Anogeia in 1 day!

If you have only one day at your disposal to explore the broader Anogeia area, follow this route that connects some of the most important points of interest of the region to catch a glimpse of the wild landscape of sacred Mt. Psiloritis. Start your day at the Information Centre of Mt. Psiloritis Geopark to receive some general information and then follow the road climbing southwards from the village towards Nida. On a hill just outside Anogeia, in a specially landscaped area with buildings and outdoor facilities, you can visit an open-air museum dedicated to the livestock tradition of Anogeia, namely, «Shepherd’s Land». After crossing Pano Ampelia location, continue on the almost bare slope to the col revealing Zominthos location. Zominthos is a small valley ofoutstanding natural beauty. In the eastern part of the valley, near the spring and the chapel of Agia Marina, you can visit the Minoan settlement brought to light during the excavations by Yannis Sakellarakis and Efi Sapouna-Sakellarakis. Moving west, after about two kilometres, stands the chapel of St. Yakinthos. Around the chape, built in the manner of a local mitato, the area is landscaped to host “Yakinthia” Festival, featuring annual artistic events held around the end of July. From Zominthos visitors can continue uphill to the south; after crossing the area of Agios Mamas, with the
homonymous chapel of the Shepherds’ Patron Saint, one reaches Petradolakia. Taking the road southeast from Petradolakia, visitors come to the southern slope of Skinakas Peak, where Skinakas Observatory, one of the most important in Europe, is located. From the bare windswept peak of 1,752m, the view of the entire eastern complex of Mt. Psiloritis, and most of the Prefecture of Heraklion, is breathtaking. Returning to Petradolakia and moving southwest, the Plateau of Nida emerges after a few hundred meters. It is an otherworldly landscape that gives visitors a foretaste of the next stop at the Idaion Andron, one of the most significant cult caves of Crete where, according to legend, Zeus, the father of the Dodecatheon gods, was born and raised. After this tour, one can return to Anogeia and visit the church of Agios Ioannis at Armi or stop over by the house where Nikos Xylouris was born, and then head for one of the taverns overlooking Mt. Psiloritis peaks to taste traditional dishes. You can end your day with coffee, sweets and raki at a traditional café in Anogeia.