The Mount New Nature Oasis, an amazing volcano

About this activity

Mount New is a dormant volcano located in the municipality of Pozzuoli, at the Lake Lucrino. The volcanic cone was born with the one explosive and sudden eruption of the Phlegraean Fields which occurred on September 29, 1538, and was formed in just three days, following a rain of ash and lapilli.

One of the youngest mountains in Europe, it has been fully declared a Nature Oasis since 1996 because its volcanic nature, which manifests itself through secondary activities such as microearthquakes and fumaroles, has created optimal conditions for a varied and dense vegetation typical of the Mediterranean maquis.

Why visit the Mount New Nature Oasis

L'Mount New Nature Oasis is located within a densely populated center and is a quiet and calm place where you can take a walk surrounded by nature, with breathtaking views or have a picnic or simply enjoy the peace of the greenery in the company of a good book. There are several paths in the Oasis almost always bordered by a wooden cross fence and skirting tuff walls. From the entrance, you can go straight ahead or climb the masonry staircase that, from the right of the main gate, crosses the pine forest and leads to the path to the volcano crater.

Once at the top, the view goes from Capo Posillipo to Nisida. You can spot Pozzuoli and Cape Miseno and, on a clear day, one can gaze as far as the Sorrento Peninsula. From the edge of the crater you can see the steep walls of gray, porous rock that descend to the bottom. The caldera can be reached by another path.

Finally, if you choose to walk the path around the volcanic mouth, you can go around the entire rim of the crater arriving at another viewpoint where you can see the Lake Avernus, the tip of theEpitaph and the outline of theIschia Island.

The Unique Flora of Mount New Oasis

Due to the long period of inactivity, the Monte Nuovo Nature Oasis has undergone strong landscape changes. The volcanic landscape, in fact, has been enriched with different types of flora due to geological and moisture differences in the various microclimates on the slopes of this volcano and in its crater. In addition to the aforementioned pine forest, various areas are found. Outside the crater, plants belonging to steppe zones characterized by the presence of grasses and low shrubs such as the Broom, l'Erica arborea and various other shrubby and thorny species.

These dry areas then give way to a slightly wetter intermediate zone, characterized by the presence of Holm oaks and specimens of Oak mixed with shrubs such as the Lentisk and the Myrtle and low plants such as Orchids wild, Asparagus and Fennel wild.

Finally in the volcanic mouth, where the microclimate becomes decidedly more humid, we also notice the presence of woody species such as the Chestnut tree, the Aquiline fern and layers of moss. Occasionally, plants of Cool, Pomegranate and Carob tree. The species of Eucalyptus on the other hand, are not part of the endemic plants of the Mediterranean maquis but were planted by humans.

The most important things to know about Mount New Oasis

The volcanic building of Mount New rose amidst roars and earthquakes on the night of September 29, 1538.

In those hours a chasm first opened up from which tongues of fire and lapilli rose where the ancient archaeological village of Tripergole once stood, between the Lake Lucrino and the Lake Avernus. Then lapilli and ash mixed with spring water and sulfur due to the presence of a water table eroded by the eruption. The eruptive material that accumulated that night was so much that it formed a hill 140 meters high. It was only the beginning of the emergence of Monte Nuovo, which continued for another six days accompanied by a strong ascending bradyseism that caused profound environmental changes.

The sea receded, leaving many fish to gasp on the shore, as many as eight water sources disappeared, and the medieval village of Tripergole, whose few scattered remains blend in with the rock boulders on the volcano, was completely destroyed. Tripergole, in addition to being an important medieval village for its archaeological value, also included remains of the Cicero's Villa and roman baths due to its location resting unknowingly on what would become one of dozens of volcanic vents in the Phlegraean Fields.

Viceroy Toledo (1532-1553) tried to save at least the spa area but large sums of money were needed to try to counteract the profound territorial changes, which were not granted to him.