We didn’t expect much out of today’s ride east to Messina for some reason. We pictured it as being a busy, heads-down ride along the coast road, but surprisingly it was far and away the best coastal riding we found in Sicily. Once we got a few miles east of Taormina we enjoyed a flat, largely peaceful downwind cruise along the sea, much of it on the slow, lightly traveled lungomare. Miles of inviting, nearly empty beaches tempted us to slow down, stay awhile longer, and stare across the Strait to Calabria. Sicily is proving itself a hard place to leave behind.
A cruise ship must have arrived. Corso Umberto takes on its midday look as we leave town. Fun!
At 250 feet, here’s the high point of the day’s ride. This is the ruined Saracen Castle, at Sant’ Alessio Siculo. I climb up onto that wall to get a clearer view, and then a German bike tourist on his way from Bolzano to Palermo pulls up and hops up on the wall with his camera too. We stand there chatting for a bit, then hop down and bike our separate ways.
Galassiopia, a stainless steel work by the Sicilian sculptor Nino Ucchino. I think this one is in Santa Teresa di Riva. We pass four or five of these along the coast, and remember his works from our ride up to Savoca last time trough.
Sirena, another Nino Ucchino creation. Funny, because I was just meditating on the Sirens, and Sicily’s seductive pull. Following this wonderful beach, it feels like we’re being pulled back to stay a bit longer.
Just past Ali Terme the coastal sliver disappears and we bike beneath shear 150 foot sandy cliffs. In a few miles we’ll lose the beach and enter the southern reach of Messina’s sprawl.
We’ve been passing beaches for miles without finding public facilities and can’t wait any longer, so we finally give up and stop at a bar to use the loo, order a drink and eat our focaccia sandwiches. I’m intrigued by the image on this bottle, the Beer of the Strait, from Messina. I didn’t know Messina had a tall lighthouse, and I don’t know what the Latin words mean. I’ll translate them later.
The final five miles to the ferry terminal traverse the coastal sprawl of Messina. They’re the only unattractive part of the ride, and independently as we bike through it we each come to the conclusion that we won’t stop over in Messina on our way back to Palermo.
The ferry terminal is a bit confusing to locate, so if you come this way you might look closely at the map. There are several different ferry terminals leaving Messina for various points, but the one we wanted lies to the north of downtown.
We arrived at the ferry at about 3:30, bought our tickets (6 euros total for two persons one way, with bikes), and waited for the ferry to arrive fifteen minutes later. A half mile after that, we’re still waiting because the padding and unloading (which occur simultaneously) is excruciatingly slow. A steep, sharp dip between the boat ramp and the pavement is a trap for low-hung cars. Every single car and truck comes to a nearly full stop and crosses the line ever so slowly, trying to not bottom out the bumper or muffler. Most succeed, but we hear a few alarming sounds and see some anxious faces while we wait.
We and the other foot passengers (we’re the only bikes) are about the last to board. We’re shown a spot to lean our bikes at the stern of the ferry, and then go up on deck for the short ride across the Strait. Minutes before we’re due to reach land again, it suddenly occurs to me that our bikes are on the wrong end of the boat and we risk waiting another half hour for all the cars to deboard ahead of us. We race downstairs and thread our bikes between cars for the whole length of the ship, reaching the front just a minute before the ramp comes down.
So, not a lighthouse after all. In Messina, a seven meter tall golden Virgin Mary stands atop a 60 meter tall column, pronouncing ‘Bess you and your city’. The words are a quote from a letter she sent to the people of Messina in 42 AD.
The ferry across the Strait of Messina takes about 15 minutes to cross, but 45 minutes to load and unload. There’s such a deep crease at the end of the ramp that each car comes to a near standstill while the attendants watch to make sure there’s clearance. Every now and then there’s a disturbing crunch.
Looking north through the Strait of Messina, with only two miles separating Sicily from the mainland. On a wooden galley, with the ravenous six-headed monster Scylla on the right and the treacherous whirlpool Charybdis on the left, it’s no wonder Odysseus and his crew had a rough passage here.
Our stop for the night is Scilla (pronounced either as in the name Sheila, or seelah - we’ve heard it both ways here), where hopefully we aren’t fated to be gobbled up by the fearsome six headed monster. Scary, but while we wait to find out we enjoy a beautiful, flat, quiet six mile ride along the Strait. Suddenly, rounding a small headland, there she is: Scilla, hands down the prettiest coastal town we’ve seen on this tour. No monster, just an incredibly scenic unspoiled fishing town with a great restaurant to favor at the end of the day. With a whole week of overnights on the Tyrrhenian Sea ahead, it feels like we’ve entered a new land and are starting off on a whole new tour.
Well, this is a promising start. Six miles from the ferry terminal we arrive at Scilla, our home for the night. The first impression as we round a headland and it comes into view is stunning. Our room is a half block off the beach, not far from the nearest boat. We’ll walk around the headland to the restaurants on the far side for dinner.
Looking across the Strait at the sun streak through the clouds above the tip of Sicily, we imagine we could get a sunset later. On the right are Vulcano and Lipari, two of the Aeolian Islands. Off frame to the right Stromboli is also visible, a wispy plume rising above it.
Looking east from the ramparts of the upper town. I believe the town visible in the distance is Palmi, where we had also considered staying. Some distance beyond the farthest headland is Tropea, our next overnight destination.
