Vallone dei Mulini (Sorrento) - GCJMJF

Well, due to the pressure of work it's been quite a long time since I've been geocaching and my last log here was nearly two months ago. But what a cache with which to start back, not because it was particularly challenging, but because it's our first cache outside the UK. And it's not every day that you come across an active volcano either!

Sarah, Robert, Cathy and myself were holidaying for a week in Sorrento, Italy and were having a great time. I'd loaded my phone with details of all the caches within 20 miles of the hotel and this was the closest.  In fact there weren't that many in the whole Campania region, and those that were there would all need a good trek to reach, except for this one.

Earlier in the day we'd taken a hair-raisingly dangerous coach ride along the first part of the fabulous Amalfi drive to the fantastic coastal village of Positano, which has been described as the world's first vertical village as each and every building seems to be on its own level down the steep sided valley cliffs above the sea.

Due to leaving it very late, we'd missed the opportunity of doing the Author's Cache in Positano as the last ferryboat trip was leaving before we could do it.  I was a bit miffed about this as I'll probably never be back this way, but we'd had a good day out so I soon forgot about it and the view from the ferry as we left Positano harbour was amazing.

After a 40 minute or so cruise we arrived back in Sorrento with the buildings on the cliffs overlooking the Marina Piccola harbour lit up by the golden sunshine.

This was our first look at Vallone dei Mulini (valley of the watermills) from below as we'd only seen it from the bridge on the edge of Piazza Tasso before. On our way back up the steps to the piazza I took out the GPSr, checked the hint and set about looking for this cache. Sarah, Robert and Cathy had shot off up the steps and I found it quickly before they had chance to look.

Whilst Sarah did the admin I took some (more) pictures of the views from near this area -  the one of the distant Mount Vesuvius must surely be one of the best photos I've ever taken from a cache, don't you think?  A great day out with a very satisfying ending.