The Stagnone is a lagoon, the largest in Sicily, in the territory of the comune of Marsala, in the province of Trapani; in the lagoon are the islands of the Stagnone and the nature reserve of the same name.
What to see
Lying between Capo Boeo and the Birgi promontory, the lagoon is characterised by shallow water, from one to two metres and in some places a few decimetres. It includes the four islands of the Stagnone, among them the well-known archaeological site of Mozia, and since 1984 the area has been a nature reserve. The lagoon formed in relatively recent times, it did not exist at the time of the Phoenician colonisation of Mozia, through movements of sand due to underwater currents: a part of the sea that was originally open was closed off and, without the currents needed for renewal, the water became more stagnant and has a temperature above normal. The Stagnone's main activity, along with fishing, was the extraction of salt in the salt pans of the Trapani area, with windmills for pumping the water and for grinding, some of them today restored and working.
Near the southern mouth of the lagoon in the 1930s a military seaplane base was built for the Regia Aeronautica, which proved of prime importance during the Second World War: among the structures, also visible from the coast road leading to Marsala, stand out the large reinforced-concrete hangars designed by the engineer Pier Luigi Nervi, known as the «Hangar Nervi», innovative at the time for their structural use of reinforced concrete. In the northern part of the lagoon are the Tonnara di San Teodoro, already documented in 1272, and the Baia dei Fenici; in the middle, on the coast, stretch the Ettore and Infersa salt pans, with old windmills.
Visiting
The lagoon is in the territory of Marsala and looks onto the coast road that leads to the city. The sources consulted give no hours or arrangements for reaching the islands: these should be checked with the reserve's managing body.
Our editors' tip
The Stagnone is known across Europe for kitesurfing and other water sports such as windsurfing and SUP: numerous schools welcome thousands of tourists from all over the world every year.
