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Salento is not only synonymous with paradisiacal beaches and incredibly beautiful villages, but in this part of the region, even the mouths of the rivers offer scenarios that deserve to be discovered. The Chidro river is situated in San Pietro in Bevagna.
This freshwater, underground river and its waters are in contrast to those of the sea into which it flows. Swimming from river to sea and experiencing the sudden changes in temperature is a unique and invigorating experience.
But, the Chidro is also famous for its various popular legends and traditions, namely the legend linked to the landing of St. Peter on the Lido di Bevagna in the year 44 AD caused by a shipwreck. It is said that he converted Fellone, the Lord of the nearby village of Felline to Christianity. He was instantly healed from leprosy after his baptism which took place in the waters of the Chidro river.
Another legend narrates that St. Peter, whilst in penance, crossed the Chidro crying for having betrayed Jesus and that his tears turned into shells. Considered as the petrification of those tears, the inhabitants of the past used to collect and preserve these “Tears of St. Peter” as relics.
The waters not only allow you to cool off, but also to enjoy a rather low temperature which helps circulation. Another particular feature concerns the “citri”, which is the phenomenon caused by the boiling of the sand from the underlying flow of the river. A definite must is also the strong jet of water which emanates from the spring located at a depth of 12 metres.
