Menalon Trail Hike in Arcadia, Greece

You will arrive in Stemnitisa, a village of goldsmiths and the headquarters for the Peloponnesian Senate in 1821.

In the evening, we will meet at your hotel in Stemnitsa for a trip briefing with your hiking guide. Then we will enjoy a welcome dinner.

From Stemnitsa, we will cross the Lousios Gorge to get to Dimitsana.

On the way, we will cross old farmlands,  pass by the Transfiguration of Christ Church, and admire amazing views before reaching the paved path that leads to the Prodromos Monastery.

We will continue to the Old Philosophou Monastery, which dates back to 963, and then to the New Philosophou Monastery founded in 1691.

Afterward, via an old mule track, we will head to Dimitsana through bridges, and towards the Open Air Water-Power Museum.

Distance: 12,5 km – 7,7 Miles / Time: 5 hours / Ascent: 825 m. – 2,706 ft / Descent: -941 m.  – 3,087 ft / Min. Height: 420 m. – 1,377 ft / Max. Height: 1,095 m. – 3,592 ft.

The Dimitsana-Zigovisti trail goes up from the Lousios valley to the outskirts of a fir forest.

On the way, we will pass important historical buildings. Then, we will take the footpath that ascends gently and arrives on the first plateau, intersecting a dirt road and the church of St. Paraskevi.

You will enjoy gorgeous views of the median basin of the Lousios river dotted by the settlements of Dimitsana, Paliochori, and Zatouna in the wooded landscape.

A series of footpaths and dirt roads, then a plain of old fields, and then the small monastery of St. Apostoli will be on the way to Zigovisti.

Just after passing through the Immortals Memorial, the guard of Theodore Kolokotronis, leader of the 1821 Independence War, we will enter Zigovisti’s center.

The memory of the 1821 Greek Independence War has infused this tiny and historical village with patriotic pride.

Distance: 4,2 km – 2 Miles / Time: 2 hours / Ascent: 256 m. – 839 ft / Descent: -61 m. – 200 ft / Min. Height: 964 m. – 3,162 ft / Max Height: 1,174 m. / 3,851 ft.

The Zigovisti – Elati section straddles the Western Menalon massif. The trail heads through a beautiful ravine continues through a crooked dirt road and an artificially reinforced footpath to the Bourniades Spring. We then smoothly ascend to Bilali Pass, an important node of old paths that connected Radou and Stemnitsa. From Bilali Pass we ascend to the saddle between Pliovouni and Fragovouni (short cut leading to the peak of Pliovouni 1,643 meters, the highest peak of this route). Then following a steep path we enter Vlachika Plateau and follow the path to the mountain settlement of Elati.

Distance: 14,9 km – 9 Miles / Time: 5 hours / Ascent: 653 m. – 2,142 ft / Descent: -631 m. – 2,070 ft / Min. Height: 1,109 m. – 3638 ft / Max. Height: 1,550 m. – 5,085 ft.

We will cover 2 stretches on day 4. The first will take us from Elati to the Milaon riverbed. Following the trail,  we will pass the big Pirgaki Springs water drilling rig (that supplies Vytina with water), and then, the stone-built Makrinou Fountain.

From there, we enter a dirt road leading to Ellinika, under the hill where the Acropolis of the antique Methydrion was.

From there, we will follow the old mule track to Vytina, which is rich in vegetation and water mills.

Distance: 8,5 km / 5,4 Miles / Time: 2,5 hours / Ascent: 234 m. – 767 ft / Descent: -375 m. – 1,230 ft  / Min. Height: 918 m. – 3,011 ft / Max. Height: 1,180 m. – 3,871 ft.

After resting in Vytina, we will continue to Nymphasia through the  Old Vytina footpath that leads to Mavra Litharia, a massive limestone boulder in the Milaon riverbed, that the stream cut in half creating a short yet impressive gorge. Then we start descending to Tzavarenas’ solid stone bridge that secured the connection between Vytina with the western Gortynian villages.

We will walk uphill in a rocky landscape made of flysch covered with shrubs, reaching an altitude of 880 meters, and then we head horizontally towards Nymphasia, a small yet lively satellite of Vytina.

Distance: 5,6 km – 3,4 Miles / Time: 2 hours / Ascent: 235 m. – 770 ft / Descent: -339 m. – 1,112 ft / Min. Height: 813 m. – 2,667 ft / Max. Height: 1,041 m. – 3,415 ft.

Day 5 will also be split into 2.

We will begin through a nice oak wood to the downhill trailhead that leads to the Kernitsa Bridge, from where the trail goes up to the Kernitsas Monastery, a big complex in an impressive monolith boulder.

We will continue on through footpaths until we cross a dense fir forest and arrive at Sfyrida Hermitage, where we can stop to rest. From there (1,000 m.), we ascend through the forest to the intersection Lasta (alt. 1,250 m.) intersection and then head south on the long steep slope of Kastro which then continues on an old pathway. After the Gavros Spring, we enter the small settlement of Magouliana.

Distance: 8,9 km – 5,53 Miles / Time: 3,30 hours / Ascent: 660 m. / Descent: -364 m. / Min. Height: 781m – 2,562 ft  / Max. Height: 1,272 m. / 4,173 ft.

From Magouliana we will then continue through small roads and arrive to the saddle west of the village, where an intersection to Lasta is located. We descend toward the old Mana Sanatorium and reach the intersection of two asphalt roads across the church St. Pantes.

The route leads down to a valley along a small river and continues until the junction with another small river and a concrete bridge before entering Kaminia, a small inner basin, tucked at the foot of Valtesiniko. A good path, once paved, will take us up to Valtesiniko (the village of woodcarvers).

Distance: 6,6 km – 4,10 Miles / Time: 2,30 hours / Ascent: 167 m. – 547 ft / Descent: -301 m. – 987ft  / Min. Height: 1,019 m. – 3,343 ft  / Max. Height: 1,307 m. – 4,288 ft.

After passing an impressive stone-built school and accessing the upper peripheral road of the village, we will gain altitude up to 1,250 meters. From there, the footpath runs along the ridge where the Byzantine fortress of Valtesiniko is located.

Then, we will descend to the small St. Triada Church through open landscapes. An extensive fir forest will take us through a series of artificially widened paths. After a short detour, we will gain some altitude before going down again near the Kria Vrisi fountain from where the path ascends smoothly to the saddle and asphalt road.

We will follow the small forest road through a wooded ridge to Elatakos,  and to the Grilas meadow which boasts walnut trees, threshing floors, and huts.

On the western edge, we will see Lagkadia Passing by the small Koubliza Spring and the impressive Rapi Watermills. We will then enter Lagkadia and conclude the Menalon Trail at the war memorial.

Distance: 13,9 km – 8,07 Miles / Time: 5 hours / Ascent: 596 m. – 1,955 ft / Descent: -775 m. – 2,542 ft / Min. Height: 937 m. – 3,074 ft / Max. Height: 1,377 m. – 4,517 ft.