Richtis Gorge Crete Greece: This hike can be walked in both summer and winter. During the hike there is quite some climbing and trekking involved at certain spots. The entire walk is 6 kilometres, but can be extended to 10 and 12 kilometres. When we take the 10 to 12 kilometres walk through the gorge, in many places we will need to create our way through the wilderness. The river that flows through this area regularly creates obstacles, so we often need to find the way and cross the water to get to the small walking path. At various places we climb over the rocks and walk weighed down under the branches. Halfway this gorge we encounter an impressive waterfall, with a free fall of 30 metres. At the end of the gorge we will arrive at a secluded beach.
Information for this survival hiking trip on Crete: Name: Richtis Gorge Crete. Distance: 5-6 kilometres. Walking time: 5 hours. Height: 480 meters down to sea level. These data have been measured with Motion X GPS. Requirements: good walking shoes, normal condition, backpack, rope, water. Summer: half shade, during the summer in some places the river has no water. In the spring and autumn the setting is beautiful. Winter: this valley can be crossed by foot the entire winter, except on days with heavy rainfall. As a result of the rain in winter, we need to cross the water more often.
Richtis Gorge Crete – Description of the hike through the gorge
Start of the Richtis Gorge Crete hike: From the mountain village we start descending towards the river. In the village you will have your last chance for a toilet break and to buy some water. The walk down is fairly easy. We will see a lot of plants on our way: oregano, chamomile, sage, thyme, many other herbs and wild flowers. This road is an old concrete road that brings us to the crossing and from there to the Richtis gorge. At the start of the gorge is an ancient Turkish saddle bridge, where we walk from under to the riverbed.
From the Turkish saddle bridge we walk north into the gorge. At the river we follow a path that is washed away every winter. The path is always different; nature changes its looks each time we pass it. The beginning of the path is easy to walk. In the summer you can walk in the shadow of the trees. In spring long trousers are necessary to wear, because of the many nettles growing here. Also in the spring and winter, we need to cross the river many times, a good chance to admire the beautifully clear water. Along the riverbed grow plants that you will not see elsewhere.
Walking along the river
After a walk along the river in the open nature, we arrive at a special place. Here is an old house with a small old mill. How could people have built these 200 years ago? This cottage is remote from everything and everyone. Windows with metal bars are still completely intact. Inside are the remains of a millstone, which was used to crush olives. The front door is low, so you really need to bend down to go inside. Even the old garden is still visible. The grape bushes grow high in the trees, with thick stems and long vines. These vines are so strong that an adult can hang in them! In the old house we make our Greek coffee.
After the coffee in the old house, we continue the hike with a precipitous descent. We will see some abandoned homes along the river. Here we may need the grape vines to help us going steady our way down, but we can also use the ropes we always bring. You will notice the river flowing faster and louder here, ready to turn into the waterfall. We see beautiful rock formations with greenery and trees around us. The river needs to be crossed more often now, until we come to a natural slide. This will slide us about 5 meters down to a rocky trail leading to the waterfall.
Richtis Gorge Crete – A break to enjoy the beautiful waterfall
After a walk between the rocks with many descents and rises we come to the top of the waterfall. A small path criss-crosses down, you will hear the water rushing loudly. Once we arrive at the bottom you can see the glorious waterfall with beautiful clear water and you can admire the actual amounts of water falling down. The cliff of the waterfall has a very beautiful colour that gives a stunning effect. In front of the waterfall is a plateau. It is made out of natural stone and is especially for the visitors to have the best view of the waterfall.
After the waterfall we continue to walk toward the sea, along the river and straight through nature. The river will have caused here some smaller obstacles on our path, like rocks and tree trunks. Nature changes slowly the closer we get to the sea. We will take the time to quietly listen to the birds here. The mountains are red and brown with low vegetation. After a lovely walk we arrive at the intersection that takes us to the sea, which is the end of our hike.
End of the hike – a nice beach
At the isolated beach you can enjoy some swimming or sunbathing or you can go snorkelling with the equipment we can bring along. This beach is not sandy, but ideal for snorkelling. Also, there are benches and a great BBQ place that we will happily light up if requested beforehand. After an hour of bathing and drying we will be picked up by the restaurateur of the village where we started walking. The route itself is worth the walk back, a narrow mountain road where no one actually ever comes, with stunning views over the sea. After a long curvy road we come back to the place where we started this morning.
We only organise this hike upon request, because it is not in our standard hiking program. But we are happy to organise it for you though, on its own or in combination with one of our hiking holiday packages. We have more than 50 unique trails in Crete. With us you can enjoy walking holidays on Crete all year round. We provide complete hiking holidays in combination with transport, walking and accommodation on Crete. Enjoy unknown Crete.
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Walking on Crete: Information about walking and hiking on Crete. Our accommodation is situated directly by the sea and is the ideal starting point for walks all over Crete. We offer opportunities for individual walks or group walks.
Hiking & accommodation on Crete: The location of our apartments is directly on the seafront. The apartments are suitable for everybody, from families and groups to singles and couples.
Photo book hiking on Crete: Here you find an summery of our hiking pictures. Throughout the years we have collected many photos, but we have put them in an overview for you to show you the numerous possibilities for a great walking holiday on Crete.
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YouTube hiking films about Crete: We have also made many short hiking films to show you what we have to offer on hiking holidays on Crete. We make these films in both summer and winter.
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Richtis Gorge Crete