The State Forestry Corps controls the reserve; access is free, but you need to send a mail to utb.caserta@corpoforestale.it to inform about your visit one or two weeks in advance.
The mail shall include the following information: what is the day of your visit, the path, the number of persons and the leader.
This trail retraces the path followed in the 1920s-30s by the Matrone brothers to reach the crater, used up until the 1980s.
The bends and hairpin bends offer glimpses of breathtaking views.
Download GPS track: link, thanks a lot to GerardNL for it!
Note:
After found the cache, if you want to continue and go from the cache to the crater, usually entrance fee must be payed.
Take some water with you, and shoes to perform the short hike; if you start from Ercolano road, in total it should not take longer than 1 hour, maybe longer if you do not look at hint and spoilers.
Bring your own pen to log the cache!
In order to access the cache, there are several options.
Feel free to contact the cache owner for further info about below accesses.
1) La valle dell'Inferno, from Ercolano
this is easiest and my favorite way to access the cache, so it is the recommended one; it will take about one hour to find the cache and come back to the car:
The access gate of the path n.1 sometimes is closed, but there is never any problem to go beyond it:
From same access, you can also look for another cache in the Valley: http://coord.info/GC49NM7
2) La valle dell'Inferno, from Ottaviano
Same map as above, but starting from Ottaviano.
3) Busvia del Vesuvio
refer to the following site:
http://www.busviadelvesuvio.com/en/excursion.html
4) Il Gran Cono/ from the crater Big Cone
Usually guides do not allow you to go from crater down to Strada Matrone, but opposite is allowed; so the way from crater is not recommended unless you obtain permission in advance by the State Forestry Corps by sending a mail to utb.caserta@corpoforestale.it to inform about your visit one or two weeks in advance.
Further info can be requested to the cache owner or found at the following sites:
http://www.epnv.it/pnv/visitailparco/sentiero_matrone.asp
http://www.epnv.it/pnv/visitailparco/sentiero_valle.asp
