Cave of Zeus and hike through the Roza Gorge

In the morning we drove first along the coast and then inland over the mountains to reach the cave of Psychro.

We also crossed the Lassithi plateau.

It lies at an altitude of 817 m to 850 m and is surrounded by high mountains.

We passed the remains of several windmills that are said to have once stood across the entire plain. They were used to pump groundwater into the fertile plain for irrigation.

Today, windmills in their white splendor can only be seen at restaurants and a museum that hope to attract tourists.

When we arrived in the village of Psichró, a tourist infrastructure awaited us: there were souvenir shops, restaurants and a parking attendant who also collected the parking fee straight away.

About a kilometer uphill, a well-developed path led to the Dictean Cave, in which, according to legend, the father of the gods, Zeus, was born.

If you want to avoid the climb, you can also have a donkey carry you, but we decided against it.

Already on the way there was a beautiful view over the plateau.

The cave goes deep down again and beyond the daylight you can admire the stalagmites and stalactites.

Back in the sun we left the plateau again and stopped in the small village of Kera.

There a hiking trail leads into the Roza Gorge.

Before we went all the way down, we first hiked a little higher and along the mountains above the gorge.

We walked past olive trees through the mountains, accompanied by the sound of the goats' bells in the surrounding area.

The initially very wide path became a little narrower and then led down into the gorge.

Here we followed the course of a dried-up river bed.

In some places, overcoming the rocks required some climbing.

But there was also a great landscape to admire.

At the end of the hike we went steeply uphill again, which was quite exhausting in the sun.

At one point we missed a staircase and had to climb up over a pile of rubble, which turned out to be not that easy.

Later, the narrow path right next to the precipice was at least secured with a sturdy railing, but led steeply upwards for a long stretch.

Finally we reached a viewing platform from which we could once again see the gorge and also observe some eagles circling above it.

From here the route was much easier to manage, although not entirely without inclines.

At the hiking car park for the gorge, we saw a sign that described the path as a “relaxing walk.” This probably only meant the part up to the viewing platform, but even this was not easy to walk...

Finally, we went through an olive grove and then back to the town.

As a reward, we had an ice cream with a view in the tavern before we set off on the way back.

The goats were also on their way home and were walking beside - and on - the road...