With a surface of just over a square kilometer, the enchanting Lake of Letino was created at the beginning of the twentieth century in order to feed the hydroelectric power station of Prata Sannita.
For this purpose, the water of the river Lete was used, intercepted through a dam before being dispersed in the sinkhole of the Cauto as it had always been over the centuries. When the river got bigger with the winter precipitations and the snowmelt springs, it naturally formed a lake, from where water flew down like a cascade in the Valley delle Ravi below.
In the vicinity of the lake, there are the Grottoes of Cauto, an interesting system of natural caves in a sinkhole where anciently the Lete River was falling. These grottoes are still partly under water and partly dry and accessible. The upper gallery corresponds to the old course of the river, preceding the construction of the dam with reservoirs, small canyons and differences in height. The lower gallery is nearly 500 meters long, from a difference of height of 90 meters and had several side branches. Some insect and crustaceans species are interesting. They have adapted themselves to the environment and don’t have eyes. The main room is very suggestive, more than thirty meters high, where there are magnificent stalactites and stalagmites.
Ph: Antonio Vetere
