OUR final excursion of the year has been for three days with our senior citizen group KAPI, to the western tip of the island to visit the former pirate outpost of Gramvousa and the fantastic lagoon of Balos, and the efforts was worth it. We were based in Chania for two nights at the Hotel Kriti. Been here before and very good value, only 300 meters from the main town.
There was time on the first and second nights to explore the town and have a meal. One shock was the small local hotel by the harbour we had been to before has now changed hands and upped all their prices for the winter, so that has been crossed off our list.
However the main reason for the trip was the island of Gramvousa. Departing from the port of Kissamos and travelling for approximately 55 minutes in the gulf, first you see a vast cave, that is believed to have been the ancient shipyard - Tarsanas. It is found near the Roman city of Agnion, thought to be the god Apollo (today Ag. Sostis).
At the end of the Gulf there is an impressive geological phenomenon where, as a result of the passage of time, the western part of the island is raised, while the eastern part is sunk.
This phenomenon was created by catastrophic earthquakes that took place in 66 BC and 365 BC. These earthquakes, caused by the movement of the lithospheric plates of Africa, caused the abrupt elevation of Crete from 6m to 9m above sea level. This ancient sea level can still be seen today as a black trace along the rocky coast. According to scientific estimates, this geographical phenomenon is still continuing today, but at a much slower rate.
During the voyage across the gulf passengers often come across marine turtles (Caretta Caretta), the Mediterranean seal (Monachus Monachus) and dolphins of the region, no such luck for us however.
We were impressed with the island, although declined the long haul up to the very top to explore the castle fortress. Sneaked a few pictures from another source so we could see what was missed.. However Balos was something else, little rock pools from which you could extract sea-salt before the main lagoon. Walking knee deep it was a great experience.
There was time on the first and second nights to explore the town and have a meal. One shock was the small local hotel by the harbour we had been to before has now changed hands and upped all their prices for the winter, so that has been crossed off our list.
However the main reason for the trip was the island of Gramvousa. Departing from the port of Kissamos and travelling for approximately 55 minutes in the gulf, first you see a vast cave, that is believed to have been the ancient shipyard - Tarsanas. It is found near the Roman city of Agnion, thought to be the god Apollo (today Ag. Sostis).
At the end of the Gulf there is an impressive geological phenomenon where, as a result of the passage of time, the western part of the island is raised, while the eastern part is sunk.
This phenomenon was created by catastrophic earthquakes that took place in 66 BC and 365 BC. These earthquakes, caused by the movement of the lithospheric plates of Africa, caused the abrupt elevation of Crete from 6m to 9m above sea level. This ancient sea level can still be seen today as a black trace along the rocky coast. According to scientific estimates, this geographical phenomenon is still continuing today, but at a much slower rate.
During the voyage across the gulf passengers often come across marine turtles (Caretta Caretta), the Mediterranean seal (Monachus Monachus) and dolphins of the region, no such luck for us however.
We were impressed with the island, although declined the long haul up to the very top to explore the castle fortress. Sneaked a few pictures from another source so we could see what was missed.. However Balos was something else, little rock pools from which you could extract sea-salt before the main lagoon. Walking knee deep it was a great experience.
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