The day started with breakfast at šKalimera (Greek for good morning). It started well with prompt service and decent food. We were even upsold a bread basket. The end of the meal is where things soured. Our server first got into sexism territory by first commenting that Karine was paying and not meā¦ the manfolk. Then when Karine confirmed he tried to save the situation by stating that she was paying with my money. Again Karine had to disappoint him by stating itās her money. At that point he limited his comment to me being lucky ā of course I am, the woman choose me after all, not sure what that has to do with whoās paying what. Having failed to engage on manly duties or some such nonsense, our server switched gears and went on the hard sell of the restaurant ownerās Cretan shop where we could buy souvenirs, the same locally produced olive oil that we were served with the bread and many more ātypicalā Cretan things. Despite us clearly not being interestedā¦ well clearlyā¦ weāre Canadian so weāre polite about itā¦ but, he should have definitely gotten the hint anyway. We were offered a leaflet, directions and, Iām sure, he would have walked us to the store had we asked.
Disappointed that we lost the opportunity to come back to good food (hard sells are not a behaviour we encourage), we went for a second coffee at šTiny Coffee. Thatās where Karine was reminded that coffee ordered at the bar and taken āto goā costs half the price than if you sat down and were brought your coffee. Coffee itself was delicious.
Once our breakfast compleded, we jumped in the car and headed out for the one-hour drive to the Zakros Gorge (Gorge of the Dead). The drive is on āwideā two-lane road through olive groves with mountain and ocean views. By wide I mean two cars can pass one another without having to slow downā¦ assuming nobodyās parked on the side of the road. Crete being sparsely populated, parked cars on the side of the road outside of villages were pretty rare. The drive itself was beautiful.
The Zakros Gorgeās name originates from the natural caves in its cliffs, used as burial sites by the ancient Minoans, hence the Gorge of the Dead.
Karine, having an innate dislike of doing a there and back, found a loop going up the side of the gorge then down through it. Thereās debate about how to do the trail in the All Trails comment section but the answer should be obvious. For best views you want to go down a gorge. Seeing the walls of rock on each side and the light at the end of the trench is how it must be done.
Not being fools, we embarked on the trail and did it the right way and a good thing we did. The first 3km (of 10km) is where all of the way up happens. Itās also a mix of low rocks and slightly higher bushes. The blazes being painted on the rock and the shrubbery is very good at hiding them. The shrubbery is also entirely made of what we nicknamed āprickly bastardsā. You donāt move the shrubbery aside, it incentivizes you to move. As a reference, Karine tripped and fell into a prickly bastardized bush on the first hike and pulled a 1cm thorn out of her leg a week later (it had gotten embedded and infected, fun) The first 3km can be summarized as a game of hide and seek with the trail itself.
From kilometer 3 to 5, the game shifted away from hide and seek and moved into donāt confuse the human trail with the goat trails. Easier to play but you have to find the next blaze every two or three blazes or youāll end up deviating away. Weāre on top of the cliff that will be the left side of the gorge on the way back. Weāre teased a couple of times with promises of a view down into the gorge but weāre never close enough from the edge to spoil the second half of the trek. Also, the views remain pretty darn nice with nothing obstructing our view other than mountains or the curvature of the earth, the benefit of having the sea at your back and low shrubbery all around you. The bastards might be prickly but they are not tall.
At the halfway point, we finally made our way into the gorge proper. The first two kilometres weāre back at playing hide and seek with the trail. For some reason the person who marked the trail really loved the idea of crossing the dry riverbed as often as possible. We had to assume that the trail is closed in the spring when there is water in the gorge. Either that or hikers must get their shoes very wet. Being late in the season thereās not a drop of water in sight, but the shrubbery and now the trees love hiding the blazes. Our progress was slow.
Finally, we reached a more frequented section of the trail and it gets frequent and very visible blazes every few meters, along with a well-threaded dirt trail. We even ran into people, our first since getting on the trail. Thatās also the section of the trail where we meet multiple goats. Often a couple of young ones with two adults nearby. Some of them enjoyed lying in the trail as a flat space. We met our first goat loafing (like a cat, if you donāt know what I mean Google it, Iāll wait) right on the trail. Seeing them explained the trail of excrement weāve followed since we started (while not as reliable as blazes they were more frequent). We even saw one of the goats munching on the prickly bastards, proving that goats will eat anything!
We finished the trail by stopping at the nearest beach bar to the parking in šKato Zakros to grab some cold water and snack on a plate of watermelon before heading back to Sitia. One of the traditions in Crete is, at the end of a meal at a restaurant, they will bring you a shot of raki (the local jet fuel) and some dessert, usually a plate of watermelons with some honeydew mixed in if they want to be fancy. I didn't realize we could just order the watermelon but Karine had the bright idea to notice it was on the menu!
We showered and started processing our pictures once back at the apartment before heading out to šInodion. We really hoped it would redeem the culinary reputation of the city and beat yesterdayās disastrous meal. I cannot express how delighted we were that they did. Granted the bar was low but they went above and beyond: the goat, stuffed zucchini and port belly were yummy and we left with happy bellies.
Tomorrow weāre heading to the west side of the island to Ī§Ī±Ī½Ī¹Ī¬. Written Chania but pronounced āHAH-nyaā Thanks to the well-known Greek X is the same as the silent CH in English. Iām not saying I keep tripping on the name but, as long as weāre translating the name, why not go with Hania? Regardless weāre heading there.
Places
Kalimera Ā· Sitia
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Tiny Coffee Ā· Sitia
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Kato Zakros - Minoan fortification - Gorge of the Dead, Crete, Greece - 69 Reviews, Map | AllTrails
Kato Zakros - Minoan fortification - Gorge of the Dead (ĪĪ¬ĻĻ ĪĪ¬ĪŗĻĪæĻ - ĪĪ¹Ī½ĻĪ¹ĪŗĪ® ĪĻĻĻĻĻĪ· - Ī¦Ī±ĻĪ¬Ī³Ī³Ī¹ ĻĻĪ½ ĪĪµĪŗĻĻĪ½) The route starts from Kato Zakros, heads west and ascends to the hill Lakkomata, following the path that goes to the village of Azokeramos. It follows it, and in the first ravine it encounters, it turns and heads west, descending to the gorge of Xeropotamos, which follows in a south direction, until it meets and exits to the Gorge of the Dead. This is a very beautiful, smaller in size, gorge which is part of the European path E4. Heading east, the route visits the Minoan Fortification on the hill Kastelo, a little further down the road and continues to Kato Zakros, outside the archaeological site of the Minoan Palace.
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Inodion Ā· Sitia
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Kato Zakros Ā· Kato Zakros
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