KOUKOULI-BRIDGES-KIPI-KOUKOULI (4,9 km. circular)
Stone bridges, beautiful villages, lush paths: In the heart of central Zagori!
A circular hiking route for the whole family, which through famous bridges and lush paths, will highlight the uniqueness of the region.
The route in brief:
Koukouli → Kokkoris Bridge → Captain Arkoudas Bridge → Plakida Bridge (Tri-arched) → Mylos Bridge → Kipi → Vikaki Gorge → Kondodimos Bridge → Koukouli Steps → Koukouli
The route in detail:
Our journey to the unique nature and architecture of Zagori starts from the village of Koukouli, located at the edge of the Vikos Gorge and due to its glorious and prosperous past, it preserves unique mansion houses and other monuments of Zagorian architecture. In Koukouli we will also have the opportunity to meet the legendary “Vikos doctors” at the K. Lazaridis Natural History and Botanical Museum.
We take the trail from the square and head towards one of the famous bridges of the area, the bridge of Kokkoris or Noutsos. We then head towards the bridge of Captain Arkoudas, from where a lush path starts that will take us to the tri-arched bridge Plakida or Kalogeriko one of the most impressive examples of local architecture. We continue through the flora and impressive rocks and after a while we come across the Mylos bridge, where we will talk about the history, legends and mysteries surrounding these unifying architectural constructions.
Our next stop is the village of Kipi. Following the traditional cobbled streets to the top, passing by impressive mansions and stone fountains, we arrive at Aghios Nikolaos to enjoy the view and the creations of nature and people.
We leave Kipi behind and cross the beautiful and verdant little Vikaki Gorge, through the Kondodimos bridge. On the opposite bank begins one of the famous steps of Zagori, one of those unique monuments of folk architecture, the Koukouli Steps, which is preserved in a very good condition. After the final part of our hike in the shade of the trees, we reach Koukouli, where we will enjoy our tsipouro under the century-old plane tree of the square.
Meeting Point: Koukouli
Finishing point: Koukouli (circular)
Level: Easy (for the whole family and all experience levels)
Duration: Half day (3-4 hours)
Included: EcoMuseum escort, visit to the Natural History and Botanical Museum of K. Lazaridis, light lunch with herbal tea
