Capraia … volcanic getaway
Capraia Harbour
The small volcanic island of Capraia, Italy is located north of Elba off the Western coast of the mainland. The volcano that created the island has long been silent and so to is the one small town that surrounds the one small port on the island. The only way to reach Capraia is by boat. Leaving from Livorno, the trip only takes about two hours. There are only about ten miles worth of roadway on Capraia but if you are traveling by car and need to bring it with you, the ship does brings vehicles along.
It took a day or so to warm up to this rocky island, though our apartment had a great view of the hills and out over the port to the sea and was very comfortable. At first our thoughts were, so what will we do here for a full week? It was not long before the little island began to grow on us. First we began to enjoy the little bus that brings you up the only main road from the port to the town; rather like a trolley that just goes back and forth. Then we started to walk and made a few short excursions on trails to the sea. Eventually we found a private cove where it was fairly easy to swim from the rocky shore, and the route the locals follow to reach some flat rocks below the old fortress ruin that once guarded the port. We had no problem finding places to relax and things to do from then on.
Capraia Fortress
It is important to note that Capraia is not a good destination for all travelers. There are a few shops and stores but only to buy what you need. A shopping experience is not to be had on Capraia. There are also a few restaurants. When we ate out, the food was good and the atmosphere was both lively and jovial. But there is no nightlife “scene” on Capraia. Capraia is not Capri! It is somewhat reserved and sleepy aside from the children who come out to play in the square as the sun sets and the temperature drops. The sounds of Capraia range between the children calling to one another as they roam back and forth through the small center of town and the adults, with an occasional foreign tourist, walking and talking on the street below your windows.
Capraia has a very small population of year-round residents, only about 80! During the summer months the population is boosted by Italians that spend their summers in houses and apartments they either own or rent for the season along with tourists who can either rent an apartment (as we did), or take a room at one of the few small hotels. Every day the boat comes into the port to bring mail, water, supplies and people. There is a momentary traffic jam with the appearance of a high degree of activity in the port for about 30 minutes. Then all returns to normal as the boat leaves. Apparently taking with it as many cars, trucks, and people as it brought over. The ebb and flow of day to day life in the uphill town is very soothing punctuated by the arrival of the small bus from the port and times when a soccer ball gets lodged up high in a niche on the facade of the church that lies along side the small town-center square.
The fact that the town of Capraia is rather small is, to the right traveler, one of the island’s attractions. But there is much to the overall package. The island itself is not that small and would take a full day of hiking to walk from one end to the other and back. A large section of the island and the sea bordering its’ coast is an Italian wildlife preserve. You are not allowed to drive a boat through the protected area of the sea and are not allowed to hike around within the preserve itself. But there are no trails inside the preserve area and one of the most impressive trails does provide great views down to the sea in that area.
Volcanic Rocks on Capraia
Hiking is definitely one of the best things to do on Capraia. There are trails dating back to the Etruscans which, I was told, were used for logging the island to feed the copper smelting furnaces on Elba. If that is true, the deforestation of centuries past remains since few large trees grow in the island’s rocky soils today. The oldest trails are actually paved with large stones. Starting from the town they gradually ascend into the mountains, the tallest being Mt. Castello at 445 meters. Thanks to the major trails being made on rather gentle inclines, the hiking is not very rigorous … until the trail disappears! To us it is a courtesy that the Italians have a generally open attitude about inherent risk. It’s your choice to do what ever you want and if you fall off of that cliff … maybe you shouldn’t have been doing that. When hiking, you get a map of the island showing the trails and off you go, confident in your ability to follow the map. Apparently we chose to take a circular route that most people do not and the trail just plain vanished. From the top of a hill we could clearly see the road where the trail was supposed to take us. Hunting back and forth to locate the trail only tired us out and consumed the last of our water as the sun rose to high noon. I should note here that the flora on a dry rocky island like Capraia is anything but soft and definitely not as sparse as it looks. A decision to bushwhack was made and several hours later we emerged from the hillside bruised, bleeding and covered with a layer of sweat-soaked bright red pollen from some type of bush. Of course, we could have backtracked but it did prove to be a memorable adventure.
Capraia Fortress from Below
And then there is the sea, which is very clean and beautiful around Capraia. But the coast is largely made up of steep, rocky cliffs and there is only one true coastal beach on the island that appears and disappears with the tides and the whims of the sea gods (don’t ask … it’s Italy). You can only get to it by boat and there are two options, unless you travel with your own boat. Pay a small fee and a guy that looks like a Saracen pirate drives you a short distance along the coast in a zodiac and picks you up later in the day. Or rent a small boat and head out on the high seas yourself. Remember that coming back alive is your problem. They gave us a very small map, and when we asked if there were any shoals to be aware of all they said was “just watch out for that rock near the harbor”. We asked if there would be enough gas to go all the way around the island (including staying well off the coast by the preserve) and the answer was “should be”. I don’t know where the current would take you if you ran out of gas, or broke down. Corsica is only 16 kilometers to the east but it’s a long way to Africa. We hugged the coast to be safe, and the ride down to see the remnants of the volcano at the other end of the island was well worth it. We were also able to choose some great coves to swim in along the way. There is also a decent public place to swim from the rocks below the town and those who are so inclined can rent a chair and umbrella while pretending they are in Capri.
Capraia is far from the elegance of Capri or the variety of Cinque Terre but it did prove to be fun to explore for a week and a little out of the ordinary.