Mt Etna can be climbed either from the south, setting out from Nicolosi and Zafferana Etnea via the Sapienza refuge, or from the north, from Linguaglossa. The first option leads you to an altitude of 2 900m, taking you close to the grandiose Valle del Bove, hemmed in by 1 000m-high walls of lava rock and with potholes belching smoke. On the north face, the road ends at Piano Provenzana (1 800m). There is a magnificent view from the area around the new observatory (2 750m). The final leg of the climb is through an extraordinary landscape of lava and fumaroles.