From Portopalo di Capo Passero to Catania

After about thirty hours on the bus, I had finally arrived in Sicily. Admittedly, I had regretted the decision to take the bus quite early on, as it meant I couldn't sleep for two nights and reached Catania in the morning, already rather drained of energy.

From there I took the train to Noto and then the bus to Pachino. I walked the last six kilometres to my starting point and finally arrived there in the afternoon.

Starting point in Portopalo di Capo Passero

It was still a short stage to Marzamemi, about eleven kilometres north of the cape. There, shortly before dark, I found a campsite that was closed because it was winter, but the owner offered me a bungalow for one night, which I gladly accepted.

The next morning I left the campsite early and headed north, first along the beach and then through a nature park, where unfortunately the path was completely flooded as far as the eye could see, so I decided to turn around and walk the part along the road.

In the afternoon I arrived in Noto and as it was not too late, I walked a little further and finally, shortly before sunset and at the end of my strength, found a place away from civilisation on a hill that was perfect for a night's camp. Unfortunately, the night got so cold that I hardly found any sleep and, strangely enough, didn't get really tired. Nevertheless, I was reasonably rested the next day and so I continued on forest and woodland paths past farms to Palazzolo Acreide. On the way, I had to cross a small river several times, but fortunately it was not too deep.

One of the first E1 signs

For the next day, I planned to make it to Lentini, as there was hardly any accommodation in between and the few that existed would have been quite expensive.

The stage took me past limestone cliffs, through a wind farm and offered a wonderful view of Lentini with Etna in the evening light in the background at the end. Unfortunately, I had overestimated my strength somewhat with this day and felt some pain in my shin in the evening. Nevertheless, I set off for Catania the following morning, shortening the route a little but still regretting not having taken a break earlier in the evening.

Finally arriving in Catania, I decided to rest and hoped very much that my leg would recover quickly.

Not only was it painful to walk, I was also incredibly depressed that I had been forced into bed rest after only a few days.

After almost five days without any noticeable improvement, I finally went to see a doctor. A conversation with a German doctor then informed me that I most likely had shin splints, which is a pain, that many hikers and runners know quite well.

In my case, this had probably formed due to an overload and I should slow down. Fortunately, I have not yet had to decide on a complete break-off of my hike.

Now I'm sitting on the cliffs at a campsite in Catania, watching the waves and hoping that my leg can cope with smaller stages without problems. For the first time in days, I am now hopeful that things will continue.