Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
classes and rents equipment to certified surfers. It also offers mountain bike trips and
rents windsurfing equipment. You can stay next door at
Orkos Beach Hotel
(
www.orkosbeach.gr
;
d/t/apt incl breakfast €105/155/170)
, where rooms are comfortable, but
will hardly see you as you'll be too busy on the beach.
Tragaea Τραγαία
The Tragaea region is a vast plain of olive groves and unspoilt villages, beneath the cent-
ral mountains with
Mt Zeus
(1004m; also known as Mt Zas) dominating overall.
Filoti
, situated on the slopes of Mt Zeus, is the region's largest village. It has an ATM
booth just down from the main bus stop. On the outskirts of the village (coming from
Hora), an asphalt road leads off right to the isolated hamlets of
Damarionas
and
Damalas
.
From Filoti, you can also reach the
Cave of Zeus
, a large, natural cavern at the foot of
a cliff on the slopes of Mt Zeus. There's a junction signposted Aria Spring and Zas Cave,
about 800m south of Filoti. If travelling by bus, ask to be dropped off here. The side road
ends in 1.2km. From the road-end parking, follow a walled path past the
Aria Spring
, a
fountain and picnic area, and on to a very rough track uphill to reach the cave. The path
leads on from here steeply to the summit of Zas. From beyond the fountain area, it's a
stiff hike of several kilometres; it's essential to have good walking shoes, water and sun-
screen, and to have some hill-climbing experience. A good way to return to Filoti from
the top of Zas is to follow the path that leads northeast from the summit and then to head
north at a junction to reach the little chapel of Aghia Marina on the road to Danakos.
This is about 4km. From the chapel a mix of road walking and stepped paths then leads,
in another few kilometres, to Filoti. This route can be done in reverse or as a way there
and back to the top of Zas. Either way is no mere stroll.
The area between Melanes and Kinidaros has been the island's
marble quarry
since
ancient times. Marble is still collected from this region today and you will see the sides
of the mountains sliced open and looking like huge slabs of feta. At Flerio, near Mili, is
an area of ancient marble working and there remain two striking examples of a
kouros
(youth) - large marble statues of the 6th and 7th centuries BC. Each
kouros
measures
about 5.5m and both are in a broken state (the theory being that they were damaged dur-
ing transportation or were simply left unfinished by dissatisfied sculptors). The first
kouros
you come to is lying on its back under a tree; its sheer size and the absurdness of
it just being left there takes you by surprise. There is also a
cult sanctuary
here, believed
to be associated with the archaic marble quarrying, along with an
aqueduct
and
ancient
beehives
. The site has interpretive boards.
