We have big plans for this week. Drive through the mountainous center across the entire peninsula north to the town of Kalavryta, stay there the whole weekend, and enjoy the beauty of the surroundings. And so we're slowly setting off.

Every week there's at least one day when we need to take care of more things. And that day has come again. We ran out of gas, needed to shop, and we also discovered that diesel was leaking somewhere from the engine. So we stopped by the roadside and Leo buried himself under the hood again to figure out where it was coming from and how serious it was. He found it was leaking from the fuel filter, which had a small dented hole in it.

Attempt to seal the filter....which didn't work out.

Mechanic again?

We tried to seal it again with our favorite chewing gum, but either it didn't stick well or we didn't let it dry enough – either way, it kept dripping. Despite this, we drove to where I had planned for that day – to a chapel grown through by a tree somewhere in a little valley between the mountains. There was nice peace there and a path along a stream to a mill next to it. So we went to explore it and came across a stylish building with a water mill where the man ground us fresh flour! We stopped at their restaurant for dinner (excellent, by the way) to somehow repay them for being so nice to us.

Freshly ground flour. We've already used it up, it was really good.

There was no signal in the valley, so we drove a few kilometers higher and stayed by another chapel for two days. About 5 cars passed us during that time, otherwise nothing. Just peace and quiet.

Second repair attempt at sunset somewhere in the middle of the mountains.

Even though we tried to seal it again, the diesel kept dripping (albeit just a little). We had to find a new filter somewhere. Given that we'd received an alarming message from the Greek government the evening before that we should stay home more, we wanted to avoid big cities. But we had to go there for a new filter! We stopped in a parking lot across from an auto parts shop. We managed to get what we needed from them and even successfully replaced the filter. Great! It's not dripping anymore!

To the mountains in northern Peloponnese

We drove further into the mountains and parked for another two days above another town with a great view of the entire valley. Given that alarming message, I also reconsidered the plans a bit. On Sunday I wanted to go to the local ski resort so we could enjoy the snow here too. But given that one of the coronavirus hotspots is beyond the mountains, we won't head toward it and won't go to a place where people gather like that. Oh well, we'll skip the winter mountains this year...

Our next spot with a view into the valley and the town of Levidi.

So we weren't in such a hurry and on Saturday morning we drove to the town of Kalavryta. I wanted to visit the local Holocaust museum there, because this town is famous for events from World War II. On December 13, 1943, a terrible massacre occurred there – Nazis murdered all the men from the area. But the museum was closed, as were all restaurants, and coffee was only sold through a window. So we just stopped at the bakery, bought some bread, and went home to cook something. We spent the rest of Saturday afternoon discussing the situation in Europe and our prospects and decided to just wait and see how it develops. We can't drive through the closed countries anyway, even though they'd let us into the Czech Republic.

Kalavryta center...almost no people!

Path along the railway track

On Sunday we betrayed our I❤️ECO and went by train. From Kalavryta to Diakopto there's an old rack railway through the Vouraikos canyon with the E4 trail alongside it. So people commonly go hiking there. You just have to watch out when a train comes. Fortunately it's not that often and it certainly doesn't go fast. Plus the driver is quite used to it and honks constantly, so it's relatively safe too. But I wouldn't recommend it for children!

Sometimes you're walking like this and a train honks in front of you. So you climb wherever you can! :D

The trail is 22.35 km long, but you can shorten it a bit if you take a ride to Zachlorou. Then it's only 13 km and you don't miss out on the canyon experience. Kalavryta is in the mountains and Diakopto is by the sea, the elevation difference is about 700 m, so if you choose the right direction, you're going downhill the whole time! And we chose the right one. :)

Along the tracks...

In the morning we had set an alarm, but we successfully managed to ignore it for about an hour. Fortunately there was no rush. Our train wasn't until 10:17. We had a hearty breakfast, packed snacks and plenty of water, and set off. The sun was shining, everyone was smiling, and we knew it would be a great day. From Zachlorou we set off along the tracks. There are several educational signs on the trail about how this canyon was formed and what makes it unique. It's part of the Natura 2000 reserve and several endemic species live here. According to legends, Hercules supposedly carved it out with his bare hands when trying to reach his love Voura, which is why it's called Vouraikos.

Yep, it's not called one of the most beautiful trails far and wide for nothing.

Interesting spots in the canyon

The first more significant stop was Portes, or gates. It's a section carved into the rock, beginning with large iron gates. You cross a bridge to the other side of the canyon here. We went through it at a slightly faster pace – you don't want to meet a train here!

One of the bridges over the canyon.

A bit further on we had a snack and waited for the train to pass us. The path continued past waterfalls, through more tunnels in the rock, and over railway bridges where you looked deep below and could only hope a train wasn't coming. One of the most beautiful sections runs past the Dikastiria cave. The cave is on the opposite side, so you can't climb inside, but you don't want to anyway. They call it a cave, but it's more like a deeper alcove with a few stalactites.

Hercules carved this canyon really beautifully, didn't he? :)

After this section it's just a short distance and you find yourself at the end of the canyon. A few kilometers remain to Diakopto, leading through orange groves with the mountains slowly receding behind you. The tracks led us all the way to the town center to the train station, where we bought a ticket back to Kalavryta and rode the whole route again.

View of Portes from the train.

The situation in Greece

Then we drove to a pebble beach in Diakopto and settled here for the whole week. It's an official campground where nobody collects anything though. We have a shower on the beach and also German neighbors. The rest rotate around us. Sometimes other tourists in caravans arrive, sometimes Greeks come fishing. But we have a work week. Leo is now helping to set up a system for people working from home in the Czech Republic. So that people at home can continue working! So he's really not bored.

Our view for the last few days. I didn't photograph the neighbors in caravans. They said they set out in January for 3 months, so now because of the situation in Europe it's extending until May. They're two couples probably already retired and they didn't look like it bothered them much! :)

There are some measures here in Greece too. But we don't really notice much. We're voluntarily in isolation somewhere outside town all the time anyway, we just occasionally meet someone with a mask here now and there are also fewer people in the streets in towns. The state hasn't closed the borders yet, but they have closed schools, public places, shopping centers, museums, and monuments. It's recommended to stay home and only go out when necessary. But it's not forbidden, so we'll see what impact this has.

We're fine for now and we're keeping our fingers crossed for all of you! May it get under control as quickly as possible so we can come visit you again! :)