Rethymnon - Georgioupolis - Kouma
lake - Vrysses - Askyfou - Imbros -
Komitades - Chora Sfakion - Anopolis -
Frangocastello - Rodakino - Selia -
Lefkogeia - Preveli Monastery - Koxare
- Anneni - Rethymnon.

We take the national road from Rethym-
non (new coastal road) in a westerly di-
rection towards Chania, following the
coast. Three kilometres further to the
west, a detour leads south to the villages ofAtsipopoulo, Prines, Gonia.

Further west along the new national
road (7 kms. from Rethymnon) we come
to a flyover towards Gerani, where an
interesting cave with stalactites and
stalagmites was discovered, containing
important archaeological finds.

We continue along the new coastal national road for another 7.5 kms. west-
wards and, just before Georgoupolis,we come to an intersection with a road to
the south for Kourna. Here is where the
only lake on Crete, lake Kourna, is to
be found, with the impressive White
Mountains in the background.

We return to the intersection with the
national road and continue right for ap-
proximately another 500 metres to
Georgoupolis. This is a seaside village
in Almyros bay, offering accommodation for tourists and a lovely beach.

We have now left the new national road
and follow the old national road towards Vrysses, a village with many springs and brooks and lush vegetation.

Vrysses is at a point where several
roads meet.

We take the road leading southwards
towards Chora Sfakion. This passes
i. hrough Alikambos, Askyfou - on the
plateau of the same name, at an altitude of 720 m. - Kares, Ammoudari, Petres (villages known for the heroic struggles of the people of the region of Sfakia against the Turks), and Imbros or Nimbros

- the highest village of the area, built at an altitude of 780 metres, on a small plateau with a magnificent view of the Libyan sea.
We begin our descent. The road passes
through the Nimbros gorge, with its wild and sheer walls. It is 6-7 kms. in length and its width at certain points is only 2 metres, while the height of its vertical sides is over 300 metres. It is one of the most impressive, as well as one of the narrowest, gorges in Crete and, in some parts, its walls are so close together that it seems like a tunnel.

Our road passes at a great height along
the western side of the gorge. Further
south, a right fork leads, after 3 kms., to
Chora Sfakion and ends up in Anopolis.
Chora Sfakion, 40 kms. from Vrysses,
is a small harbour built in a steep, barren and inaccessible area on a rocky coast.

The fact that the village was in such an
isolated position, approachable with
difficulty both by land and by sea, was
responsible, in great measure, for the
stubborn, proud and unsubmissive
character of the people ofSfakia.

During the Venetian period, the inhab-
itants were active in shipping and com-
merce and were very wealthy, owning their own ships and their own fine mansions. The village was one of the
most prosperous in Crete. The foreign
rulers were never able to impose their
absolute domination over the town.

Around 1530, the Venetians built a fort-
ress on the hill which is today known as
Castelli. However, it only had one tow-
er, and only served as the residence of
the "provleptis". Today, very few of the
remains of this fortress can still be seen.
During the early years of Ottoman rule,
the people of Sfakia continued their
shipping activities and their wealth in-
creased accordingly. They lived almost
as free people, since the Turks avoided
approaching this wild and inaccessible
area. This was where a great many in-
surrections started during the struggle
for freedom from Ottoman rule. After
an unsuccessful revolution, the village
was destroyed and many freedom-fighters, including the leader of the revolt,
suffered a martyr's death. (1770).

The people of Sfakia also took part in
the resistance movement against the
Germans. On May 31st, 1941, after the
Battle of Crete and the establishment
on the island of the forces of occupation,
the local people helped in the escape of
the Australian and New Zealand troops who had remained on the island as a
rear-guard.

The tiny harbour of Sfakia vibrates with life in the summer, when the caiques from Aghia Roumeli bring in hikers who have crossed the Samaria gorge. (See Route Chania 2). This is where the hikers board the KTEL buses or private coaches which will take them back to Chania or Rethymnon.

One or two weekly services, by a small
boat, link Chora Sfakion throughout the
year with the island of Ga vdos opposite,
in the Libyan sea.

The village disposes of a limited
number of beds for visitors in a small
hotel, a pension and rooms for rent.

To the northwest of Chora Sfakion lies
Anopolis, built on approximately the
same site as the ancient town of the
same name. Its history is similar to that
of neighbouring Chora. It was a revolu-
tionary centre during Venetian rule, as
well as later during Ottoman rule. Its
inhabitants used the nearby harbour of
Loutro, a few kilometres to the south, in
a sheltered bay, for their shipping ac-
tivities.

On March 25th 1770, the rebel leader,
Daskaloyiannis from Anopoli, raised
the flag of the revolution against the
Turks, inciting the chieftains from Sfa-
kia to revolt. This revolution was drown-
ed in blood, Daskaloyiannis was exe-
cuted, and all the villages in the Sfakia
area were destroyed.

We return to the crossroads with the
road descending to the south (at the
37th km.) from Vrysses, and continue
eastwards, following the southern coast.

We pass through the villages of Komi-
tades (at the point where the three
roads meet - the village has two note-
worthy Byzantine churches, that of Aghioi Apostoloi and Aghios Georgios), then through Vraskas, Vouvas, Nomikiana, Patsianos.

Here there is a fork to the right which
leads, after approximately 2 kms., to
Frangocastello, with its impressive fortress and enchanting beaches.

The fortress was built by the Venetians
in 1371, in a lonely spot, with no settlement ("burgo") around it, and was intended to protect this part of the south-
ern coast from raids and to put down
the uprisings of the local population.

The people of Sfakia called it Frangocas-
tello, that is "fortress of the Franks". It
is rectangular in shape, with strong walls and a square tower in each corner. It is similar in construction to the lerapetra fortress.

Above its gate there is a carved lion of
Saint Mark, and to the left and right, in
relief, the crowns of Venetian noblemen. The buildings within the castle precinct are Turkish, built on Venetian foundations. Near the castle, towards the sea, the ruins of a church of Saint Haralambos can still be seen.

After Patsianos, we continue eastwards towards Kapsodasos, Skaloti (before Skaloti, another detour to the right leads back to Frangocastello), Argoules, Ano Rodakino, Kato Rodakino - in an area full of olive groves.

From Rodakino, a road of two kilometres in length descends southwards, towards the beach ofKorakas and the little seaside settlement of Polyrizo. We continue towards Selia, Myrthos, Mariou and Lefkogeia. From Selia and from Lefkogeia there are roads leading to the lovely seaside settlement of Plakias, deep in the bay of the same name. It attracts many visitors on holiday or on day trips during the summer, and offers accommodation in hotels and rooms to rent, as well as restaurants, tavernas, etc. The beaches of Damnoni, Ammoudi, Skinaria are quieter.

From Plakias, there are excursions by
caique to Frangocastello, Limni Preveli, Aghia Galini and Chora Sfakion.

From Lefkogeia, a road (half-tarred, half-dirt) leads eastwards and then southwards to the Preveli monastery,
south of the village ofAsomatos. This is
a 16th or 17th century monastery. Its
church, of a later date, is dedicated to

Saint John the Divine and is built on an
enchanting spot - a hill with a superb view towards the Libyan sea.

A dirt road leads to the Preveli coast, at
the mouth of the Kourtaliotis river.
Just before the point where the Kourtaliotis meets the sea, its waters form a small lake. This coast and the area around it is one of the most idyllic spots
in Crete.

The monastery, which acquired a huge
extent of landed property thanks to the
offerings of its faithful, has twenty cells, a guest house, a library and a museum, where vestments, holy vessels and important religious relics are exhibited. On a fountain outside, there is a carved inscription bearing the date 1701.

Inside the church there is a very valuable silver chandelier, a Holy Cross covered in gold and inlaid with precious stones, which is believed to perform miracles, an intricately carved episcopal throne and pulpit.

As is the case with most of the monas-
teries of Crete, Preveli played a very important role in the struggle against the
Turks and during the German occupation, offering refuge to a number of Greek freedom-fighters and to allied soliders who took part in the Battle of Crete.

We return to Asomatos and continue
northwards towards Koxares, through
the impressive Kourtaliotis gorge, with
its wild, unspoiled scenery and the pic-
turesque stream of the same name
running through it.

The gorge is approximately 2000 m. in
length and its entrance is situated 2
kms. south of Koxares.
From here we continue approximately
500 metres to the east and find our-
selves at the 20.5 km. mark of the Rethymnon - Armenoi - Spili - Aghia
Galini road. We take the opposite direc-
tion to that of route 14 (from south to
north) and end up in Rethymnon