The Cassibile (, ) is a 30 km long river located in south-eastern

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

. The river rises from the ''Serra Porcari'', near

Palazzolo Acreide Palazzolo Acreide ( Sicilian: ''Palazzolu'', in the local dialect: ''Palazzuolu'') is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily ( southern Italy). It is from the city of Syracuse in the Hyblean Mountains. It is one of I Borghi ...

, in the

Hyblaean Mountains The Hyblaean Mountains (; ; ) is a mountain range in south-eastern Sicily, Italy. It straddles the provinces of Ragusa, Syracuse and Catania. The highest peak of the range is Monte Lauro, at . History The name derives from the Siculi king H ...

which form the main part of the mountainous Sicilian southeast. It flows into the

Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea (, ; or , ; , ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including Basilicata, Calabria, Sicily, and the Salento peninsula to the west, ...

between ''Capo Negro'' and ''Punta del Cane'', 23 km south of

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

. The river has created a series of canyons and near ''Avola Antica'' several waterfalls and small lakes can be accessed by the ancient ''Scala Cruci'' staircase. The river is mentioned by

Thucydides Thucydides ( ; ; BC) was an Classical Athens, Athenian historian and general. His ''History of the Peloponnesian War'' recounts Peloponnesian War, the fifth-century BC war between Sparta and Athens until the year 411 BC. Thucydides has been d ...

during the retreat of the

Athenians Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

from Syracuse; from whom we learn that it was the first river they met with in proceeding along the coast road towards Helorus, and had a course of some length, so as to afford a passage up its valley into the interior.

Nature reserve

The area of the canyons and lakes of the ''Cassibile'' were declared a ''Protected Area'' in 1990 by the regional government of

when they created the '' Riserva naturale orientata Cavagrande del Cassibile''.

Notes

Rivers of Italy Rivers of the Province of Syracuse Drainage basins of the Ionian Sea {{Italy-river-stub

Nature reserve

See also

Notes