Towering rock walls rise on either side of me, and the passage ahead grows narrower and narrower. At the “Iron Gate,” the rocks are just three meters apart. I’m standing in the heart of the Samaria Gorge on Crete, and I can hardly stop marveling at the sight.
17 km through the Samaria Gorge on Crete
Our hike begins in the White Mountains. Around 17 kilometers lie ahead of us, mostly downhill to the sea. First, we descend along numerous switchbacks, passing pine trees and rugged rock walls. Later, we follow the mostly dry riverbed and reach the abandoned village of Samaria. Among the old houses, you can get a sense of how isolated life used to be here.
The farther we hike, the more impressive the gorge becomes. I could stop and take photos all the time. But that turns into a problem toward the end: suddenly, there’s only about an hour left until the last ferry! You can see whether we actually make it to the coast in time in our YouTube video.
My tip: Make sure you allow plenty of time for breaks and photos, keep an eye on the ferry schedule, and don’t forget sturdy hiking shoes, water and sun protection. You can also find the route to follow, including a GPS track, maps and more videos, in the HOME of TRAVEL App (available in the App Store and the Google Play Store).