Overview
All the green of the plateau is reflected in the mirror of water… you cannot stop looking at it! You are on the shores of Lake Secinaro, in the province of L'Aquila, at an altitude of over a thousand metres, at the foot of Mount Sirente.
Is it really a crater caused by a falling meteorite or is it man-made?
Recent studies have attested that the small basin with its raised edges is the only meteorite crater in Italy formed 1650 years ago, in the 4th century AD.
If this is the case, just a visit to the mysterious lake is worth the trip to the Secinaro area, at least for fans of the sky “affairs”.
Back in those days, when the meteorite ploughed through the sky, setting it ablaze, the village was probably a Roman “vicus”, as attested by the dozens of vestiges that have surfaced in the surrounding area, along with other even more ancient finds dating back to the period when Secinaro was an important settlement of the Peligni Superequani.
Imagine the scene – already seen in dozens of science fiction films – the plateau emitting smoke and terrified humans getting to know the “new” religion: Christianity. Completely different rites and prayers from those raised to the Goddess Sicinna, worshipped by the Italic peoples of this corner of Abruzzo and from whom the town probably takes its name.
It feels like being in one of those films.
Then you need a breath of fresh air on the Altopiano delle Rocche, which stretches like a green blanket of pastures between the Velino ridges to the north-west and the Sirente to the south-east, within the Sirente Velino Regional Park.
You are in a marvellous system of karst plateaus located between 1,200 and 1,400 metres above sea level, guarded by the peaks of Mount Rotondo, Mount Cagno, Mount Ocre and Cefalone, all above 2,000 metres. It is an ideal destination for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, ski touring and alpine skiing in winter, as well as for unforgettable walking, cycling and horse riding in the other seasons of the year.
If you are also here in May, you will be amazed by the white that colours the meadows. It is not the late snow, but the narcissus that floods the plateau with its spontaneous bloom.
An exciting spectacle, the kind that only nature can provide.
In the village, admire the Sanctuary of Consolation, which stands on the remains of a temple dedicated to the goddess Pelina, with frescoes dating back to the 16th century, including one relating to the legend of the meteorite impact, according to which the church and the statue of the Madonna placed on the altar were carried by angels in a dazzling beam of light, to defeat the pagan followers of the goddess Sicinna.
The 14th-century parish church of San Nicola is also beautiful. It was built in the highest part of Secinaro on the remains of the medieval castle of the Sichenalem family, originally from Rieti. Inside, it houses 16th century frescoes and one of the oldest organs in the region.
Saffron “lasagne”, “chitarrina” with tomato sauce and Sirente herbs, and “porchettato” lamb await you at the table and you – at the centre of this small, ancient, enchanted world, among goddesses, meteorites and breathtaking plateaus – will never want to leave.