Walking the Islands... email@walkingtheislands.com
...Sporades island walks
About Skyros
Skyros is an individual: there seems to be little affinity with the other Sporades, Alonnisos, Skopelos and Skiathos, apart from a daily summer hydrofoil connection. It’s 60Km away, is much larger, a 30 x 10 Km dumbbell shape but with a population of only about 3000. Architecturally, it has a distinctive character, part Sporades, part Cyclades, but the delicious smell of pine trees which welcomes you into the woods is reminiscent of the other Sporades.
On Skyros you’ll find:
- a pirate-proof hilltop Chora par excellence, with a Venetian Castro atop a towering crag
- a strong cultural, historical and artistic identity notably promoted by Manos Faltaitz in the Faltaitz museum
- a strong link with Achilles, who hid here disguised as a girl, hence the port of Achilli
- the poet Rupert Brooke is buried at Tris Boukes Bay and commemorated by a statue near the Castro
- the Skyros Centre, a holistic holiday community based at Atsitsa (Ατσιτσα), on the west coast
Skyros is an island of two halves. The lower north is forested, with the craggy peaks of Olympos, 400m, rising above the treetops. The 3Km isthmus, currently farmed, which you cross as you head into the southern half, barely rises above sea level. The ground to the south rapidly rises however to Mount Kochilas (Κοχηιλας), a 790m bulky limestone dome, double the height of Olympos. The southern hills are very empty and fairly arid, though there are wild ponies that shelter in little holm-oak filled hollows high in the hills.
Getting to Skyros
- Skyros is connected to Athens by internal flights (up to three per week) which take about 40 minutes www.olympicairlines.com.
- By sea, it’s less accessible than the other Sporades most of the year, and the main (almost exclusive) departure port, Kimi on Evia takes longer by bus from Athens.
- In the summer the twice daily sailings (2 hours) of the car ferry Lycomidis from Kimi are joined by a few hydrofoil trips a week from Thessaloniki (6 hours), Volos (4 hours), and the other Sporades.
- The sea routes and schedules are listed on www.gtpnet.com
Getting around Skyros
- Skyros, out on its own, has much less of a transport network than the inner Sporades, though there are roads between the towns, ports and airport, taxis and vehicle hire as with the other islands.
- A bus links the port of Linaria, via Aspous and Achilli to the airport and the Chora, Molos and the settlements on the coastal plain nearby.
- There is little in the way of a day boat service.
- The paths and tracks are variable, though the inclusion of a set of numbered routes in the Topos map (see below) published in 2006 may open them up.
- One issue here is that the southern massif is very unfrequented and so it’s important to take the necessary precautions when walking there.
Staying on Skyros
Rooms are plentiful in the Chora, in Linaria and in the beach villages of Magasia Molos and Pouria in the coastal strip area under the crag. There are campsites here and at Linaria.
There are one or two hotels scattered about, including one at Acherounes and one at Kalamitsa, almost the only habitation on Vouno, the southern half.
Maps and other information
When searching for information, be aware of the alternative spellings, Skyros and Skiros.
The excellent Anavasi Topos map, at 1:40,000 ISBN 960-8195-83-7, is perfect for walking. Details at www.anavasi.gr.
There is also a hand-drawn and very detailed map in Greek and English, an extraordinary labour of love which was published privately in the 1980s.
Skyros Travel produced a map in the 1990s.
There’s a very detailed guide book: 'Skyros', Manos Faltaitz, Collection magazine, Athens 1987
Some websites for Skyros
...and don’t forget Google maps gives you a satellite view, which is fascinating www.google.co.uk/maps