Around 5 pm in the afternoon we arrived at the refuge, right by the entrance waiting for us was Vlassis, the refuge manager, who welcomed us very warmly. Prior to your arrival, it is essential that you provide information about your stay (dates, number of people, times, etc.)
The refuge is at an altitude of 1536 meters with easy access due to the asphalt road. It was Christmas Eve and after a long day of traveling Vlassis arranged for us a beautiful cabin just a few meters down the main Refuge building. We were the six of us in the cabin, (friendly reminder: 2 of us have 4 legs), having the cabin to ourselves allowed us to have Melina and Markos with us the whole time.
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
The refuge was the starting point to many activities, follow the Trail of Voutsikaki Mountain, explore the Artificial Lake Plastira, and many more destinations for a run or walk. Although the low temperatures we stayed at the Refuge before the snow period, allowing us to enjoy morning hikes in the forest and long bike rides near the lake. Vlassis and everyone in the refuge made us feel very welcomed there. Worth mentioning is the very creative and lavish cuisine, as some of us are on a plant-based diet, we had the chance to enjoy a sweet potato soup and some handmade lentil burgers.
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
After 4 days at the Refuge we left for Pireas and some of us took the ferry back to Crete. It was a trip full of kilometers, a lot of changes in scenery and fun activities in nature. Once again we traveled together with Melina and Markos, with a small exception in the ferry they really enjoyed the trip and we certainly didn’t regret taking them along. Yes, you can take your dogs along on every journey. They don’t care about tiredness, they only want to be with you. Yes, you won’t take your dogs to dinner in a fancy restaurant, but sometimes cooking with your friends under the stars and dining in the outside fire is somewhat better than any fancy restaurant out there. Our only regret is that we didn’t get to camp outside in our tent or in our Campervan but the weather conditions were not so in our favor. I would strongly suggest this trip to anyone who loves mountain excursions and outdoor activities. Around 10 days are enough for this trip, which we could repeat anytime.
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
All images & Text © λ3 by Christos Manioros
