Baths of Aphrodite and Avakas Gorge Walks and Photos for Cyprus.

Holiday Hiking Guides on Cyprus's well known Aphrodite Trail around the Akamas Peninsula.

Visiting the Baths of Aphrodite and also a really scenic and enjoyable walk along the Avakas Gorge - and always with a beach nearbye at the end.

Cyprus's Akamas Peninsula has lots of trail and path walking available for walking whilst on holiday on Cyprus - these walks are circular and are close to or visit Lara Turtle Beach, Avakas Gorge and the famous Cyprus Baths of Aphrodite. Athough the Cyprus Walks described on this page are circulars you do probably require a hire-car to get to the start points in order to have enough time to enjoy the fairly long and in some cases quite difficult/strenuous walks. Then you will be able to have sufficient time to get easily along to your favourite Cyprus beach so you can have a little bit of global warming on your various bits once the walks are completed..

Walks and Pictures Guides for Cyprus on this Page (Both circulars)

Avakas Gorge. The main hazards on this walk are firstly - not getting run over by jeep safari vehicles as you walk on the track to the entrance of the gorge, secondly you need to check how much water is in the river at the start - if the water is running very fast and/or is deep then probably further up the gorge it will not be very easy or even possible to get right through since the gorge is very narrow in places and you often have to walk in the river. Thirdly and for the same previous reason if it looks like - or is - raining, and finally we found many of the rocks to be very slippery underfoot - this walk is really best done in walking boots. Note the 7km walk from the top of the gorge back round is quite tough especially if the weather is particularly hot - you do need to have plenty of water with you at this stage of the walk - if in doubt it is better to just return back down the gorge rather than continue with the circular walk.

The gorge has some very large rocks and sometimes scree as well as trees and bushes etc. so a certain amount of ingenuity can be required to get past some parts of it. We did not see one snake but probably they were around somewhere - we saw lots of birds and lizards - even more goats and towards the end of the gorge some free-range black pigs. Finally - this is a gorge - it has high cliffs and is often narrow - therefore you should always be aware of the possibility of rocks falling down from on high.

Getting to the start. The gorge is located on the southern end of the Akamas Peninsula. A small road goes off to the right just before you reach Agios Georgious - it is tarmac to start with and then becomes quite rubbly - drops down steeply on concrete and then swings sharp left to pass a taverna. The road then becomes track and is full of quite deep potholes - but you soon come to a parking area on the right from where the Gorge is signposted.

Walk up the track heading inland following the signs, keep left at the fork and going upwards then just before reaching a taverna go right and soon arrive at another small parking area. Follow the track which heads left and goes down into the gorge entrance. As you near the actual gorge entrance the track becomes a path (so no more jeeps thank goodness) - soon you are walking in the river - be careful since the stones are really slippery here.

Now the walk is quite straightforward - follow the path - often in the river - the gorge gets really narrow in places and sometimes you have to go either side of the river to get through because of really large rocks as well as the vegetation. However you should never need to be very far from the actual river i.e. no need to climb up the scree etc.
The gorge is really great to walk through, with lots of trees and shrubs and where the river forms pools in amongst the rocks. There are plenty of birds flying around and millions of lizards too.
Once the gorge starts to widen out again there are various cairns which help with navigation - but it still remains that you never have to be very far from the river and sometimes have to still walk in it. Eventually you come across a rusty wrecked vehicle on the left of the path - the trees and shrubs are if anything even thicker round here and with the river and it's pools the whole area is just brilliant. A little further along you should pass a trig point (no.48) and shortly after this a narrow path on the right leads up not too steeply out of the gorge.

Once at the top bear left and continue walking along the edge of the gorge and heading for the gorge' head. You soon see various ruined buildings in front of you and also across the gorge on the left high up on the hillside two tracks are visible - the aim ultimately is to get onto the higher of these tracks since this will be the return route.
Head for the ruined building (an old mill?) passing near a smallholding on the way.
Just after passing the mill a track starts - and this soon reaches a dirt road. Turn left and follow the dirt road - passing more stone buildings and animal pens - to soon join the Kato Arodes - Lara track. Turn left now heading towards Lara - the gorge is now way below on the left. Simply stay on the track as it rises to a high point - ignore a track going off to the right - just continue on the same track eventually going passed a small goat station (on the right). The sea is now in sight and the track simply continues slowly downwards through Pegeia Forest. There are various side tracks but just stay always on the main track to eventually arrive back on the coast road.
 Turn left and follow the coast road all the way back to the start point

Aphrodite Trail : The walk starts from the large car park at the Baths of Aphrodite (there is a cafe/restaurant nearbye and also a stall selling cold drinks and snacks here). The walk is fairly difficult because of the climb and descent - underfoot the surface is often very rocky and also can be slippery due to the scree - therefore in our view should really be walked in decent boots and not flip-flops.

Walk out of the car park passing the small kiosk/shop on the left - continue onto the dusty dirt track - this goes slightly up to start with then twists left by a sign "To Fontana Amorosa". Continue along now with a camp site on the right - stay on the track soon passing a sign which says "do not enter - dangerous for cars" - the track hugs the coast and there are some really good views to the sea below. Watch out for a small marked path on the left after about one kilometre - this is just as the main track starts to descend. The path goes fairly level along the hillside - ignore a path joining in from the right - simply stay on the main path which soon passes a view point with a seat on the left.

The path starts to climb up the side of the hill - really good views of the Akamas Peninsula and it's various small beaches start to come into view. After a while things become a little steeper as the path changes into a zig zag - just keep going ever upwards to eventually arrives near the top of the climb where there are two seats at a view point. Continue along the now much flatter path and soon reach a signpost - go right here to go on up to the top of Moutti tis Sotiras - this is at a height of 363 metres and the view are brilliant (be very careful near the edge since the rock is very fragile). Walk back down to the signpost, turn right onto a track - this descends fairly steeply - just before the bottom take a marked track going off to the left (marked with a yellow arrow). This soon joins another track - stay ahead and follow this main track - turning right a the next track junction and then walking on down to pass the ruined abbey of Pyrgos tis Rigainas on the right and then on into a clearing.
There is a huge oak tree here and several seats as well as a spring and is an ideal and cool spot for a bite to eat and a drink. This clearing is a main "trails and track" junction and you can walk all over the Akamas from this spot.

From the oak tree the Aphrodite Trail is marked and leaves from the left of the clearing (i.e. do not cross over the dip by the spring). The quite rough path is rock strewn and the surface is an orange/red colour - the path starts to descend ever more steeply as it heads towards the coast - in places you really do have to be careful not to slip on the rubble. Eventually the path widens and becomes more level and you can see the way ahead for quite some distance. Continue along now with lots of trees either side - around 2 KMs from the oak tree take a marked path on the left - this path winds round the hill and soon you get a view of the camp site (by a seat) - the path is quite rubbly underfoot and narrow - it dives back on a hook and you need to take a lot of care just here because the surface is really slippery and there is a quite nice drop below you. After the hook the path ascends slightly - just at the top look out for a path down on the left - the path on the right is possible to use but not easy at all because of rocks and thorns. Continue down the zig zag to soon meet the original outbound track - go right and look out for a turnstyle which leads you to the Bath of Aphrodite and it's spring. From here just follow the path with the sightseers back to the car park.

More Cyprus Topics via our Cyprus Main Page and the Cyprus Walks Guides are summarised on our Cyprus Walks Page.

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Cyprus - Pafos Holiday Guide

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