Well like many of you, I have taken a lot of great day hikes in my life, and eventually they all blur together in your recreation memory bank, collectively nourishing your need to be outdoors, walking the planet and communing with nature. Now with that said, certain hikes on certain days will have deeper impact due primarily to the combination of intensity, risk, sights, sounds, smells and of course weather. Yesterday I walked a section of the E4 hike on the South Coast of Crete, that was quite possibly the greatest day hike of my life for all the reasons listed above, so come along and I will walk you through it.
The trip to Cape Tripiti started at Sougia Port where I hopped a ride on Yannis’s sea taxi for 10 Euros. Prior to departure I watched an old Cretan fisherman clear his nets of the overnight catch and then we were off for 6km trip down the coast to the landing zone at the Cape.
Once I was on the ground I was solo as there were no other hikers this day on this section of the E4. Route finding was via rock cairns (upper photo) and yellow/black trail marks which are the primary trail identifiers for the E4. The path started through olive groves in the Tripiti Gorge and then at the first cairn diverted left up a scree field, climbing to the first of several cols on this up and down Route. In lower photo above take note of the yellow/black E4 Route marker in the foreground and a crumbling 14th century Venetian fort on top of the col.
Above the fort, at the 405 meter summit of Cape Tripiti I stumbled upon another Byzantine Chapel commanding an incredible, unobstructed 360 degree view in every direction. Inside the chapel was a gorgeous collection of Orthodox Christian Iconography – an added bonus for a Good Friday hike!
These were the views in all four directions. First: East up the Cretan Coast towards Cape Roumeli. Second: south towards the Chapel, the sea and Libya. Third: North up the Tripiti Gorge and snow capped Mt. Giglios in the distance. Also, if you look close, dotting the hillside above the olive grove are the remains of a 4th century B.C. Greek antiquity called Pikilassos. Fourth: West and you can see Sougia Town in the distance – my final destination.
Beyond the first col, heading in a westerly direction towards Sougia town the path alternatively descended and ascended, and as you can see from these photos the primary trail surface was ancient worn stones (thank god for my Black Diamond ultra light poles which have been a knee and ankle saver). Several sections held a steady topo line, but no matter where you were on this hike the views just kept coming. I must have taken at least 50 photos!
There are caves everywhere in the SW section of Crete. You see them throughout the cliffs and gorges as you hike various terrains. This cave was next to the E4 trail in a narrow gorge section and its blacked out ceiling was testimony to fire and smoke damage from its ancient Neolithic past.
One final shot looking west on a relatively gentler section of the trail. I jumped off the boat at Cape Tripiti at 9 am and strolled back into Sougia town at 3 pm so a total of 6 hours hiking which included many photo breaks! All in all, an unforgettable hike in a gorgeous little section of our amazing planet. Put this one on your bucket list and I will give you my topo maps and walk you through it. You won’t regret it ……YOLO!