canyon exploring with Michele Angileri

Canale della Chiocciola

The basin in which the village of San Lorenzo Bellizzi rises coincides largely with the valley of Torrente Maddalena, a creek that joins to Raganello a little downstream the awesome portal of Barile canyon.
Maddalena creek is made by some valleys coming from Mount Sparviere or the Falconara. One of them, a tributary of Canale di Malamorta has a couple of short but beautiful narrows, and a few cascades. One of those cascades has an amazing spiral shape and it's the most beautiful and characteristic spot of this canyon: that's why I call this canyon "Chiocciola" (Snail).

I remember ...

At first I did not think that valley could host a canyoning trail. After having explored Canale di Malamorta, I had partly changed my mind: "probably it is not interesting, but I cannot be really sure if I don't descend it" I said to myself. At the very least, I told myself, I will have spent some time moving in the Nature, and I will have descended again the nice final Malamorta narrow ... I also knew that giving up the exploration would have pushed me to think again about it the next year ...

As soon as I arrived on the edge of first cascade, completely unexpected and unsuspected, I realized I made the right decision!
Then, when I got to the Snail, it became clear to me that with streams and gorges surprises are always possible, and that experience will never tell you exactly what is in a valley you have not descended yet.

Photographs in this website show ultralight ropes (6 mm ropes made of high tenacity fibers). Read multimedia book Ultralight ropes canyoning technique to learn how to use them.

Copyright © 2002- Michele Angileri. All rights reserved.