17 October to 21 October

Zagori, a region of the Pindos (or Pindus) Mountains, is also the name you’ll likely see on the bottles of water in Greece.

Although the region takes pride in its pure mountain sources and villages, the crown jewel of the area is the Vikos Gorge: the deepest gorge in the world according to the Guinness Book of Records.

Many people come for the 12km, six-hour hike through the gorge, but I wasn’t sold on it. This probably had a lot to do with the woman at the Pindos National Park Information Center.  She’d provided me with maps and brochures my first day in the area, and told me that after five hours of hiking, my last hour would be a strenuous climb up stairs to the village of Vikos.

When I left Kalarites I’d headed for the village of Monodendri, which is a popular starting point for the hike, and a convenient location to explore the area. But I found the empty, nondescript, village unappealing and drove on. I was enjoying the foliage and high-arched stone bridges that dotted the area before arriving at the pretty village of Kipi.  A taverna was lively with customers, both tourists and locals, enjoying drink and food under a canopy of trees. Unfortunately, all the hotels and guesthouses had closed for the season, except one, and it was fully booked.

I asked a young waitress for some suggestions. It was already late afternoon and I was not looking forward to driving on mountain roads in the dark.

She kindly made some phone calls and I was soon arriving at a guesthouse in the hamlet of Dilofo, a short, but circuitous drive away. Once again I would be leaving the car in a parking area and entering the center by foot on stone pathways. By this time it was nearly dark and I was delighted to be welcomed warmly by Olga who ran the place. The accommodations, previously a private home, and recently refurbished, were surprisingly sumptuous.

Olga gave me a number of hiking options, but most required driving somewhere first, so the following day I decided to hike from Dilofo back to Kipi then take the bus home. The walk was pleasant, but mostly unremarkable, except for a splendid stone bridge. I knew it didn’t compare to the gorge hike.

I hadn’t reserved my room for the following night and came back to learn it had been booked. In the meantime I’d heard that Monodendri’s center, like the other villages, was only accessible on foot.

What I’d seen was the outskirts. I decided to give Monodendri another chance.

I was not disappointed. I found a beautiful, old guesthouse with original fixtures from the 1920’s.  My spacious room had a balcony with a view of the valley. And most importantly, the lovely host persuaded me to hike the Vikos Gorge.

I set out around 10 am with a sturdy walking stick I’d found the previous day, water, food, and some layers of clothing. I was to call my host when I arrived at the end, in the village of Vikos. She would arrange for transportation back home.

The path from the village was encouraging. It was very well-marked and the terrain was easy.

Shortly afterwards, I began my descent, which went on and on–appropriately so. As I gingerly made my way over increasingly uneven, rocky terrain, two runners carrying nothing and wearing only light shorts and tee-shirts quickly approached me and were soon out of sight. The mountainous areas throughout Greece attract scores of ultra-marathon runners and extremely challenging events.

I contentedly walked for several hours alone.

I’d been informed about the final ascent, but unexpectedly encountered sections where I needed to crawl over large boulders and scramble along narrow paths. Fortunately the worst section had a rope attached to the rock as a handrail.

Despite the challenging moments, I reveled in the beauty and silence.

The sheer rock of the gorge walls loomed overhead. The forest was splashed with color. The sky was clear and blue.

Toward the end, I met a man from Athens. We chatted as he waited for his companions to catch up.  And spoke about the places I’d been. He strongly suggested I go to the village of Vovousa. I took out my little notebook and jotted down the name.

Dreading the final ascent up to Vikos, I was pleased it wasn’t nearly as bad as I had imagined. It was steep, but definitely doable, and I prefered it to the more precarious parts earlier on.

Vikos was tiny. There was a taverna, church, a few homes and not much more. There was a lookout over the gorge and a man asked me to take a photo of him and his family. His wife, Maria, had lived in Toronto for many years and spoke English fluently. Christos, to his regret spoke very little. Their ten-year old twin sons were studying English, and although shy, I suspected they spoke well. The family was going back to Vitsa, a few kms from Monodendri, and kindly offered to take me home. I let my host know.

Soon I was being invited to join them and their friends for dinner that evening at Kanella and Garyfallo, a restaurant in Vitsa devoted to mushrooms, and one I was hoping to try.

The food and wine were delicious. I ordered mushroom risotto and shared several salads. The conversation flowed with laughter. When the bill came, my contribution was refused. It was a delightful evening and the perfect ending to a splendid day.