The villages of the Sfakia Region

Samaria:

The abandoned village of Samaria lies midway of the famous Samaria Gorge (18 km long). It's the biggest natural canyon of Europe. Its inhabitants, almost all of the old Byzantine family Viglis, were forced to move when on December 6th 1962 the gorge became a protected area. The village is very isolated and had only access to water in Winter and early Spring. The village is very ancient: still some buildings can be seen, like the church Ossia Maria, which gave name to the gorge and the village. It's from the early fourtheenth century.

The gorge starts down from the village of Omalos on the Omalos plain at the foot of the granite Mt. Gingilos (2080 m). First you descent a stepped path cut from the rock with wooden handrails, the 'Xiloskalon' (wooden stairway). It is 2 km long and the descent is 1000 meters! In the beginning the gorge is very wide and you might see some traces of the river which is flooding here during rain season, which makes hiking the gorge impossible. Therefore, the rain decides when the season for hiking the gorge starts and stops. Usually it's open from beginning of May 'till end of October.

Through the gorge you will encounter several chapels, like Agios Nikolaos, Ossia Maria and in the end some in the old Agia Roumeli, 2 km before the new settlement at the sea. On your way, the gorge will narrow down 'till you reach the 'Iron Gates' (Sidheresportes) where the opening is more than 300 meters high and only 210 cm wide!

Skaloti: Village with less than 100 inhabitants in the plain of Frangkastello, at the foot of the White Mountains.

Vouvas: Village with about 140 inhabitants, famous for the monastery of Agias Zonis, built under the rocks.

Vraskas: Small settlement on the road to Frangokastello.

Old city Tara: Ancient settlement, inhabited for thousand years from the 5th century B.C on. There is still a ruined Turkish fort to be seen, as well as some other remains, like the remains of an urly christian basilica, an old bridge passing the 'Samaria river' and pieces of mosaic. In the old days a temple of Apollo used to be here. Tara had its own coins.

Agia Roumeli and Turkish fort of Tara

Islets of Gavdos and Gavdopoula:

Gavdos is an Island in the Lybian Sea, 40 km off the south coast of Crete. The highest point of the island is at 382 m above sea level, on Gavdopoula it is 133 m. The surface of Gavdos is aprox. 27 km2, Gavdopoula 2.75 km2. Sea depth between the two islands is approximately 80-100 m, the depth between Gavdopoula and Crete is of 1100 m. The Lybian Sea reaches a depth of up to 2400 m (measured at a distance 50 km south of Gavdos).