Jackie Hough, group organiser for the Isle of Wight Ramblers, tells us about her group’s highlights from a memorable trip to the Epirus region of Greece.
Ssshh! It’s a secret, but thanks to Ellen Walker at Travel Editions and Jane our tour guide, the Isle of Wight Ramblers were introduced to the little known and exceptionally beautiful region of Epirus with its pretty stone villages and spectacular mountain scenery in the Pindos National Park of Greece.
After an early flight to Corfu we checked into our hotel overlooking the lagoon in the Kanoni region of the island. The afternoon was free to explore the area and sample the culinary delights of a local taverna.
The following day we visited Mon Repos Palace & Gardens where the Duke of Edinburgh was born. Later we enjoyed a cultural walking tour of the Old Town and then had some free time to visit the Venetian Fortress.
Time to say goodbye to Corfu and take the Hydrofoil over to Sarande in Albania where we met Yannis, our coach driver for the rest of the week. On our route through Albania to the Greek mountains, we stopped for a walk to the ‘Blue Eye’, an exquisitely coloured natural freshwater pool.
Onwards to a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the old quarter of the town of Gjirokaster where lunch was waiting at the top of the hill, just below the castle. The views from the restaurant across to the Albanian Mountain range were breathtaking.
We continued and slowly wound our way up the mountainside to the village of Monodendri. Our hosts at the traditional, family run Philoxenia Hotel were waiting to welcome us and we soon settled in to our comfortable rooms - home for the next five days.
Walking boots on, our guide Piros was ready to take us along the stone cobbled walkways for our first walk to the Agia Paraskevi Monastery with views towards the Vikos Gorge. A walk down to Vitsa for an open air lunch under the most enormous plane tree was enjoyed with views up to our village of Monodendri.
After his well deserved day off, we had Yannis back driving us to the village of Vradeto, the highest of the Zagorian villages at 4,400 feet, and en route he stopped to allow us to admire and walk over the first of the many wonderful old stone bridges of Zagori that we were to see over the coming days.
At Vradeto we took an easy track towards the Beloi Balcony, then the path became stony and more difficult but it was well worth it when we reached a spectacular view point overlooking the Vikos Gorge, one of the deepest in Europe.
On our return to the cafe, we boarded the coach to descend to Kapesovo viewing the famous Vradeto Steps, a cleverly constructed stairway of 1,000 steps carved into the rock face.
Our next day started at the stone bridge of Kleidonia and our route took us through woodland peppered with wild cyclamen alongside the Voidomatis River, one of the cleanest and coldest in Europe. On the way we climbed up to visit the abandoned monastery of Agia Anargyroi. Boarding our coach we took the road in Zagoria, zig-zagging up the 14 sharp turns to the village of Papigo.
Each evening we would take the cobbled paths to the main square for a drink and snack in the local friendly tavernas. The peace and clean air was so refreshing walking back under the stars. Magical! We also had time to head up towards Oxia to visit the Stone Forest, a series of tall towers of rock which were formed and layered in the Ice Age. These natural sculptures are quite remarkable.
The last part of the trip was taken in the south down to Ioaninna, the capital of Epirus, where we stopped for a coffee around the large Lake Pamvotida, some five miles in length and three and a half miles wide at the foot of the mountains, while some visited the castle. We continued on our journey down to the crystal clear Acheron River, believed to be the gateway to the Underworld, according to Greek mythology.
After a late lunch we had a short walk beside the river before completing our journey to our overnight hotel in Preveza, a small harbour town well known for the Battle of Actium that took place in 31BC between Mark Anthony and Octavian. Jane took us on a guided town walk to show us the best fish restaurants (what a choice), and later we sampled the evening atmosphere in the narrow streets.
After a good night’s sleep, we checked out and made our way to the harbour front for breakfast, this time with a view of the many super yachts moored alongside.
What contrasts we had during our time in Greece; we all feel very privileged to have been given the opportunity to discover this region. It was a truly amazing and beautiful holiday with a great group and friendly, helpful guides.
