Samaria George ( Crete )

[raykilhams]

We had been looking forward to walking the gorge for a few months , so it was with eager anticipation when we boarded the bus at 5-30 am in Hersonissos in Crete to take us there. After a 4 hour jouney ( including CandP , that's coffee and the obvious to the uninitiated) we arrived high in the White Mountains to begin the walk. Incidently the ride through the White Mountains at sun rise was spectacular , especially the way that the light bounced and played on the mountains .
Began our walk about 9-30 , and we knew it would be a good day , not a breath of wind with just the odd small white cloud drifting across a stunning azzure blue sky.

At the top

Now this walk is downhill all the way to the Libyan Sea ,so we made sure we packed our swimming gear to hopefully have a plunge into the sea and cool off. After about 2km of steps and twists and turns the walk flattens out and the going is fairly easy.

View ahead

On the path

By this time we were in the open and the suns heat started to get to us but not enough to be oppressive , fortunately there are plenty of water taps on the way down. Had a stop at the old deserted village of Samaria ( removed the people when the gorge became a natioal park in 1962) for a drink and goodies. We noticed an unoccupied table and chairs that was shaded by a large tree , funny we thought , why wasn't anyone sitting there , oh well it's their loss and our gain , so we rushed over and sat down , got the drinks out and only then discovered why no one sat there ....wasps , dozens of them came out from the stones around the base of the tree and began to swarm around our heads. So we moved well away and sat down to consume our lunch , watched as other unsuspecting walkers rushed across to sit where we had sat , only to have to move 1min later looking like they were fighting the invisible man. By the way there did seem to be an awful lot of wasps/bees/hornets in Crete

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Getting hotter

Samaria old town

After lunch we carried on through the narrowest section of the gorge , walking over the dried up riverbed and through the iron gates making our way to the end of the gorge . The scenery was remarkable and well worth the hike. As we walked out of the park there were a couple of tavernas so we stopped for an ice cold beer which was very refreshing ....oooh the gorge was hot.

The Gates

One of several bridges

We then walked the last few kms along a road ( there is a bus that will take you the last few kms if your'e tired ) to the small village of Agia Roumeli with its small habour and beach. The best beach is to the right of the village so we quicken our pace , decided where we would have a swim , ( wasn't difficult as there were only two other couples on the beach , most other people were on sunloungers further up the beach) we threw down our bags , kicked off our boots , stripped off and run into the crystal clear ,waveless sea ....it was sheer heaven.

After half an hour we walked over to where the sunloungers were ( tried to walk barefooted but sand far too hot) and parked ourselves down on a couple of loungers , ordered coffees and cakes and then had a 2 hour siesta. By this time the beach was really filling up with people . So iI suppose the moral is ..hit the beach early , but that I mean between 1 and 2 pm , as most people arrive by boat or walk , as we did.
We then walked to the taverna where we picked up our ferry tickets had a beer went down to the harbour and caught the ferry to Hora Sfakion where the bus was waiting.

This is what it's all about

We are sailing

Looking back at the george

On a personal note the SG is an excellent day out and a good walk , I have read many conflicting reports as to the difficulty of this walk , but as an average walkhighlands walker , I can honestly say it is in within the capibilities of any reasonable walker. If you have ever walked down the Ben Nevis tourist path ( for example ) or climed a few munros , then this walk should pose absolutely no problem , hey I'm 61 and the wife is 59 and we did it in four hours and I'm certain that many of you walkers out there could do it in 3 . So if you read reports stating had hard and strenuous it is just think of me and Arlene flying down it and think of that wonderful swim at the end.....Not forgettihg the coffee and cakes....oh and the ice cold beer .....oh and the ice cream . P S Did it in Oct. not so many people about

[trekker53]

Nice report there Ray,

Have heard about this gorge but didn't look into it. Your photos show me how amazing it is. Certainly seems a good day out with hiking and beaches thrown in. Maybe best not to do it in height of summer.

[raykilhams]

Nice report there Ray,

Maybe best not to do it in height of summer.

You're right , I believe it gets crowded and takes longer to walk as you try to make your way pass the slower walkers. Spring time and autumn is best , although the stream is higher in the gorge in spring , as friends found out the other year , but they still managed to get through.

[ilovescotty]

Never heard of this place before, looks stunning. Great photos!

[Mountainlove]

Lovely report and thats a big bug! Oh the joys to be able to have a swim after a big walk (wishful thinking in Scotland most of the times)

[ChrisW]

Great report Ray, I've seen very little of Crete, I had a friend go there in the 80's and he came back saying "god there are a lot of wasps" your story brought that right back.

There's no better beer than the 'post long hike on a hot day' beer. Great report, really enjoyed seeing somewhere different