Greece - Day 33: Olive groves and a gorge

Another day, where my motivation wasn't great. It didn't help that the clouds were hanging in the mountains and I had 3 sheep-dog encounters in the morning.

So my decision was made quick: no detour to Delphi! Instead, I decided to take the direkt way, not even trying to stay off the pavement.

I had a lunch break on the graveyard of Biniane, before I started my way up through a gorge. It was slow and exhausting walking in the gravel of the dry creek bed. And for a short time I did some unnecessary efforts, climbing over boulders in the river bed - there was a perfectly nice trail above the river, as I discovered later on...

Once I was on the trail, things were faster and easier. Also the sun tried to break through the clouds. Views not only on steep cliffs but on snowy mountains appeared and I decided to call it a day early. The trail was going up, leaving the creek and forest  so I stopped on a flatter outcrop. It was already cold enough, where I was and the trail continues up over a pass.

Btw, even if I decide to camp early, my tent is set up maybe an hour later. It take ages to find a spot with the least amount of stones and then dig them out (if possible). Normaly, I don't like to make too much changes, trying to leave no trace, but with all this stones its impossible!

Another gray day 

Lunch time

Greece - Day 32: A gray day and dark mood

It was a gray day today, and so was my mood. What the heck am I doing here? I guess it was a combination of the weather, not sleeping enough, eating too much and the fact, that I read about aggressive shepherd's dogs in the coming parts of my hike.

At least I bought lots of food and a new foam pad in a very good outdoorstore, since mine was totally ripped.

After asking at the wrong terminal, I managed to find the correct bus terminal (in a ferry terminal building!) to go to Itea. The bus took 2.5 h, and despite the scenic drive along the coast, I napped a lot.

A short walk along Iteas shore and I was off into the olive groves to find a campsite - really early but I was not motivated to walk anymore. Although I thought yesterday, that I want to visit Delphi for sure, I might actually skip it. The E4 passes Delphi, but since I want to walk differently in order to go up into the mountains of the Rijas-Gourlomyta-Nkiona National Park, it means a detour and (at least today) I don't feel like doing it...

Patras

Sitting at the sea and waiting fof the bus

On the bus ride to Itea

Iteas beach

Olive groves - Delphi and snowy mountains in the back

Early camp

Greece - Day 31: Follow the train tracks... - a beautiful end of the Peloponnes

The night was perfect: not too cold and dry, so I didn't really wanted to get up. Obviousely I had picked a good spot, because already a few meters further down the trail it was cold.

I descended on a nice trail along a stream to Kalavryta, through the Chelmis-Vouraikos National Park & Geopark, where there were even information panels for example about the karst landscape and the endemic Greece spruce.

In Kalavryta I checked the train schedule, which goes 3 times a day in each direction, before starting my long walk down on train tracks. The E4 followed the tracks all the way to Diakopto. It goes through the gorge of Vouraikos with some bridges and tunnels  where there are signs that you shouldn't walk, but it is an official trail! The train driver seems to be used to many people hiking there and I met way over 10 people today, including 2 women who where having their sheep flock on the train tracks. Btw, it is also a cog railway!

Mostly, there was a path next to the tracks, but if not it was a little work since the railway sleeper were too close for a nice step and the gravel was hard to walk on. But a really beautiful gorge!!!

In Diakopto it was early afternoon, so I walked to the sea and took a bus to Patras. I had decided to have a luxury evening: I booked a room  got my cloths washed, took a shower and cooked a lot of noodles. I can get used to do this more often ;) But it is a nice end of my hike on the Peloponnes! Tomorrow I will (hopefully) take a bus to Itea kn the main land, to continue my hike - more or less on the E4.

Sunset ghe night before

Good morning beautiful day!

Old chestnut tree 

(do you see my hiking poles?)

Here starts the train track-hike....

.... with bridges

...and beautiful landscapes

I had just passed the bridge when the train came...

Here it's the only time that there is a separate tunnel for hikers!

The end of the Peloponnes - looking to the mainland from Diakopto