Barry's Ramblings

Symi: an eye catching trek

Posted on June 4, 2014 by BarryH

With temperatures rising and more stable summer weather settling in, by the middle of May the wide variety of flora and fauna, though still there, was becoming less evident on the Hot Rock which is Symi.

Before my friend returned home we trekked up to the mountain-top monastery of Agios Stavros Polemou perched on the edge of cliffs, a 10 mile round trip climbing to one of the highest points on the island.

As I said in the second of my blog posts from Symi this year, I’m focusing photography on ‘Spring’ and will write more about the wider landscape and the walks themselves as we move into the drought of summer.

People see colours differently. Some see blue as the brightest, others yellow. For me red is by far the strongest colour and my eye automatically migrates to the splash made by poppies, still in evidence especially in shady places where cooler conditions have delayed flowering. As we leave behind the last houses in Horio, the kalderimi climbing steeply up to The Viewpoint is thickly flanked by oregano. A few weeks ago it was green and fresh and I picked a large bagful to dry in the sun to add to Greek salad, fasolakia and other dishes. Now the oregano is covered in gleaming white flowers attracting many butterflies. What caught the eye particularly on this day was the bright red flash of a Red Admiral, one of the less common varieties on Symi..

Poppies, vivid even in shady spots

Red Admiral on oregano

…. flexing its wings

Sometime later, having left the kalderimi behind and walking very carefully on a section of path over very serrated, sharp limestone surrounded by low-growing vegetation, my eye was caught not by a flash of colour but by slight movement off to the right. A mantis was twitching its left front leg and thereby attracted the attention of the paparazzi. Having been spotted it froze and became almost invisible against the background of green twigs. It wasn’t preying, or even praying as some web sites seem to think, but my attempts at identification have it as possibly a European Mantis, Latin name Mantis religiosa which just adds to the taxonomic confusion. Or maybe there are two types, one which eats its mate after sex and the other which is devoutly religious.

European Mantis, about 6 inches long including its antennae

…. viwed from above

No problem in spotting some things. You would have to be both ocularly and olfactorily challenged to miss the Dragon Arums which are still in flower though not as widespread or profuse as a few weeks ago.

These Dragon Arums were nearly a 3 feet tall with stems nearly 2 inches in diameter

These Dragon Arums were nearly a 3 feet tall with stems 2 inches in diameter

But what was most memorable about this walk was the number of tortoises which we saw, six in seven hours of walking. They were not among the biggest I have seen this year, indeed four of them were small, barely double the length of a €1 coin, the largest about 8 inches long. Well camouflaged and, though capable of a good turn of speed when necessary, usually lumbering slowly, they are difficult to spot unless in the middle of the path. However, two pairs of eyes and paying attention to foot placement clearly had its reward.

One of the larger tortoises seen on the walk

Small and well camouflaged under dried foliage

This little guy was climbing a rock

Indication of teh size of the smaller tortoises

Indication of the size of the smaller tortoises

Though they freeze to avoid detection, Oertzeni lizards seem to have a burst of activity before doing so, often running across the path and at times perversely stopping before diving into gaps in the rock. Maybe the concern about what else may be lurking in the fissure outweighs fear of the giant creature whose only interest seems to be peering through a box and making a ‘clicking’ sound.

Very pregnant and hesitating before going to ground

Not so easy to spot are the Painted Dragon Lizards, especially when attention wanders after 5 hours walking and thoughts are turning to a cold beer at the end. If they freeze before you catch sight of them they are invisible. At least I assume that to be the case as …… I don’t see them. But one I did see on the return leg of the walk went straight into a narrow but shallow fissure in the limestone. It was still in view when I peered inside so I photographed it. Uniquely, having caught my eye before it made a dash for safety, I then caught its eye.

Painted Dragon lizard gone to ground in a limestone crevice

Zooming in - photographer in lizard's eye (as with all photos, click to get full-screen view)

Zooming in – photographer in lizard’s eye (as with all photos, click to get a larger view)

There seems to be something new every day.

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Mountains, Nature, Reflections, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged Agios Stavros Polemou, Dragon Arum, European Mantis, eye catching, Greece, Mantis religiosa, Oertzeni liazard, Painted Dragon lizard, poppies, preying mantis, red, Red Admiral butterfly, Starred agama, Symi, tortoises | 6 Comments

Symi: hidden from view

Posted on May 30, 2014 by BarryH

At the end of my stay in Greece last year I spent a couple of weeks on Symi and on the last day there visited a cave with a friend which she remembered having been to some 20 years previously. It was a pretty special day and we were both buzzing afterwards. I wrote about it in the blog at the time under the heading: ‘Symi: below the surface’ and a photo was included on the much-read ‘Adriana’s Symi’

I concluded the blog with the comment: “We would need to return another day with more appropriate gear. But not this year.” Come 2014 and I’m back on Symi for a much longer stay, so, within the limits of my 23kg baggage allowance, I packed some of the ‘more appropriate gear’. When a friend with a lot of experience of cave exploration came to visit it seemed the ideal opportunity to go back to the cave and explore it more thoroughly.

We had a great day.

The trek to the cave trek began with the much-loved walk up through Horio to The Viewpoint looking down to the harbour and then on the kalderimi past Agia Paraskevi to The Tarmac. Quickly across the road and onwards towards the monastery of Agios Ioannis Theologos (St John the Theologian) first on a concrete road then left onto a rough gravel track but soon, and for most of the time, on a rocky path meandering, sometimes obscurely, through the crags, climbing high above the col overlooking the fortress-like monastery of Roukouniotis.

Looking down from the path to the Roukouniotis monastery and Turkey beyond

Zooming in on the fortress-like monastery

A brief stop at Theologos to cool off under a shade-tree and then another half an hour to a small plateau and the entrance to the cave. We didn’t by any means have the gear that we would normally wear for going into a cave but crucially we had good quality powerful head torches, much better than the hand-held light I had last year. Climbing carefully down the loose rock into the cave at about a 45 degree angle we soon reached the point where I had turned back and now, with both hands free, we could drop down a short near-vertical pitch.

The entrance to the cave

In order to do so we had to negotiate a mound of rubbish which had been thrown down the cave. It was obviously stuff left over after a church festival: plastic plates, plastic water-bottles, plastic cutlery and the like. Even worn-out shoes. Having carried the bottled water and other things to the festival why couldn’t they have been taken back empty? Why sweep the dirt under the carpet? Some of the rubbish had clearly been there for years because calcite flow had started to form over it. I regret to say so but it showed that at one time there was a lack of care for the environment evidenced in other places on the island but hopefully that has now been replaced by a greater respect for natural heritage.

Crawling past the rubbish through a narrow overhang before dropping down vertically

Having dropped down vertically the passage continued to descend, turned to the right, out of reach of light from the entrance and was then blocked by rock-fall about 40 feet from the top. We could see perhaps another 10 or so feet vertically down with a stalactite at what seemed to be another bend. I could have wriggled into the narrow opening head first but it would have been a tight fit even for my wiry frame and extricating myself back upwards feet first would have been difficult. It really needs the rocks to be moved to widen the passage. As this is a ‘fault-cave’ rather than water-eroded that would have to be done very carefully.

So we contented ourselves with taking photos of the calcite formations in the passage. We had got passed the rubbish which had been thrown in from the entrance but it was obvious that others had been here before us and had snapped stalactites from the ceiling to take as trophies. Cave-robbing is anathema. Not only does it deny the opportunity for others to enjoy what has taken maybe centuries to grow but it destroys features which have intrinsic value even if no-one else ever came here. The largest of the stalactites would have been about 4 inches in diameter, not large in the global scheme of things but significant in a small cave like this. Smaller stalactites were intact as were calcite flows down the side-walls and the beginning of calcite ‘curtains’ on the ceiling. Given the low rainfall these features must have taken a long time to form.

Stalactites coloured probably by the red spoil through which the water would have drained

The stumps of broken-off stalactites take as trophies

Intact white stalactites

Calcite formation on the wall of the passage

… some are intricately shaped

small stalactites and the beginnings of calcite curtains on the ceiling of the passage

Pure white calcite contrasts with coloured streaks

After an hour or more we emerged from the cave, blinking in the sunlight and dazzled by the colour of the landscape and reflection off white limestone after the dull rock of the cave.

Pausing on the way back up from the accessible cave

The plateau on the shoulder of the mountain has more to offer than just a cave. The views are very impressive, north over the island monastery of Agios Emilianos to the mainland of Turkey, another country, another continent and west to Tilos faintly visible in the heat haze.

Looking over the island monastery of Agios Emilianos to the Turkish coast beyond

Looking west to a small string of uninhabited islets and Tilos faint in the distance

Eventually we headed back, commenting on the gnarled trunk of a cypress tree and tiny pink flowers which we had missed on the way out, and then we spotted a Starred Agama, (Stellagama) showing why it is sometimes called a Painted Dragon by having turned blue. Its natural reaction in face of initial contact with potential predators is to freeze, hoping we can’t see it if it is motionless. Certainly, it is more likely to be seen if it moves as peripheral vision picks up movement. It watched us carefully with unblinking eye and when we got too close for its liking darted into a cleft in the rock.

Gnarled trunk of cypress tree

small but very bright

Blue Painted Dragon

From ‘Tortoise Square’, a broad level area by an old settlement in the col, we took an alternative path which would drop us down to the Rakouniotis monastery and almost immediately spotted a Lacerta Oertzeni lizard with a brightly coloured throat, again instinctively freezing to avoid detection.

Oertzeni lizard with coloured throat

Another surprise awaited us at the monastery. Though the fenced enclosure is often open offering shade, usually the doors to the monastery compound in the massively high protective wall is locked but now it was standing wide. Renovations are being carried out and the guy there allowed us to wander around inside. The Hochlakos black-and-white pebble mosaic courtyard and the ancient frescoes are impressive but more so is the intricately carved wooden iconastis, very reminiscent of the medieval oak rood screen in St Aeddan’s Church in Bettws Newydd in Monmouthshire.

The imposing entrance to the inner compound of Roukouniotis monastery

The Hochlakos mosaic courtyard

Sun dial over the doorway

The carved iconastis inside the chapel

Eight and a half miles round trip from the house and quite a few firsts. Another good day. Will I go back to explore the cave further? Probably!

The route

Posted in Greece, Hiking, History, Landscape, Monmouthshire, Mountains, Nature, Wildlife | Tagged Agios Theologos monastery, Bettws Newydd, calcite curtains, cave exploration, caves, Greece, hochlakos mosaic, iconastis, Oertenzi lizard, Painted Dragon lizard, Roukouniotis monastery, St Auddan's church, stalactites, Starred agama, Symi, Symi cave | 2 Comments

Symi: a trek to a waterhole in a desert

Posted on May 25, 2014 by BarryH

A week or so ago a friend and I headed back to the deserted settlement of Gria in the limestone crags high above Pedi.

As ever, the first part of the walk is through the narrow stone-paved alleys of Horio and then at the top of the village onto a concrete track from the Agia Marina cemetery rising gradually up the side of the ridge on the south of the Pedi Valley. Concrete tracks are generally boring but the redeeming features of this are the views on the left across to Horio and the line of windmills on the ridge opposite and on the right the fissured limestone with its assorted wildlife.

Looking across the valley to Horio and the ridge-line windmlls

At the centre of its web

….. and from the other side a lot more colourful

One of the 500 species of Bellflower (Campanula) in a small crevice in the limestone

However, the main attraction of this trudge is what lies ahead. The recently ‘improved’ track leads to a monastery often known as ‘Vrisi’ though I prefer the name ‘Zoothohou’. The full mouthful of a name in Greek is«Βρύση»(spring or fountain) «ΖωοδόχουΠηγής»(of the Source of Life) and that explains the expensive track – to access the water supply. The monastery courtyard has huge shade trees, very welcome in the heat of summer, and a tap with deliciously cold, sweet water coming straight out of the mountain. Black plastic pipes are now draped the couple of miles across the surface to the village, the summer sun heating the water as it goes, rendering it undrinkable but presumably keeping tourists showered in the manner to which they have become accustomed.

Very well tended kitchen garden at the Zoodohou monastery

The track ends abruptly at the steps up to the monastery, the way on dropping down from above the far end of the courtyard. From here the once well trodden path is now ‘thin’, in places unclear and needing some ability to read the ground. It winds its way first through a gap in the rocks and then further along the flank of the ridge before dropping down to cross gulleys and finally climbing up to Gria behind crags which tower above Pedi Bay.

The old settlement is long-deserted and fields lie bare with only drought-tolerant oregano and a few trees surviving. Always arid this part of Symi is now bare rock and desert conditions. Fig trees from which we picked fruit when we first came 15 years ago have now not only died but dried and disintegrated under the joint assault of cracking-hot sun and ants/termites. Only one remains, bearing scant harvest.

Satellite image of the old settlement at Gria, the pond on the right. The track of the route in blue

The last remaining fig tree on the right

The last remaining fig tree on the left

An old threshing circle of some size indicates that significant amounts of grain were grown here. Now with oregano growing through it above barren fields

An old threshing circle of some size indicates that significant amounts of grain were once grown here. Now with oregano growing through it above barren fields

My guess is that the reason for this is a lowering of the water table by reduced rainfall due to climate change and water abstraction. There is still a good depth of water in the stone-lined pond at the edge of the village but even after winter rains and before summer drought the level of the water has dropped significantly since we first came here.

Taken in 2001 this photo shows the rock strata on the far side of the pond were mostly underwater, now extensively exposed, water level a lot lower

Dragonflies were skittering low over the surface of the water, landing on rocks for a few seconds before taking off on frantic flight again. I noticed that they homed in on the same two or three rocks so I carefully climbed down and perched low to the water to try to photograph them. Though at times in danger of tipping forwards face first I stayed dry and the dragonflies got used to me being there, part of the background and no threat.

Brilliantly coloured, landing for a few seconds at a time

Very thin body looks almost drab from the side

One of it’s favourite bits of rock

… sometimes perching momentarily in the edge

After I had been balancing uncomfortably for a while, focusing on the manic dragonflies, a rat appeared out of one of the gaps in the wall followed by a snake in stealthy pursuit. I managed one shot of the snake through an old rusty fence before it retreated, either because it spotted me moving to a better position or because its intended prey scarpered. I estimate it was between 5 and 6 feet long and my guess is that it was a Black Rat Snake on the basis that it was black ….. and in pursuit of a rat, which wasn’t black.

Quick shot of Black Rat Sanke

I moved from the delicate perch I had been on for half an hour or more onto sloping slabs of rock which dipped down into the water and which offered both greater comfort and a better view of where the snake had been. Fifteen years ago these slabs were mostly under water but now were dry and a great place to bake in the afternoon sun. The snake didn’t reappear so I lay back on the rock, pulled my sun hat over my eyes and … relaxed.

Looking across the pond from my new perch

A loud croaking brought my siesta to an end. Soon locating the source of the noise, again I managed just one shot before the amorous amphibians slid back into the water.

Hard at it

They appeared a couple of times after that but by then my attention had shifted to dragonflies which were homing in on a piece of floating sponge rubber as a base for laying eggs and indeterminate aerial activity.

On an approach run

…. what’s going on here?

better side by side

but then more aerobatics

before sharing a paltform

When inactivity finally got the better of me we left the pond to its other life-forms and took a ‘path’ dropping steeply, in places vertically, down a small gorge to the bay at Pedi and a very chilled-out drink before walking back up to Horio via an old path up the valley.

The whole walk was about 5 miles rising to just short of 1000 feet directly above Pedi Bay, not taxing but very enjoyable.

The track of the route

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, Reflections, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged amphibians, bellflower, Black Rat Snake, campanula, deserted village, dragonflies, Greece, Gria, Gria pond, Βρύση Ζωοδόχου Πηγής, kitchen garden, Pedi Valley, pondlife, snakes, spiders, Spring of the Source of Life, Symi, threshing circle, windmills | 5 Comments

Symi: wildlife on a (moderately) wild walk, a micro view

Posted on May 19, 2014 by BarryH

Summer seems to have settled into Symi in the last week. Temperatures in the low twenties and rising. Mostly clear skies. With a gentle breeze walking in the mountains just about perfect.

Walking with a friend for who, like me, the landscape and the wildlife are more important than getting from start to finish in the shortest time, has been good. We saw a lot on every trek, culminating in a 7 hour hike to a mountain top monastery and back, seeing an average of one tortoise every hour. One per two week holiday is generally considered good. But, as I’m now fond of saying, more of that another time.

First, a less demanding walk up to the spine of the island with some great views of what is acclaimed to be the most spectacular harbour in Greece and then a drop down to the harbour before the long pull back up the Kali Strata. Not a ‘wild’ walk in that is not ‘off piste’ but much of it on old paths not often used now.

The route begins with a half hour stiff climb up to what in my opinion is the best viewpoint on Symi. First, through the alleys of Horio, the old village, and then onto a kalderimi where donkeys are still in evidence transporting produce ….. and leaving their calling cards. The muleteers, or μουλαρές, follow them through the village and out of courtesy clear up the droppings from the stone-paved alleys but not on the open mountain. Shame some dog owners don’t have the same consideration.

Colourful corner on the way out of the village

Coming up to the Viewpoint

From the viewpoint the paved kalderimi winds through jagged limestone rock continuing to overlook the harbour and its early season activity far below. Tear your gaze from the main event to the small scale and ‘nature’ is lurking behind you waiting to pounce.

Looking past the craggy limestone to the harbour far below

… and immediately behind on the other side of the path

Having passed the small chapel of Agia Paraskevi divert right onto a narrow path dropping down briefly into a shallow gulley before rising up onto slabs of rock with yet more views, now looking along the length the harbour and over into the Pedi Bay as well.

Looking from the slabs above the head of the valley down the length of the harbour

Taking time to look around the agricultural terraces bordering the slabs and, again, at the micro-scale there was much of interest including the last few Dragon Arums which have been taking it in turns to flower for a few days each over a 6 week period, still as dramatic as ever. Unexpectedly there were also a couple of types of fungus both of which looked edible but without my Phillips Guide I didn’t want to run the risk of getting it wrong.

about 6 inches across under an oak tree

in the middle of the path between rocks

Dragon Arums still in flower

Having clambered over the slabs the path becomes a more formal kalderimi first on stone-built terracing and then between collapsing stone walls before reaching The Tarmac which skirts above the army camp …. photography expressly forbidden by road signs. Averting one’s gaze from the camp, but noticing a guy of middle-eastern appearance squatting at the roadside and talking secretively into a mobile phone, the great shade tree at Rakouniotis monastery is soon reached.

A member of the onion family

…. opens to a spectacular flower

The great shade tree at Roukouniotis monastery

The great shade tree in its enclosure at Roukouniotis monastery

Just as we rejoining the road after taking a rough shortcut to avoid a hairpin bend we spotted a small tortoise seeming hardly large enough to fend for itself. Then a drop down more steeply through extremely fissured and water-eroded limestone where plants struggle for moisture and soil but cling on, before turning onto a dirt track bordered by fields growing cereals, ripe and waiting to be harvested. Different growing season, different harvest time in Greece and Northern Europe.

Tortoise with €2 coin for scale

In contrast to the shade tree this gnarly specimen struggles to survive, surrounded by seed heads of Dragon Arums

Field of barley

Ice crystals of high level strato cirrus cloud act as a prism

Turning off the track onto a very thin path where an ability to ‘read’ the ground was needed. It was fine while on the path but stray off it even by a couple of metres and it is difficult to find again. It follows and cuts down through old agricultural terraces with many goat and sheep trails ready to mislead, leading nowhere. Follow one for too long and the path is well and truly lost.

It heads towards a gap in a stone wall and steps dropping down into the top of the gully which deepens in the Gorge leading down to the Bay at Nimborios. As I reach the gap peripheral vision picked up slight movement. I stop. It freezes. Not knowing what they were my wife and I used to call them ‘Dragon Lizards’ because of their appearance, now I know they are Starred Agama, Stellagama, also known as Painted Dragons because of their ability to change colour …. and their appearance.

This specimen was about a foot (30 cms) long and mostly black. Holding the position it froze in, but watching me carefully, it waited until I took my eye off it to move my feet and then disappeared into one of the many fissures in the wall. A good time to stop for a bite to eat …. and wait. After not very long it emerged again, suspicious and ready to dart back into the wall, it did just that as I moved again.

Starred agama freezes to avoid detection

Emerging slowly from the fissure it hid in

As I changed position to try to get another angle I spotted small but colourful spiders on webs in the oregano. With my attention diverted the lizard came back out again this time from another fissure further along and on top of the wall. Deciding that it wasn’t threatened in any way even as I crept closer, it stayed out in the open and almost seemed to be posing for the camera. It was still there watchful but basking in the sun as we left.

attention distracted by spider

gives time for the agama to come out and pose

while behind me a pregnant Lacerta oertzeni lizard sneaks past

There are at least 3 main options for returning from the gap in the wall. We chose a path high above the south side of Nimboriois Bay, interesting not least because it isn’t shown on the ΣΚΑïmap which claims to show “all the important trails of every region”. True the maps are better than others but they are not as comprehensive as they claim nor as, say, the OS maps in the UK or the IGN maps in France.

On the ground it’s a good path. There was little by way of colour now compared with Autumn when it is a mass of white squill but as we started to drop down towards Drakounda above Yialos the amount of plants still in flower increased and took on the appearance of a rock garden. As a bonus, shortly before joining the track from the Agios Georgios Drakouniotis monastery another tortoise ambled along the path towards us.

natural rock garden

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged Dragon Arum, Greece, Oetzeni lizard, Painted Dragon lizard, spiders, Starred agama, Stellagama, Symi, tortoise, wild onion flowers | 4 Comments

Kalymnos: colour and signals in the crags

Posted on May 13, 2014 by BarryH

I’m back on Symi now, very busy trekking and photographing in the mountains with a friend. Some unusual shots to follow. A good number of ‘Wow!’ moments.

But first, a brief snapshot of Kalymnos and more particularly of Emborios, a small village at the northern tip of the island where I spent the last week. Outstanding place. It is the embodiment of the Greek concept of ησυχία(isichia) – total peace and calm, tranquility.

A bit of a ramble. The Greek word for castle or fortress is κάστρο(kastro). An ancient fortress is usually known as the παλεοκάστρο(paleocastro, ‘paleo’ = ‘old’). However, the very old castle near Emborios, built into the crags towering above the village, is known locally as Kastri. It has a special atmosphere and I head up there as soon as possible after arriving on the island. I went there more than usual this visit.

But first, a bit of context. The crags are an impenetrable barrier rising 1000 feet and, together with the many other limestone crags along the spine of the island, attract climbers from across the world, especially in April, May, September and in October when the island hosts an international climbing competition.

I trekked up to the Kastri almost as soon as I arrived in Emborios. A 10 minute walk along the road back towards Pothia as far as the first sharp right-hand bend, turn left up a rough track at the house selling thyme honey and then about 20 minutes hard pull up a narrow path, negotiate a Greek Gate into a fenced compound and finally a rocky scramble up to the base of the crag. Taking advantage of the lower temperatures of late spring/early summer there were about 16 climbers in the towering curve of rock behind the tiny castle.

Climbers on the crag behind the Kastri

Used to having the place to myself, I didn’t linger. I’m a climber and, in the vicinity of crags and other climbers, I felt somehow diminished by being relegated to a mere observer, almost like a voyeur just watching people. Instead I dropped down and followed the base of the cliff to below a large cave. When I reached the rock face below the cave entrance I decided to climb it to maintain my self-esteem and dignity. I knew I was pushing the limits of acceptable risk but went for it anyway. I walk in sandals with climbing-rubber soles so I had plenty of confidence in their grip on the rock but, as is often the case, the tricky bits were on the loose scree above.

The cave was impressively large, a huge scallop out of the mountainside. What took the shine off my sense of achievement was that, after risking life and limb clambering up (I like to exaggerate occasionally), the mouth of the cave was fenced in for penning sheep and goats. It was therefore obvious that the farmer climbs up there to maintain the structure and access his stock. Part of his everyday work. The massive cave has probably been used for centuries. Nevertheless, despite my efforts having been put in context, it was a great place to be as the sun began to sink behind the ridge. I still had a sense of satisfaction.

From across the bay looking over Emborios to the Kastri set in the crags

Looking up to the crag from the road

Getting closer and zooming in

Inside the cave looking across to Telendos Island

The Kastri is so special a place that while I was on Kalymnos, I climbed up there every day after my walks in other parts of the island.

Then it acquired a new significance. Frustratingly, the telecom masts on the headland beyond Emborios didn’t support the Greek ‘European Vodaphone’ SIM card I had bought for the MiFi I was using to get internet access from a 3G signal on Symi. There was virtually no signal at all in the village. My UK Vodaphone smartphone contract offered a totally unappealing £3 a day deal for use in Greece. It’s time for an end to this extortion.

I was told that there was a Vodaphone-enabled mast above Massouri, a much larger settlement further along the coast, but the signal was masked by an intervening island. I knew the Kastri had a fabulous view down the Telendos Channel towards Massouri so one evening I took the MiFi and my tablet for a walk. I perched on a rock and switched on. Brilliant! Strong signal. Good internet access. So from then on I went up to the Kastri just before sunset each evening to check e-mails and use Skype.

I suspect that the signal might be unusually strong because the rock face behind the fortress is curved and may act as a receiving dish, focusing it. Whether that is true or not, it was certainly a stronger 3G signal than I get in most places, including on Symi in line of sight and barely a kilometre from the mast as the waveband whizzes. It is also, most certainly, one of the most dramatic places I have sat to get my WiFix.

At the Kastri looking along Telendos Channel

On a couple of days the weather was inclement as it can be in spring even in Greece But dark cloud affording dramatic backdrops and any rain soon stopped. Each day it soon cleared so my evening visits to the Kastri were under blue skies with sharp visibility after the rain.

As on Symi, there was a lot more colour than later in the summer when the vegetation is crisped and with the greater variety of habitat there was a greater variety of wildlife, some of it spectacular in appearance.

Individual flowers

… in a variety of colours

some on small bushes

some carpeting the ground

growing at the side of the road

pushing through thorn bushes

in small patches of soil between rocks

A Hawk Moth settles next to the table

Spectacular markings on spider on nasturtium petal

At this time of year rain clouds can add drama

If you go to Emborios you have got to visit Harry’s Paradise:

http://www.harrys-paradise.gr/

http://www.tripadvisor.ca/ShowUserReviews-g189439-d2228285-r161540039-Harry_s_Paradise_Garden_Restaurant-Kalymnos_Dodecanese.html#REVIEWS

In fact, it’s worth going there specifically for that reason. No other excuse is needed.

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged castles, climbing, crags, Flora, flowers, Greece, Hawk Moth, Kalymnos, Kastri, spiders, Symi, telecom, telecom problems, Telendos, WiFi, wildlife | Leave a comment

Symi: more Spring colour

Posted on May 7, 2014 by BarryH

I’ve been away for a few days staying with friends at the northern tip of Kalymnos the fourth most populous island in the Dodecanese but in an internet ‘Not-Spot’ with very limited access to WiFi thanks to OTE, the main provider of telephony and ADSL services in Greece. Or not. My stay was extended beyond the original intention of 5 days to 7 because on Sunday, the day of my intended return, all ferries were cancelled due to strong winds and on Monday, though the wind and the sea had calmed down …. the ferry wasn’t scheduled to stop at Symi en route to Rhodes. That’s life on the islands.

But more of that trip next time, including a partial if inconvenient ‘wild walks’ solution to the WiFi problem in the Kalymnos Not Spot.

This time, more of the Spring colour on Symi. Photos were taken a week ago with the intention of posting them when I got to Kalymnos but limited facilities didn’t allow. All seen on or alongside the paths I walked.

On the way out of the village towards the path to Pedi Bay ruined buildings host wild flowers and offer great views

Random clusters of flowers brighten even scruffy bits of path

In places these grow individually, in other places in large clumps

Perhaps 8 or more coronas of flowers at 4-6 inch intervals on stems up to 2 feet

Tall. very spindly type of cornflower

Variation on a clover, I think

A bush legume

…. setting large pods of seed already

Often associated with ‘English Cottage Gardens’ hollyhocks grow wild on Symi …. and don’t get blighted by rust

Zooming in , the bees are hard at work ensuring pollination and the continuation of te species

Another type of clover, I think

No apologies for including cyclamen again, one of my favourites

And no apologies for including an orchid again. Exquisite

Posted in Greece, Landscape, Nature, Spring | Tagged clover, cyclamen, Flora, flowers, Greece, hollyhock, orchids, Symi | 5 Comments

Symi: habitats and wildlife

Posted on May 2, 2014 by BarryH

I’m continuing to trek around the infrequently trodden parts of Symi and continuing to be surprised by the variety of colourful plant life. It’s not in great swathes like on other islands I have visited in Spring but the number of plants coming into flower is either increasing or my eyes are becoming more attuned and seeing things for the first time.

More Spring colour to follow but I thought I would focus on the some of the beasties roaming around this colourful landscape. As plants come into flower so the new habitat is accompanied by wildlife working through necessary stages in its life-cycle.

Most dramatic and easily photographed have been the tortoises ‘Testudo Graeca’. I have seen them wandering around on previous visits to Greece but they have seemed to put in only a rare appearance. This time I have seen three large specimens already. Again, it’s one of the advantages of walking in sandals and watching where you put your feet. The third one I saw was on ‘The Other Steps’ from the harbour up to Horio, the Cataractis. Far less used than the better known Kali Strata, and not subject to a cleaning and weeding programme for Easter, at this time of year they are covered in vegetation and bouncing down one day I nearly trod on a large tortoise ambling across below one of the risers.

Filling the width of the narrow path to Pedi and seeing no need to give way

Thery mvoe around on their points like ballerinas ….. but with none of the grace

Taking a look at my rucksack

Retreating to a shady hole in the rocks .

There have also been an increasing number of butterflies flitting around the plants, especially so as the oregano is starting to come into flower. None of the dramatic Scarce Swallowtails or Greek Streamertails as yet, that is a pleasure to come.

Meeting up for a chat?

Outlined with the sun behind

On oregano with pollen covering the body and lower wings

Very relaxed but keeping an eye open

Other creatures home in on the oregano as it suddenly provides a platform for all kinds of activity, all of which helps pollination and so set seed.

Some creatures seem to be content to sit onthe oregano in the sun

Others do what comes naturally in the Spring

Trying to get in on the act

It’s getting a bit crowded here, think I’ll ry my luck on the next flower head

A walk up to the permanent pond at Gria on the mountain above Pedi at first seemed to have hit on a time with no wildlife at all. However, a little patience becoming part of the rocks lining the edge, was rewarded by shots of a number of dragonflies, lizards and a bird coming for a bath.

Momentarily settled on a rock just below me at the water’s edge

Large and colourful with a liking for the rusty fence in the water

Synchronised egg laying

Reflected egg laying

Coming down to the water’s edge

So close to me I thought its next step was onto my leg

Escaped a predator (probably a bird of prey) by leaving its ail behind. I will grow a new one eventually

Another dragonfly settles briefly

…. and then a bird comes for a bath

93x

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Mountains, Nature, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged Butterflies, dragonflies, dragonfly egg laying, Greece, Gria pond, lizards, Oregano, Symi, Testudo Graeca, tortoise | Leave a comment

Symi: walking through Spring colour

Posted on April 28, 2014 by BarryH

I have done a whole series of walks since I arrived on Symi more than two weeks ago. Some have been just a couple of hours and 3 or 4 miles, others longer. Most of them are through areas I know from previous visits but all look different because the green has not been crisped by the scorching summer sun and the colour of Spring flowers is still very much in evidence. So I’m still concentrating the blog on showing that spring colour.

Even within Horio the old ruins are brightly decorated with white and yellow daisies and bright splashes of red poppies. Coming towards May and the end of Spring the sun is hotting up, plants will quickly finish their flowering in order to set seed before the drought so I suspect that that the colour will not last much longer on the walk down the narrow alleyways to the shops.

Inside a derelict building on the walk down to the shops all that remains are a few stone walls and spring flowers

On top of a wall at head height

Head out of the village and old agricultural terraces are a mass of colour where later they will look brown and scorched, desert-like. Seen from above some enclosed holdings look like oases in the otherwise barren rock of the mountainsides. The growing season here is winter, dictated by rainfall and cooler days, not the summer as in temperate climates where winter frosts, snow and heavy rainfall keep perennial plants hunkered down in the soil.

Looking from the path down the Pedi Valley to the ridge topped by windmills

From the path to the monastery of Panagia Myrtidiotisa looking across the rich soils in the col at Ksissos

On the way to Agios Emilianos looking across ‘oases’ of enclosed land

There are so many plants in flower that it is impossible to show them all here. But below is a sample of the colour on display if you visit the islands at this time of year and get out into the mountains.

I think this may be some kind of clover

More cyclamen in the shade under a tree

A mass of small flowers alongside a stony path

Small and delicate in the middle of the stony path, unknown to me

Again in the path, unknown to me

Walking in sandals makes it important to take care about foot placement, pay more attention to the path. The result was that the highlight of one walk was spotting tiny orchids growing in the vegetation alongside the trodden ground .

Flower stem about 6 inches high

Zooming in a bit closer

Zooming in on one flower on the stem

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, Spring | Tagged cyclamen, Flora, flowers, Greece, orchids, poppies, spring, Symi | Leave a comment

Symi: funeral bells and the smell of death

Posted on April 22, 2014 by BarryH

In Greece Easter is a far more important celebration than Christmas. Theologically that is as it should be, the birth of Christ was only the necessary first step, the reason for His coming was His death and resurrection. Without Easter the Nativity would have been of no value.

Christmas in the UK is essentially a commercial affair, driven by big business with Easter now playing retail catch-up, both with a peremptory nod at Christianity. In Greece, Easter celebrations are very much a community affair, led by and centred on the Orthodox Church with nearly everybody taking part at some point over the weekend. This is particularly so on a small island like Symi.

Services are held every day of the week from Palm Sunday onwards but it is the Thursday when it becomes impossible to ignore the fact that Something Significant is happening. Church bells start to toll and continue to do so at frequent and long intervals through Friday and Saturday. One of the main churches in Horio, the old village on Symi, is just behind the house. The big bell in its tall bell-tower rings one doleful stroke and about 15-20 seconds later, as the reverberation dies away, another bell in another church, reiterates the sombre, mournful message of death. Usually there are three churches repeating one to the other across the village. They do this when someone dies and during the procession to the funeral but at Easter it lasts 3 days. It is very evocative and certainly makes the message clear: Christ died.

The other indication that it is Easter is that there are explosions going off at random intervals for days. They range from small ‘pops’ thrown on the ground by young tots, via substantial firecrackers in confined spaces amplifying the noise, to significant amounts of what I suspect from the amount of fertiliser being carried around in the back of pick-up trucks is ANFO (a mix of ammonium nitrate and fuel oil) which shakes houses, rattling windows and light fittings. On a few, well remembered, occasions the latter have been known to smash windows. Some say the explosions are to symbolise the thunderstorm when Christ was on the cross, others that it scares away evil spirits. My guess is that it’s just an excuse because boys like playing with explosives. I know we did back home on 5 November.

Because I know a guy who is one of the ‘elders’ there, I went to a service on Good Friday evening in one of the big churches lower down in the village, very different from the services in my church at home. Being incanted in liturgical Greek I couldn’t follow a word of it but took my cue from others. At the culmination of the service four men pick up a beir decorated with flowers and led by the priest in impressive regalia, and the guy I know playing the saxophone, we processed slowly up through the alleys of the village, symbolically carrying the body of Christ to the tomb, the church bells tolling their message all the while.

Coming up to midnight on the Saturday it is said that almost the entire population of Greece is in church. I went to the one behind the house this time and again took my cue from others. There are loud explosions from firecrackers outside the church throughout. Decorated candles are distributed and at the end of the service the singing stopped, the lights were switched off and we all lit our candles from the one held by the priest and went outside into the large courtyard. Then the message of the bells changes dramatically and they ring in a frenzy of excitement to celebrate the arrival of the third day, the day of the resurrection. “Christ is risen” …. “Truly He is risen”. The boisterous bells now make your brain rattle inside your skull. The mood changes. Speech is nigh on impossible. The candles are carried through the alleyways back home to symbolically light the house for the year ahead. This is accompanied by fireworks and of course more and even bigger explosions. The light fittings in the house continued to rattle periodically until the small hours.

The view of the church tower from the roof terrace

One of the bells

…. a closer look in case you couldn’t see it loudly enough

After the Saturday midnight service going home with lighted candles.

Easter in Greece is very dramatic, the sound of death followed by the sound of life.

Not quite as dramatic but something which cannot be ignored if you go out in the mountains at this time of year is the smell of death. Sometimes you smell them before you see them, Dracunculus Vulgaris, a splendid species of the Arum genus known by many names including Dragon Arum because it is supposed to look like the tail of a small dragon disappearing into the spathe to hide, and Stink Lily ….. for obvious reasons. They grow everywhere, from field terraces to cracks in the rock, a beautiful rich, deep purple colour. Tens of thousands of them ranging from a few inches to 4 feet tall, with spathes of up to 2 feet and a spadix even longer. The smell is like the rotting flesh of a dead animal. Horrendous. I know someone who planted some bulbs in his garden back in the UK and dug them up after a couple of years because of complaints about the smell.

The reason for the smell? To attract the insects which pollinate it. No pollination, no seed, no new life.

There’s a connection there somewhere.

Dragon Arum grows in cracks in vertical rock

….. alongside high-level paths

…. in gaps in stone walls

…. underneath trees

A Gallic shrug of Dragon Arums

Visiting beastie

Typical mottling of stems

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged ANFO, Christmas, church bells, commercialisation of Christmas, crucifixion, Dracunculus vulgaris, Dragon Arum, Easter, explosions, explosives, Funeral bells, Greece, Greek Easter, Resurrection, smell of death, Symi | Leave a comment

Symi: a walk on the colourful side

Posted on April 19, 2014 by BarryH

The first time we came to Symi it was August, a full-on Greek summer. Stepping out of the door of the chilled cabin of the plane was like walking into an oven with the fan on. I now always look forward to that Hellenic summer greeting after Cool Britannia At that time 2 hours north of Rhodes on a tub of a ferry, now only 45 minutes on a high speed cat, the island has the reputation of being the hottest and driest in Greece and indeed the overriding impression in the height of summer was of a hot rock, with most plant life crisped brown in the sun.

We found that parts of the island were forested with cypress trees stunted by poor soil and drought. But over much of it the only green was drought-tolerant herbs, principally oregano, sage and thyme with mountainsides dominated by one or the other depending on geology, soil and aspect. Walking across a mountainside covered in oregano the smell, now as then, so strong it feels as if it’s burning the inside of your nostrils.

Having been to Hydra in the Saronics in March and April and seen the vast number of flowering plants, I was interested to see what Symi would be like in Spring. It’s by no means as floriferous as Hydra where rainfall is higher but it’s very different from the parched appearance of summer. For a start, some of the terraced fields are covered in cereals or other grasses and not just bare soil.

The photographs taken on the walks I have been doing have focused on the flowering plants because there is a limited time when they will survive and because those who only come in high summer will be surprised at how the island looks in Spring. I’ll focus more on the wider landscape and the walks themselves later in the season.

On Sunday I walked down the Kali Strata, a set of steep steps dropping about 100 metres from Horio, the old village and centre of Symi, to Yialos the main harbour, and then around the coast road to the next bay and the hamlet of Nimborio. The hillside sloping down to the sea is normally covered in dried-up thorn bushes but now the slopes had attractive cushions of yellow flowers disguising the pain beneath.

Towards Nimborio, sloping down to the sea

… and up to the ridge

Reaching Nimborio I crossed the narrow pebble beach at the head of the bay and then climbed a rocky footpath zigzagging up to the tiny chapel of Agios Nikolaos Stenou on the ridge looking across to Turkey, Asia not Europe, so close that you can count the wind turbines marching along the lower hills close to Datcha. The mountainside on the way up is dominated by oregano but the ridge-top is barren, craggy limestone, the only vegetation which the soil supports is autumn-flowering squill, leaving nothing but sagging, snail chewed leaves by Spring.

Barren rock of the ridge top

After lazing around in the sun at the chapel eating my banana and nutbar I set off across the rock and nearly failed to see a tortoise on the path. A fairly large specimen, it didn’t seemed phased by being watched and photographed. It didn’t even flinch when I put a €2 coin by it to indicate scale.

Tortoise on the path, €2 coin for scale

Up-close and personal

Having dropped back down to the beach I turned between houses into a flood channel at the bottom end of the Nimborios Gorge and made my way up the short distance to The Catacombs above two small churches and a well preserved but poorly presented Roman mosaic floor. The catacombs, apparently known as the Twelve Caves, have a side entrance but to avoid potential aggressive vegetation I climbed down through a hole where the roof has collapsed at one end. It consists of a central corridor with 4 tiny cells on either side making a total of 10 if you include the two ends. Climbing back out from the gloom into the light the colour of the small flowers clustered around the opening seemed more vivid.

Entrance to the catacombs through the collapsed roof, surrounded by flowers

Inside the catacombs, four small cells on each side

Climbing back out, the flowers more vivid

I returned to Yialos on a well preserved and improved kalderimi over the shoulder of the hill past the church of Georgos Drakouniotis which offers very welcome shade in high summer but not needed in the very pleasant 20 degrees at this time of year.

The walk was undemanding but interesting, especially so because of the wide variety of flowering plants along the route. The walk in the height of summer is enjoyable but lacks the added colour. I know the names of a few of the plants but not being even an amateur botanist most of them are attractive but unknown to me.