Showing posts with label Peloponnes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Peloponnes. Show all posts

Thursday, April 28, 2022

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









Wednesday, April 27, 2022

Greece - Day 30: Beautiful landscapes

Today was a mixture of trails (mostly stony and bushy) and dirt roads, all with incredibly beautiful views. On my way I passed several small villages, drank lots of water and saw 2 turtles.

Today I am camping in a forest, so hopefully it will be drier and warmer than last night.



Trail

more trail





Do you see the turtle?



Incredible beautiful

Lunch spot

Platane forest near a spring, but it is not as impressive as the one the day before


Forest- camp




Tuesday, April 26, 2022

Greece - Day 29: A frosty morning, little vilkages and great views

The morning was frosty and I continued walking in the shadow of the forest and some gorges for a while.
I passed Vytina, which had lots of touristy shops with honey, noodles etc. In Vityna I left the Menalo trail and was back on the E4, walking on roads - but with beautiful views!

After Nymfasia, I took a short cut and passed Kamenitsa on a slightly different route than the E4.
It was mainly downhill and I had my lunch brake next to an olive grove with bees being busy to fly to all the any flowers.

I passed a flat river area and then followed the road up to Daras and then a "sheep track" around the mountain to Pangrati. After drinking 1 L of water, I descended down to Ladonas river and passed the Ladonas spring, a big blue pot of water.

It was much later than I had hoped  so I started to ascend to Lykouria, but ended up camping on the edge of some sheep pastures, because I had enough and there was no escape from the sheep anyways.


Frosty morning

Nice path in the forest

Little gorge


Great views


Small villages



Descending to Ladonas river

Ladonas spring

Camping on sheep land


Georgia - Part 8: Lagodekhi Nature Reserve - the end of hiking in Georgia

Georgia 05.-11.09.2022 From our last hike, which ended in Artana, we hitchhiked to Lagodekhi. It went incredibly smooth and took us 5 rides,...