The first day of the trans-Peloponnese hike could hardly be easier, at least in terms of route-finding: you simply follow the narrow-gauge railway line from Dhiakoftó on the coast, up through the impressive cleft of the Vouraïkós gorge, to the tiny hamlet of Zakhlοroú, halfway to Kalávrita (12km/600m climb). Passing some spectacular tunnels and galleries, you walk between or alongside the tracks. There are only a few trains each day and they chug along at a gentle jog, hooting as they go.
At Zakhloroú, you could stay in one of the small hotels, including the Romántzo (tel 26920-22758), Káto Zakhloroú (tel 26920-22789, mob 698-3125616) or the swankier Olympios Zeus (tel 26920-22595, www.olympioszeus.gr). Alternatively, to get a useful head start on the next day’s long hike, follow the path up to Méga Spílio monastery and sleep in its guesthouse or the nearby Grand Chalet roadside motel. The former is more atmospheric, but you’ll need to nip down to the Grand Chalet for dinner and back by sunset; the latter is easy but soulless; both are bookable (tel 26920-23357, [email protected]).
A few tips: be aware of train times in both directions and keep a torch handy for the tunnels. If a train does come when you’re in a tunnel, don’t panic: stand hard against one side of the tunnel and shine your torch towards it. Cross bridges on the side with the iron boardwalk and handrail, and don’t worry about the ‘no pedestrian’ signs!
Take a stick: underfoot is chunky gravel, with the occasional girder to trip you; and carry plenty of water: the stream is not drinkable, and there are only one or two springs en route. Avoid the second Sunday in May, when thousands of Greek hikers descend the gorge.
From Dhiakoftó railway station, follow the tracks heading S. After about 3km, a dirt road appears alongside, which makes for easier walking; it crosses the tracks again about 2km further. Here, resume along the railway tracks S past the abandoned Niámata station (1hr 15min) and into the wild section of the gorge. Clumps of purple cistus, yellow Jerusalem sage and pink valerian spring from orange-grey cliffs; crag martins and falcons flit overhead; the roaring stream is hidden by oleanders, Judas and plane trees below. The gradient steepens; rack-and-pinion cogs appear between the rails, and the tunnels start.
Entering the Vouraïkós gorge
At the 8km mark, the gradient levels out and, 2km later, you pass the small guards’ hut of Trikliá (unlocked in 2016) and a weak spring in the trunk of a plane tree. At 10.6km, the track splits to cross a narrow defile (the disused L fork is easier) before passing through the tunnel gates known as Pórtes, designed to keep livestock out. Look out for wagtails, dippers, freshwater crabs and even otters in this stretch of the river. Soon, walnut meadows appear on L and R – possible campsites – before you reach Méga Spílio station and Zakhloroú (3hr 30min).
In the hamlet of Zakhloroú, shaded tavernas and rented rooms await, if you have not managed to book the Méga Spílio monastery guesthouse or the Grand Chalet motel.
For Méga Spílio monastery, from the station, walk through the second café terrace and find a path signed ‘Great Cave Monastery/Méga Spílio’ with a green circle and blue triangle (and suggesting a generous walking time of 1hr 30min). You are leaving the E4 trail. A broad gravelly path climbs steadily between huge composite boulders, spiny broom and juniper saplings. After 15min the path bears L and levels out briefly; up ahead, a crag towers above the monastery guesthouse. Some 10min later, you join a dirt road at a hairpin and keep L (up). After a further 5min, you meet the main road by a yellow-and-black signpost (‘Zakhloroú 20mins’) and turn L along the road.
You pass a covered spring bedecked with icons (R) to reach a large stone-clad building (L), the Grand Chalet motel, whose owners currently run the monastery guesthouse. Méga Spílio monastery itself is a 5min walk up the paved road R (4hr 30min). It is open daily until sunset, with an hour’s closure at lunch. The guesthouse is at the R (S) end of the complex, on a prominent outcrop.
To visit Méga Spílio monastery, ensure your shoulders and legs are covered, then enter through the huge door guarded by sculpted lions and head upstairs.
The frescoed hall tells the story behind the monastery, starting with the discovery in AD361 of a miraculous icon by local shepherdess Efrosíni; the finding of an exact replica in the hollow of a plane tree at Plataniótissa village; and the holy fathers’ escape from the Ottoman sword in the 1820s. You pass the smoke-darkened Byzantine chapel (on the right) and the gold-glinting treasury (left) – both worth a visit (note: no photos); then descend to the cave where the shepherdess, pictured with founding monks Simeon and Theodore, was saved from a dragon by the divine icon.
Méga Spílio monastery
STAGE 2
Méga Spílio monastery (1000m) to Áno Lousí (1050m) via Kserókambos/Mt Khelmós (1687m)
| Start point | Méga Spílio monastery |
| Distance | 17km |
| Difficulty | 2 |
| Walking time | 6hr |
| Height gain | 750m |
| Height loss | 700m |
| Waymarks | Blue (and some yellow) to Livádhi Louká, some orange across Kserókambos, green to Valvoúsi |
This is a long but truly beautiful hike climbing through dense fir forest, then across a 1600m plateau beneath the high peaks and ski slopes of Mt Khelmós, before descending through Alp-like meadows to the shepherds’ village of Áno Lousí. This is remote terrain. You probably won’t see a soul for most of the day. There’s no reliable water after Psilós Stavrós and low cloud can roll into the plateau, so be prepared.
If it sounds too strenuous (and especially if you have overnighted in Zakhloroú), you could instead take the train to Kalávrita and then follow the E4 road route – or the red-waymarked mountain bike trail – up to the col of Áyios Nikólaos and down to Áno Lousí (about 3hr). Both are well marked on the Anávasi map.
Either way you should pre-book the Hotel O Spérhos – simple but friendly, and the only option in the village (Andréas and Toúla Pavlópoulos, tel 26920-83348, mob 694-4542413, little or no English spoken).
In front of the monastery guesthouse, turn sharp L (blue arrow) up a stepped path, then R passing a cemetery and through a gate in the lee of an overhanging boulder – note the blue-on-white (BW) and yellow-on-white (YW) waymarks which guide us for much of the morning.
Follow the broad path for a minute or so. Our preferred route then turns sharp L up a path which climbs to the restored stone fortress atop the monastery cliffs. The balustrade is still largely intact, but for those who might find the exposure disturbing, an alternative route is suggested below. Continue N behind the fort – there may be fallen trees – to a dam of round stones in wire blocks; then up to a second dam, in front
