Palinuro Cape: a spectacle of rock above and below the sea
Palinuro Cape, extending into the sea with his extraordinary form of "pentadattilo" ( like a hand ), is one of the most beautiful in the coast of Campania, with its cliffs that fall in the sea from more than 50 metres.
Among the thousand cracks in the rocks above which towers over the lighthouse of Cape Palinuro, nesting birds of many varieties and growing plants and flowers typical of the Mediterranean climate.
But the real treasure of Cape Palinuro is below sea level: 32 caves, a paradise for divers, of which the most important is the blue cave, called in this way for the spectacular play of light on water, the cave silver and that sulphur, which contains a sulfur source of water.

Grotta Azzurra ( lighblue cave )
This is the most famous cavity, large and full of life. The two underwater entrances of the trail, which crosses Punta Quaglia, located 90 metres. The maximum depth is 33 metri.
The morphology of the cavity is very articulate. In the north side of the main tunnel opens a side branch ending after 18 meters of path at an altitude of 15 metres. Since sud-est side of the central hall and at the end of the main tunnel opens the great Hall of snow.

Hall of Snow
The great Hall of snow has dimensions of 26 x 45 metres. On its floor there is an area with 3 depressions in the shape of a tunnel with a share - 17 meters - 23 meters and flanks covered with small pebbles and boulders. From one of these depressions out sulphur spring.
From this main source out a stream of sulphurous water that rises, clearly visible, with a vertical diameter of approximately 70/80 cm. And an estimated speed of 15 meters per minute. And a substantial flow of water that goes to accumulate, to a lesser density, under a sort of dome at the top of the hall. Here is aduna a layer of sulphur water (temperature + 24 ° C) above normal seawater. The walls are concerned by sulphurous covered with a thick film, sometimes sfilacciata, white solfobatteri and flocculi that detach from the ceiling as a result of bubbles subacquei.Di discharged from the effect snowfall here!

The Cathedral
Large cavities submerged with 4 domes air inside. And 'moltolavata from sea conpavimento liscioe little life on pareti.Dopo a diver will emerge in different subaeree cavity. You may notice some phenomena related to the cave, such as dwarfism certain bodies compared to other conditions and depigmentation of sponges of the genus Petrosa. This cave is characterized by interesting forms of concrezionamento.

The beach of the "dune fossili" (fossil dunes)
At the Beach of Saline you can admire spectacular examples of fossil dunes that form a natural environment with plant organisms that are in a unique condition, extremely sensitive to human disturbance and, therefore, be safeguarded.

How were these dunes formed?
Among the lower Cretaceous (130 million years) and the Pleistocene (2 million years), with each rain flood waters into the sea trasportarono large amount of materials terrigeni. These created along the coast, and a large tract in the sea, a cloud of cloudy, with times varying depending on the size of materials zrnavosti
Transported, deposited on the deep seabed. For former granules deposited the heavier ones then gradually lighter until clay dust. When the waters of the sea back clear, began a kind of marine sedimentation produced by microorganisms, which covered everything with a layer of calcareous material more or less often, depending on the time spent before another flood intorbidisse that stretch of sea, and a repeat
New series of deposits. With marine transgressions (when the sea emerged previously occupied territories), and then together with the phenomenon connected to the lifting Apennines, which is still affected our peninsula, the masses of these deposits formed by the overlap of these series of layers, were transferred on carbonatica existing platform. On this new configuration of the landscape side of the peninsula NO silentina, rivers existing sometimes modified in their ancient giaciture for events occurring geomorphology, continued work of the ancient soil erosion, and transport of materials at sea eroded. There were so those deposited sand and pebbles in the formation of spiaggiate dunes from the sea, remained as a witness fossil of one of the many variations of this sea level imposed by glaciation or profile of the territory lifting.
And 'can visit the dunes in the picture presented in Saline location near the beach "Dune".

More informations about Palinuro ?
- www.cilentonelmondo.it
- www.capopalinuro.it
- www.comune.centola.sa.it