Surrounded by numerous lava flows of the past three centuries, only the upper portion of Monte Grosso ("the big mountain") is visible today, but in the past it must have been a much more conspicuous feature on Etna's middle south flank. Its densely forested cone (the result of afforestation since the mid-20th century) is seen here from the southwest base on 10 May 2000. A V-shaped notch is visible in its southwest (near) crater rim, and lava of the 1892 eruption can be seen in the left foreground. During the 2001 eruption, Monte Grosso was once more encircled by lava flows, which, however, did not reach the area shown in this photograph

Mamma Etna's countless children
Monte Grosso
S flank, 15.006707° E, 37.671457° N
Summit elevation: 1382 m

Following the dramatic flank eruption of July-August 2001, one of the most scenic areas on the south flank of Mount Etna was virtually cut off from access: the area between Monte Gemmellaro (formed during the 1886 eruption) and Monte Grosso, a prehistoric cone that once must have been a conspicous landmark in the area and therefore was named "the big mountain". The 2001 lava flow was but the latest of several lava flows that had reached and buried the area in the 250 years since 1766, leaving Monte Grosso like an ever smaller and lower island in the middle of terrible wastelands of frozen rock, which the local people call "sciara". Before the 1766 eruption, Monte Grosso was probably an enormous cone, truncated by a broad (200 m diameter) summit crater with a deep notch in its southwest side. Before the 2001 eruption, the height of the highest point on the northern crater rim was little more than 10 m above the surface of the surrounding 1892 lava field. On the opposite side, however, the height of the cone was still some 130 m. The age of Monte Grosso is most probably prehistoric; any associated lava flow lies buried under younger lavas. Intense afforestation activity started in the mid-20th century has led to the growth of a fine forest on the cone, transforming it into a green island in a sea of dark lava. Fortunately, little of this forest was destroyed by the lava of the 2001 eruption.
I visited Monte Grosso on 10 May 2000, about 14 months before the 2001 eruption which changed the nearby landscape considerably and temporarily interrupted any access to the cone.

Monte Grosso seen from Monte Gemmellaro (of the 1886 eruption), about 0.9 km to the NNE, on 10 May 2000. In these images it is seen to be surrounded by lava of the 1892 eruption, but subsequently (in July-August 2001) it was once more surrounded, on the near side, by a lava flow. The three cones visible in the distance in left photo are (from left to right) Monti Rossi, Monte S. Leo, and Monte Elici

Crater of Monte Grosso seen from different directions on 10 May 2000. Left photo is a view from northwest, notch in southwest crater rim can be seen at extreme right; center image shows the view toward west from the eastern crater rim, with some of the other pyroclastic cones of the area in the background (the largest is Monte Manfrè and the second largest Monte Sona); right image shows the northern half of the crater as viewed from the southeast rim, and Monte Vetore is in the distance at left. Dark lavas in the background in center and right photos is of the 1983 eruption

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Copyright © Boris Behncke, "Italy's Volcanoes: The Cradle of Volcanology"