Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
HIKING IN NORTHERN KÁRPATHOS
Northern Kárpathos is renowned for excellent hiking . While the most popular walk of all simply
follows the jeep track down from Ólymbos to the superb west-coast beach at Fýsses , a sharp
drop below the village, most local trails head more gently north or east, on waymarked paths.
Ólymbos to Dhiafáni An easy ninety-minute walk leads back down to Dhiafáni, starting just
below the two working windmills. The way is well marked, with water twenty minutes along,
and eventually drops to a ravine amid extensive forest. The final half-hour, unfortunately,
follows a bulldozed riverbed.
Ólymbos to Vrykoúnda Heading north from Ólymbos, it takes around 1hr 30min to reach
sparsely inhabited Avlóna, set on a high upland devoted to grain. From there, less than an
hour more of descending first moderately, then steeply, along an ancient walled-in path that
takes off from the valley-floor track, will bring you to the ruins and beach at Vrykoúnda. Once
you've seen the Hellenistic/Roman masonry courses and rock-cut tombs here, and the remote
cave-shrine of John the Baptist on the promontory (focus of a major Aug 28-29 festival),
there's good swimming in the pebble coves to one side.
Avlóna to Trístomo Starting just above Avlóna, a magnificent cobbled way leads in 2hr
30min, via the abandoned agricultural hamlets of Ahordhéa and Kílios, to Trístomo, a Byzantine
anchorage in the far northeast of Kárpathos. The views en route, and the path itself, are the
thing; Trístomo itself is dreary, with not even a beach.
Trístomo to Vanánda If you've already hiked to Trístomo, and would prefer not to retrace
your steps to Avlóna, you can hook up, via a shortish link trail east from Trístomo, with a
spectacular coastal path back to Vanánda (3hr 30min). Once clear of abandoned agricultural
valleys and over a pine-tufted pass, it's often a corniche route through the trees, with distant
glimpses of Dhiafáni and no real challenge except at the steep rock-stairs known as Xylóskala.
8
which has a kitchen. All h ave phenomenal views, to the
windmills and the sea. €50
Hotel Astro Ólymbos T 22450 51421. Smart en-suite
rooms, with traditional furnishings, and a warm welcome
from its owners, the two sisters who run Café-Restaurant
Zefiros on t he other side of the village, where breakfast is
taken. €55
Hotel Studios Glaros Dhiafáni T 22450 51501,
W hotel-glaros.gr. Run by the very welcoming George
and Anna Niotis, these sixteen huge units, some of
which sleep four, are top of the heap in all senses in
Dhiafáni, ra nged in tiers up the southern slope. Closed
Nov-March. €45
Pension Olymbos Ólymbos T 22450 51009. This
friendly little place, near the village entrance, offers
modern units with baths as well as unplumbed ones with
traditional furnishings. It also holds an excellent,
inexpensive restaurant, specializing in traditional home
cooking, including unusual shellfish. €30
Restaurant Avlona Ávlona T 694 60 18 521. On a spur
road away from the Dhiafáni-Ólymbos road, this offshoot
of the restaurant at Pension Olymbos (see above) features
artichoke hearts with eggs in spring. The signature dish is
makaroúnes , home-made pasta with onions and cheese.
Four en-suite rooms make it an ideal base for walkers.
Daily lunch & dinner.
Studios Delfini Dhiafáni T 22450 51354,
W studiosdelfini.wordpress.com. Very pleasant ground-
floor studios, with kitchenettes, bathrooms and air
conditioning, just a few metres from the sea. Upstairs, the
Dolphins restaurant serves veget able s from the garden,
and good fish. Closed Nov-March. €45
Sými
For sheer breathtaking beauty, the Greek islands can offer nothing to beat arriving
at SÝMI . While the island as a whole is largely barren, its one significant population
centre, Sými Tow n , is gorgeous, a magnificent steep-walled bay lined with Italian-
era mansions.
With its shortage of fresh water and relative lack of sandy beaches, Sými has never
developed a major tourist industry. Sými Town however holds a wide range of small
hotels, as well as abundant delightful rental properties, while day-trippers from Rhodes
- and yachties lured by the wonderful harbour - mean it can support some very good
restaurants too. In the height - and searing heat - of summer it can get uncomfortably
 
 
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