Ascent of Kastro mountain

Hi folks,

The Lefka ori are a fairly small mountain range, you can plan a crossing  in 2 or three days. Among the possible routes, the two-day trek going from Omalos plain to Anopoli village is the most popular, it is also the easiest one and therefore is a good choice for trekkers without particular knowledge of the area. We're talking about high-mountain trekking (over 2000 meters at times), and whilst there are no particular difficulties, you should not go unless you know what to expect. In summer, water is a matter that must not be neglicted, it is very scarse up there. Knowing where and how to get water is of upmost importance.

Following my post on Gingilos mountain, I wanted to talk about another day-trip in the Lefka Ori, the ascent of Kastro mountain. Kastro is the last peak over 2000m to the east of the mountains, it seats above the Askifou plain at an elevation of 2218 meters. Unlike the walk to Gingilos, there is no path half of the way (except if you follow part of the E4 trail going to Omalos, but then it’s quite longer). Also, half the trek is virtually devoid of way-markings. Add the nature of the ground, very rough at places, and that accounts for a quite challenging walk aimed at experienced walkers. Regarding time allowance, I usually do the walk from Askifou to the top and then back to Askifou in about 7h30. I’m a fit walker and I know the way, so these may be optimistic for other people. I think 8 to 9 hours is a fair estimate. Read more

New year's eve in Bruxelles

Hi everyone,

I wish you all a happy new year 2010. I hope you all enjoyed new year's eve as much as I did. I was in Belgium for a couple of days and I stayed at my friend Stati's place in Bruxelles. It was my first time in Bruxelles, the Capital of Europe, and I had the opportunity to visit the main attractions of the city

•  the Atomium
•  the Manneken pis
•  the Janneken pis
•  the "Grand place"

I had my share of chocolate and waffles. We also had some fun with fireworks and spent some time downtown in the bars. It was much too cold to stay outside, and Belgium is THE LAND OF BEER just like France is the land of Wine or Cheese. So why not stay in a warm and cozy place, enjoy the girls, enjoy the beer! I really love Duvel! Read more

A day trip to Gingilos

Hello everyone,

This is the first in a serie of articles that I plan to post in the near future. They will focus on the numerous walk possibilities offered by the White mountains of Crete. The White Mountains (straight translation from the greek “Lefka Ori”) are a tiny range to the south-west of Crete. It’s tiny to our European standards, compared to the alps or Pyrenees, nevertheless, of the three main ranges in the island, it is the widest and most impressive. What makes these mountains stand aside from the others is a unique blend of unusual features:

•  Some peaks, standing above 2000 meters, are so close to the south coast that, as the crows fly, it’s a matter of 5 to 10 km to the lybian sea.
•  The center of the range is often referred to as a “high desert”. Barren with snow in the winter, stony desolation in summer, vegetation is very scarce and so is water. And yet, this does not prevent herds of goats from grazing there from june to October.
•  Mountains are mostly limestone, highly eroded at places with gorges cutting deep towards the sea.

In this post, I’ll present what is probably the most popular high-mountain walk in the range: Gingilos mountain. Read more