happy enough.
Musmelia rooms at Mussomeli was a good place to stay on the piazza, with a garage around the corner for the bikes. Their sunny breakfast room on the top floor looking out both ways across the town was gorgeous. Mussomeli seemed like a prosperous town, but it is one of those towns offering 1€ houses to encourage investment.
Day 5. Mussomeli to San Cataldo
Feb 5 2025 (41 km 742 m up, 889 down)
We set off in the sunlight from Mussomeli, stopping frequently down the hill for numerous photo ops (and one supermercato op).
It was a cruisy roll down to the valley. Once again, we elected to take a short cut off the Divide Trail, to avoid a fair bit of climbing (and possibly mud). It was a gentle undulating ride to the steep hill up to Seridifalco where we rejoined the Divide Trail.
We paused in the piazza there looking for a place to have lunch. A friendly chap approached, suggesting a ristorante up the hill, but then another fellow took Chris by the arm and escorted him to Il Forno around the corner, where we were greeted more warmly than anywhere else we’ve eaten all trip. We were treated like family by Cettina and her young helper, and had a big long chatty lunch somehow getting by on our fairly basic Italian.
A short 10 more km took us to San Cataldo, where we were greeted warmly by Matteo at B&B de Casa. It was a 20-m walk in the evening rain across the road to Trattoria Anzalone for dinner.
Day 6. San Cataldo to Enna
Feb 6 2025 (48 km 931 m up, 621 m down)
One of our fellow guests over breakfast commented that it was a big climb up to Enna. Surely everywhere around here is a big climb, we replied, but it’s true that Enna is an extraordinary climb: a big bustling city crammed onto the top of a cliff-sided mountain.
The day began riding through the big town of Caltanisetta, of which San Cataldo is almost a suburb. Out the other side was an amazing view of a bit of Caltanisetta that we missed.
We stuck pretty much to the Divide trail all day, except for a steep section just before Enna. The Divide Trail was mostly on SP roads today, and on the busy-ish SS117 for 4 km, which we stayed on for a further 4 rather than following the trail up smaller paths.
It was a colder, cloudier, and mistier than previous days, and when we climbed the amazing road to Enna, we felt we were back in Avignon-like cold. Back in take-it-easy mode, we had settled into our B&B by 2 pm, before a walk around this remarkable modern city sitting high up in the clouds. The cold wasn’t much fun though, and we ventured out in the mist that night for a flash dinner at San Marco’s.
Day 7. Enna to Adrano
Feb 7 2025 (81 km 943 m up, 1308 m down)
Today, we largely parted ways with the Sicily Divide trail. We had decided on a more direct, less hilly route to Adrano: a destination that we wanted to make before Friday’s close of business (more on that later). The more direct route seemed sensible: seemingly large, named roads, little chance of mud. But Sicily had a couple of surprises to throw at us yet.
After a morning walk to check if the view from the Piazza towards Etna had improved since the previous misty afternoon (it hadn’t) and a quick breakfast at a bar, we headed back and were out the door shortly after 9, ready for a big ride.
Down the hill along the main road we went, until cycle.travel had us turning off onto a very steep unsealed track, which required walking down the steepest bits. That was a mildly shaky start that was compounded when we turned onto the ‘sealed’ Strada Communale 193. We had assumed this might be similarly well maintained as a Strada Provinciale. It wasn’t. At the bottom of the first long hill, it turned into another mud-fest. We lost the best part of an hour walking/scraping for the next km.
It was a little heart-breaking, but it got better after that, and after 18 km we found ourselves on the SS192, with more trucks than we would prefer, but at least it was fast. We stopped at a particularly unfriendly bar in the middle of nowhere for a coffee, before hitting the road again. The stream of trucks to and fro along the road lulled us into some confidence that we would make up our lost time without any more unexpected road failures. Ha! As if.
Without warning (or at least without any obvious warning signs that we saw as we approached), the SS192 was completely closed at the bridge over the Fiume Dittaino, : concrete bollards, cyclone fencing and locked gates. We stopped in disbelief, and checked the map: turning back would have added 40 km to our already long day. There were workmen busy down at the bridge 100 m or so away, and after a while we managed to get the attention of one, who sent a young bloke up. He helped us through the fence into the service road that was an easy ride across the river. With much relief we were on our way again on the other side, with only another 20 minutes or so lost (and a few grey hairs gained).
Soon after, we left the SS192 onto smaller (thankfully good quality) SP roads. From there on, there were a series of amazing landscape changes, and with each rise, Etna revealed just a little more of herself. Finally on the last bend into Adrano, there she was in all her glory.
Now, the reason we needed to get to Adrano, on the eastern slopes of Etna, is that it hosts the only Ortlieb retailer in Southern Italy. Chris’s duffel bag had a manufacturing fault, which we discovered back in Aix en Provence, and Ortlieb agreed to replace it. The solution they came up with was for us to exchange it at the shop in Adrano, and today was the day. The bike shop was not what we expected: no shop front to speak of, but they were there waiting for us when we rolled up at 3:45. We exchanged the old yellow duffel for a shiny new coral duffel/backpack and we were happily away.
Rain was forecast for Saturday and Sunday, and it had been a big week, so we had decided to get a place where we could cook for ourselves and spend the weekend. Casa Romeo in Adrano was perfect for us, cosy, and warm with a garden for us to wash our poor muddy bikes down in. Adrano itself though, seemed surprisingly down-at-heel: the roads in surrounded by prickly-pear farms were littered with more rubbish than we had seen for a while; many of the buildings seemed run down; one cafe in the old town; and the supermarkets had little in the way of fresh fruit an veg on their shelves. But it was a good two days rest, and indeed it rained a lot all weekend. On the last night, the heavens opened and there was a river running down the street outside our front door.
Day 8. Adrano to Randazzo
Feb 10 2025 (41 km 990 m up., 790 m down)
The morning after the deluge was fine, and the river outside our house had dried up. The roads were good all day, and the rain stayed away. Happy day! It was cold to start, but we soon stripped layers off to climb the long hill to Bronte - a much more prosperous looking town than Adrano. We stopped there for coffee and cake and some fruit (which we hadn’t been able to buy for a couple of days). At Bronte, we joined the Appenino Bike route, which we followed all the way to the coast.
From Bronte, the long climb up the side of Etna continued. It was cloudy, but as we approached, we caught more glimpses of the snowy slopes of Etna. By the time we hit the top at 1100 m, it was cold, and all the layers went back on for the long roll into Randazzo, another prosperous town. Luckily/Unluckily Chris had another flat back tyre just as we entered town, requiring a 300 m walk to our B&B, where there was a garage to fix it in. Our room at B&B Ai Tre Parche was amazing: not so obvious when we entered, but by the evening, when the clouds rolled away, we had a panoramic view of Etna out our window.
Day 9. Randazzo to Taormina
Feb 11 2025 (46 km 350 m up., 920 m down)
The original plan was to ride to Messina, but we decided that Taormina was as good as anywhere to jump on the train to the mainland. So, the gentle roll down the hill to the coast today was to be the last day of our Sicilian divide adventure.
Waking to Etna was pretty special. The ride down the hill was a delight: very little effort involved. We were not at all inclined to take a detour up to check out Castiglione di Sicilia on the way past. Etna became increasingly obscured by cloud as we went, but the weather remained clement. Once we hit the flat coast road, we stopped for lunch on the beachside terrace at Lido di Naxos. The ride along the shore was fine: not a lot of traffic. We had a remarkably easy stop at the train station to get our bikes added to our train tickets (we had booked a train to Lamezia Terme on the mainland, where our bikes were booked in for a service on Friday).
We’ve obviously become used to climbing, because the gentle winding ride up the hill to Taormina was also great. The number of tourists wandering the streets was surprising, after a few weeks of seeing very few. We rode through the town, and judiciously walked our bikes down the scarily steep street to our accommodation. We sat on our terrace, staring out over the sea, relieved, relaxed and happy.
Next: Puglia: around Lecce