We arrived in Crete, Greece’s largest and most southerly island relatively refreshed after our comfortable sleep on the ferry and hopped out of the ship ready to explore. We had a plan so left the exploring of Iraklio and visiting Knossos for later. The bus station was not far away from the port so it wasn’t long and we were heading to Samaria gorge. We had to change buses at Hania so had 4 hours to spare which gave us a chance to explore.
Hania is supposedly Crete’s most romantic and alluring towns which is rich in Venetian and ottoman architecture. The old harbour is lined with tavernas and restaurants and there is a Venetian lighthouse at the harbour entrance. There were small fish everywhere in the emerald green waters of the harbour. It was an enchanting area and well worth a visit. We even found a nice local supermarket and restocked for the walk.
The scenic bus ride up the mountains went though the picturesque village of Lakki with its hill top chapels and monastery. The region is quite spectacular and for me quite unexpected.
Samaria gorge supposedly one of Europe’s most spectacular gorges and a must do. The walk starts at 1230m and ends at sea level near the coastal village of Agia Roumeli which is about 3km from the national park boundaries. Our bus was the last for the day and was to arrive at the park entrance at about 3pm which also is the latest time walkers are allowed to start the walk. We were a little late but it is Greece so they let us in anyway. I was a little concerned as we didn’t know whether it was going to be a 16 or 18km walk but we knew that dark would be about 8pm which gave us about 5hrs to wander the predominantly downhill walk. Our information indicated that the walk would take between 4 to 8 hrs. Unfortunately camping was not allowed in the park according to the signs at the entrance. The walk is a snowline to sea path along a creek and there were a few walkers coming up the steep first hour of the walk but after that we had the gorge to ourselves with the soft afternoon light and chirping birds. There creek disappeared into the gravel bed about 7km into the walk which is where a ranger station at the ruins of an ancient settlement were located. Further along the gorge started tightening up and was a little unstable as we could hear the occasional rocks clinking down from above. The stream reappeared from the gravel creek bed and the gorge continued to tighten up to it’s narrowest point of 3m with towering cliffs of 300m height which was spectacular but frustrating as the light was too difficult for the camera to be able to record the drama. We reached the exit of the park at sunset and the park ranger told us that it was another 3km to town but the road was easy to walk and we were at Agia Roumeli by 8pm. The town was open but we felt like we were the only tourists in the area so there were bored staff just sitting around waiting and we didn’t help the problem by walking down to the wharf and eating cheese sandwiches. We chose the accommodation that was recommended by lonely planet guidebook and it was a good room with ocean views but the manager needed a personality transplant.
So the plan was coming together nicely. We were going to catch the ferry to hora sfakion then buses back to Iraklio. We had a little conflicting information on the ferry but figured it was in the morning some time. The park ranger said ferry left at 0900hrs and the Hotel manager said the ferry left at 1100hrs so it was a shock when I went to buy tickets at 0850hrs we discover that there is no ferry till 1730hrs. A quick mental time calculation means that we will miss our ferry back to Athens if we wait this long and this is a big problem. The last bus left Hania at 1400hrs and arrived at the head of the gorge at 1500hrs and then basically turned around and returned to Hania just after 1500hrs which basically gave us 6hrs to climb back up to the top. It was now about 9am giving us 6hrs to walk up the track again. Could we make it ? Would the bus be waiting for us ? Would we miss the bus and the ferry? We had no choice but to get going. We anticipated that it was going to take considerably more time and far more energy. Our strategy was to walk at 5-6km per hour for the first 3km then about 4km per hours through the flatter gorge section then we would be able to tackle the hill section more slowly and just make it in time.
We have become bower birds and have started collecting things. we saw a plastic bag on a log and looked inside to find a brand new pair of ladies swimmers and a black and white scarf .we had passed a group of individuals on a walk tour an hour or so ago and decided that it probably belonged to one of their party .We rested on the log for a few minutes until the next few trekkers came along and we asked if they belong to the walking group ,which they did we then in turn asked if they would take to bag with them to see if the property belonged to someone in the group they shrugged their shoulders an then kept walking without the bag. We gave us asking and as there was no one else around and it was obvious that no one was coming back to claim their property we took it with us.The next thing that we gather enroute back to the top was a shirt which we had seen on a log the previous day so like bower birds we collected out prize .
We were making good time and started to meet people after a few hours. They seemed amazed that we were walking the track uphill and kept asking whether we were going in the right direction. One teenage american girl said that I was ‘hard core man’ another person gave us a ‘bravo‘. They behaved as if we were the only people to walk up the cliffs and out of the gorge rather than down but we know that that is just not the case as on the previous day we had encountered two couples who had partially completed the walk and were returning to there hire cars at the top .It was great fun to speed up the hilly path past the unfit red faced tourist who were worn out just coming down. There were plenty of fit elderly walkers on treks as well. We pulled up for lunch by the creek at about 12pm and only had about 5km to go but it was particularly steep and the majority of the 1.2km rise still. We were starting to fade a little and the last few km were really tough but we were determined. It was really hard going for Vanessa with her back but she kept plodding along and eventually after lots of breaks we made it to the entrance of the park. It was a struggle at times but through guts and determination and a fair amount of perspiration we made it to the top at 1405hrs. A bus arrived at a little after 1500hrs and then the driver decided that it was time for a late lunch or afternoon tea and a chat so the bus didn’t leave till 1550hrs anyway.
The trip back was nice and we saw miles and miles of unexploited sandy beaches. In some parts it reminded us of Australian.
We noticed that a religious woman on the bus signed every time we passed a church and later noted that someone else on the bus was doing the same and we wondered whether we were the only ones not making the sign of a cross at the appropriate times. It certainly made church spotting easy.
We arrived back in Iraklio at about 9pm and just waited for about 1hr at the port before we could collapse on the ferry. We didn’t get time to explore much of the island but liked the small part that we did visit. So sadly we bare had time to scratched the surface of yet another of the Greek islands before it was time to leave. We are really frustrated at having the 90 day limit in the European union and we are using that up quickly.
Another ferry but this time a super fast ferry back to Athens which departed at 2345hrs and arrived in Athens at around 0630hrs this morning. We didn’t sleep well on the floor but got the tickets cheaply so couldn’t complain and the hostel had a room for us as soon as we arrived. We were going to travel by bus to another town near Athens for a day trip but just climbing the steps of the hostel was enough for us to decide that we just didn’t have the energy for it. So well just relax and pack prepare our bags for our flight to Paris, France tomorrow morning.
Bye,
David and Vanessa
