We explored Kalymnos together with Liza and Frits!
Sorry, this will be a long post, but we had three amazing days together with Liza and Frits and I wanted to put it all in one post. We met Liza and Frits already on Symi, and we have said goodbye three times already. When you meet sailing people in the Med, it is a big chance you will meet again!
We rented a car, first for only one day, to drive around the island, and to do a small hike.
Vathy
First we drove from Pothia, the main town on Kalymnos, to Vathy, on the eastern side of the island.
A quiet place but really cozy and I want to come back here later!
A supermarket, and a couple of restaurants.
It is possible to moor here for some boats. But in the summerseason it can be busy with local touristboats.
A narrow bay, but absolutely worth a visit!
We should have had time to stop up here, but it is still early morning, so it was too early for lunch.
Me, Liza and Astor, Frits is behind camera.
Local fishingboats
The view out of the bay.
Nice welcome to the village!
On the way up the valley from Vathy.
Emporios
Then we went to the northwestern bay, to Emporios. Do you remember Emporios? Yes, it was here we stayed a week earlier and had problem with the anchoring. But it is a nice place. Some nice restaurants on the beach.
We anchored in the bay here, and even with line ashore we were dragging. We came back the day after and then we used a bouy.
Beautiful beach!
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Emporios
A lot of high mountains on Kalymnos!
Amazing pink flowers!
Masouri
Then we drove further south on the west coast, to Masouri, climbers destination.
Here you can find expensive sport shops, prices almost like in Norway… It was time for lunch. Have you tried cheeseburger with cold cheese? Jup, you get it here!
After a short break we continue to Kantouni on the southwestern side of Kalymnos.
Agios Fotis church
There we started a hike going more south, to the church of Agios Fotis. It is a stunning trail!
The view back to Kantouni
It is a good path all the way.
A little bit of up hill and a little bit of down hill. It is a trail that suits everyone!
And a lot of herbs. It smells amazing!
The trail is surrounding by high mountains on one side, and the ocean on the other side.
We continue…
At the end!
A small church build into the mountain.
Inside the church
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We were wondering about why they build a church here…
A tiny church, like all other on the Greek islands.
What a view they have from this church!
After something to drink and some snacks we went back, and on the way back we found this sign. We know the airport is on the top of the hill but we have never seen a trail to an airport.
On the way back to Kantouni
Close to Kantouni you will see Monastery of the Holy Cross. We wanted to check this out even if it was steep hill with steps.
It was a steep hill, but it was worth it. Almost everything was closed and no activities, but the small church was open, also build into the mountain.
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An amazing view from the monastery!
Astor and me!
After the hike it was still time to explore more and we drove to Saint Savvas the New Kalymnian Monastery. And what a view to Pothia, the main town of the island, and where we both are mooring.
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A video from todays aroundtrip!
Profiti Ilias
The next day we did a hike to Profiti Ilias, the highest mountain on Kalymnos, 676 masl. We parked at the beginning of the trail. Not space for many cars, mostly locals I think.
Up in the valley it is a gravel road, easy to walk!
Astor, Frits and Liza ready for the challenge!
This is a really beautiful trail!
A shelter for all the goats?
Astor checked it out!
Do you see the Stick insect? A really big one! (I don`t know how big they can be…)
A stunning view down the valley!
It is uphill most of the time, but it is not a difficult hike.
We are walking along a stone fence almost the whole valley
On the top of the valley you will see down to the valley of Vathy.
And up to Profiti Ilias
Now it is a little bit more climbing uphill, but it is still a nice path. You can see the airport!
When you are close to the top you need to be aware of this amazingly small church. If you don`t know it is there it is not easy to see eat because the path is turning to the left.
It is really interesting to see where they build churches…
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The last uphill is the steapest part, but the trail is turning so it is not difficult.
What a view from the church!
Frits, Liza, me and Astor. It can be a bit windy on a summit like this, but this church had a good shelter and it was amazing to have lunch in the sun (I guess later in the summer you need shadow instead).
After a nice break on the top we started the hike back to the car.
It was so nice colours in the background so I had to take a photo of the group!
Down the valley
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Back on the road. On the top of the mountain you see the old castle. That hike will not be today, this is enough for one day!
After this nice hike it was time for an icecream, and we went to Vlychadia, on the south side of Kalymnnos.
Here is a video from todays hike!
Old Chora Kalymnos
After some hours of resting, a good dinner in Frits and Liza`s boat, and a good night of sleep, we were ready to check out old chora. Be aware if you are coming with a car; the road is very narrow and it is hard to find a place to park the car. But we found one place for us and started the hike from this house.
The cats was not that happy to see us so they ran away.
It is quite steep ut to the castle, but even after a hard hike yesterday we manage to do it.
The entrance of the castle. It is free to go inside.
The view from the castle is not bad!
Most of the buildings in the chora is a ruin, but there is some churches still in a good shape.
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How it was years ago!
Sorry to disturb you!
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It hasn`t been much maintenance here for a while so sometimes it was hard to find the path between the buildings.
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On the right side, seen from below you will finally find a good path.
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It has been a lot of painting inside the churches but they are not nice anymore.
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Beautiful details in the wall
Another view from above
The Traditional House of Kalymnos – Folklore Museum
After a couple of warm hours in the old castle we went to the Folklore Museum. This is a private folklore museum including items and rooms of a typical Kalymnian house of the 19th and 20th centures.
It was really interesting and the best thing was that we got a guided trip without asking about it.
Irena showed us around and told us about the history of Kalymnos.
Kalymnos has a huge sponge history, more about that can you read in Frits and Liza`s blog:
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It was worth a visit, and I will recommend you to go there. You can decide after the guiding if you like to pay or not. We paid 🙂 It is also possible to buy local products.
After this we were hungry and because we were close to Vlychada, where we had icecream the day before. They had really greek traditional food, and this Kalymnos salad was amazingly good!
Vlychadia is a beautiful bay, and it is also a nice place to anchor.
Here is a video from todays exploring!
Now it was time to say goodbye to Frits and Liza for the 4th time, we had to go back to Kos to meet a friend coming over from Norway and they continue their journey. It has been so great to spend time together with you, all the best for the circumnavigation!
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