These structures are a less well known version of the “Trabocci” that are well known on the Adriatic coast of Abruzzo, much further south. They are relatively common in the Comune of Ravena, particularly along natural rivers and the artificial (largely drainage) canals which are numerous in the area and connect to the sea. The easy way to see these fascinating structures however is to drive either north or south along the SP24 coastal highway and park in the parking lot of the Antica Romea restaurant where the road crosses the Canale de Bonifica in destra del Reno (which runs parallel to the Reno river and connects to the sea at, nearby, Cassal Borsetti). The structures will be clearly visible to the north of the parking lot and usually they can be seen in action. The canal was built in the 1880’s and originally functioned very much as an open sewer but, now much cleaner , it is important for both irrigation and fishing.
The fishing structures consist of a platform built above the watercourse, usually with a rustic accommodation hut upon it, and from which projects derricks, equipped with ropes and winches, that are used to raise and lower large, horizontal, fishing nets into and out of the water. In the canal it is possible to catch sheatfish (Wels catfish) and other catfish species, carp, zander, rudd, eel, bream, perch, chub, bleak, nase and mullet, the latter, a sea fish, especially in the saline waters near the mouth.
In this region the structures and nets are generally smaller than in the more well known “trabocci” that are usually constructed on rocky promontories and aim at harvesting fish directly from the Adriatic.
Minor local roads run either side of the canal and a stroll or cycle along the waterway is well worth the effort. On a bike a visit to Cassal Borsetti is easily within reach.
