Monte Cairo (1,669 m) is a mountain in
Lazio
it, Laziale
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(in the province of
Frosinone
Frosinone (, local dialect: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, the administrative seat of the province of Frosinone. It is located about south-east of Rome close to the Rome-Naples A1 Motorway. The city is the main city of the Va ...
), overshadowing both the Abbey and the town of
Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first h ...
, 5 kilometres to the south.
Features
The ancient 'Mons Clarius' was so called because originally a temple dedicated to
Apollo
Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
(Clarius) stood where the
Abbey of Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first h ...
now stands. The Monte Cairo is the main peak of an isolated mountain range that extends eastwards for about 16–18 km from the
Alta Valle del Melfa, the road from Rome to Naples.
The geological structure is of limestone dating from the
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of th ...
period and the formation often experiences violent earthquakes and subsidence. The tops of the mountains are barren, in contrast to the partially wooded sides. At an altitude of 1300 m and west of Monte Cairo lies the Monte Pozzacone Refuge, a property owned by the town of
Colle San Magno
Colle San Magno (locally ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Frosinone in the Italian region Lazio, located about southeast of Rome
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and a suitable base for climbing to the top of Monte Cairo. Other peaks of the group include the
Monte Obachelle (1476 metres) where there is a significant
Karst
Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...
ic sinkhole, the
Pizzo di Prato Caselle (1372 metres), and the
Cimmaron Villaneto
Cimarron (and similar spellings) may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Cimarron'' (1931 film), an Academy Award-winning film starring Richard Dix
* ''Cimarron'' (1960 film), a western film starring Glenn Ford directed by Anthony Mann
* ''Cimarr ...
(1315 m).
Ascension
The top of the mountain is a 4-hour hike along a path through beech groves and across a plateau of snow.
The vista from the top includes
Appennino Marsicano
The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (; grc-gre, links=no, Ἀπέννινα ὄρη or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; la, Appenninus or – a singular with plural meaning;''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which wou ...
(
Monti Marsicani
The Monti Marsicani (or 'Marsicano',) are the sixth-highest group of Apennines located in the Abruzzo region, mostly in the Province of L’Aquila and partly in the Province of Frosinone and Province of Isernia. The highest peak is Monte Greco (2 ...
), the
Mainarde
The Monti delle Mainarde, also known just as Le Mainarde, is a range of calcareous mountains on the border between the regions of Lazio and Molise in southern central Italy. It is the southern extension of the Monti della Meta. The highest pea ...
, the
Monti della Meta
The Monti della Meta are a massif of central Italy located around the junction point of the boundaries between the regions of Lazio, Abruzzo and Molise. The major of three massifs of the Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise, they take their ...
, the
Matese
The Matese (Italian: Monti del Matese or Massiccio del Matese) is a chain of mountains in southern Apennines, southern Italy.
Geography
The Matese mountains straddle two regions (Molise and Campania) and four provinces (Campobasso, Isernia, Ben ...
, the sea up to
Gaeta
Gaeta (; lat, Cāiēta; Southern Laziale: ''Gaieta'') is a city in the province of Latina, in Lazio, Southern Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is from Rome and from Naples.
The town has played a consp ...
, the
Pontine Islands
The Pontine Islands (, also ; it, Isole Ponziane ) are an archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the coast of Lazio region, Italy. The islands were collectively named after the largest island in the group, Ponza. The other islands in the archipe ...
,
Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius ( ; it, Vesuvio ; nap, 'O Vesuvio , also or ; la, Vesuvius , also , or ) is a somma-stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of s ...
and the
Abbey of Montecassino.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cairo
Hills of Italy
Mountains of Italy