Tag Archives: Greece

Tilos: the kamikaze trail

Posted on July 1, 2014 by BarryH

Hopping between Greek islands has become more difficult over recent years as older, less efficient boats were deemed financially unviable or failed to meet rising safety standards and have gone out of service. Operating companies are fewer in number and … Continue reading →

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Wildlife | Tagged dodecanese, dragonflies, Eristos Beach, ferries, footpaths, Greece, Greek island treks, Greek Islands, hiking, island hopping, natural springs, Nikia, Nisyros, Panteleimon monastery, Profitis Ilias, Tilos, trails, trekking | 2 Comments

Symi: a gorge walk

Posted on June 23, 2014 by BarryH

Since I arrived back on Symi nearly two weeks ago I have been setting out for walks at midday in order to get myself acclimatised to walking in the heat ready for longer treks when noon temperatures would be difficult … Continue reading →

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Nature | Tagged bonzai, cypress trees, dry river bed, dry waterfalls, gorge walking, Greece, Lapathos Beach, limestone, Oregano, rock climbing, rock scrambling, Symi, Vasilios Gorge | 6 Comments

Symi: the month of the thyme

Posted on June 17, 2014 by BarryH

One of the things we have always loved about trekking around the mountains on Symi, is the smell of herbs. Whole mountainsides are swathed in sage, oregano or thyme. Rarely all three together except in small patches, usually one is … Continue reading →

Posted in Greece, Mountains, Nature, Wildlife | Tagged bees, Butterflies, flowering times, Greece, honey, Oregano, Sage, Symi, thyme, thymus | Leave a comment

Symi: change of season, change of focus

Posted on June 13, 2014 by BarryH

I’m back on the Hot Rock now. Straight from Cool Britannia to temperatures in the high 20s. Locals say that the weather is bizarre for June. Before I arrived there was a thunderstorm with very heavy rain overnight and strong … Continue reading →

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged arid landscape, eroded limestone, folded rocks, fottpaths, Greece, kalderimia, landscapes, Nimborio, panoramas, Paraskevi, SAymi, stone tower, swallows, The Hot Rock, thunder clouds, Turkey, Yialos | Leave a comment

Symi: a last look back to Spring

Posted on June 8, 2014 by BarryH

Time to confess. Though I have continued to write the blog posts about walks on Symi, for the last couple of weeks I have been back in Grey Britain. I returned for grandchildren’s birthdays, have been catching up with family … Continue reading →

Posted in Greece, Hiking, Mountains, Nature, Spring, Wildlife | Tagged Butterflies, convolvulus, dianthus, dragonflies, Flora, flowers, Greece, mallow, orchids, SciFi, Symi | Leave a comment

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 … Continue reading →

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. … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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, … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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