My personal top 7 in West Crete OR "Good road, asphalt"

First, let me explain the title of this story. On our first day in Viglia we asked our hostess Irini about different places to go. The two I wanted to see for sure were Balos and Elafonisi. Irini said that although Balos is actually very close to the hotel itself, the road there is not too good – it is unpaved, so the driving will be quite slow. After hearing this, we decided to leave Balos for later, when we have gotten used to local driving realities. 

“And what about Elafonisi?” – I asked Irini.

“Oh, it’s a good road, asphalt” – she replied.

And so we decided to go to Elafonisi on our first day in Crete. Now, please keep in mind that my driving license was only half a year old during that time. I bravely started driving, got green the face after reaching the first mountain, then almost fainted when some goats jumped out on the road, and at last got out of the car sweaty and trembling after some 30 minutes (which felt like 30 hours to me) and let Zsolt drive the rest of the way. Since then “good road, asphalt” is a saying in our family, describing the road, which is really far from being easy.

So, enough of the introductions. Let’s see where we actually went.

1. Falassarna

Falassarna is a beach on the Western side of Crete, and is famous for “amazing sunsets”. It was also a short drive from us, so we went there on the evening of our arrival to be amazed by the sunset. It was nice, but we were not amazed.

In fact it was there we realised that Lithuanian sea coast actually does have pretty good sunset. It doesn’t excel in many things, like sea temperature, water transparency, aquatic life or others. But it does have great sunsets: Lithuania is facing directly West and is placed high up North enough to have nice slow sun-setting speed, which allow you enough time to sit in the cozy dunes, open a bottle of wine and actually finish it with a serving of smoked fish.

Here we had in fact have just enough time to jump out of the car, unbuckle Mark from his seat, appreciate the view, realise that the batteries of both our phones are dead and no pictures of this historical moment will be taken. And that was it. Good we didn’t bring our fish dinner with us.

2. Elafonisi

Crystal clear water

As you know, reaching it was not easy, but after I took the passenger seat, I really enjoyed. We were staying in Crete in April, so it did have advantages and disadvantages. Disadvantage – really cold sea. Advantage – not too many tourists. 

Pink sand of Elafonisi

And in that sense Elafonisi is perfect in April. It is very shallow, so the sea gets very warm and you can swim and enjoy the sandy beach. And it is not overcrowded, as it gets later in the season.

The dunes reminded me a bit of the Baltic Sea

Elafonisi is actually a tiny (1.5 km2) island in the southwestern corner of Crete, but is very close to the mainland – so close that you can actually walk to this island through the shallow water. 

Local flora

And after you get there, you can enjoy the views of the blue sea and pink-ish sand. Yes, beautiful, yes, absolutely worth going there on this good road asphalt.

3. Topolia Gorge

View on the Gorge

The idea was to mix the sea views with mountain views and Crete is good for that. 

A tree in a challenging tree-pose

Less than an hour (scary) drive from us was Topolia Gorge – less famous than other Cretan gorges, for example, Samaria, and therefore again not overcrowded. The path is described as moderate, and there are tavernas with car parks at the both ends of the gorge. Also, if you are driving to or from Elafonisi, there is a chance you will pass Topolia anyway. If so, do mark it on your map - it's worth seeing, and the taverna next to it is definitely worth visiting as well. 

It's April, so everything is green and blooming

Our walk started peacefully in the olive tree valley and continued along the stream, becoming more and more challenging, the path getting very narrow. 

Goats crossing a stream

Zsolt taking Mark for a walk under the olive trees

After climbing over a couple of stones half my height and walking in the blazing (April) heat without any shade in sight, we had to admit that this adventure stopped being baby-friendly or even baby-appropriate, and we can come back to finish the whole route at some later stage. 

Again, a peaceful walk back

Or not, as we did most of it anyway.

And the reward was a huge Cretan salad for lunch. 

Oh, how I wished the figs were ripe!

 

4. Aspri Limni Beach and Lagoon

It looked a bit like a scene from a film about different planet

First, please be advised that the last part of the road is total shit! If you have rented a little car, Corsa or Micra, like we did and almost all other tourists in Crete do, then you have very high chance to 

damage it while driving.

Herds of goats on our way

The road is full of stones, spiky branches, sudden hills and turns. And no people, only goats around, so you would have to find it yourself. 

Rocks & water

After driving several times in wrong directions, we decided to give it one last chance and actually got on the correct road. 

I told you, completely empty!

And when we got there, it felt amazing: as if the whole lagoon is ours, no people anywhere in sight for miles. 

Tiny Ana and Mark in Aspri Limni

You can actually climb on the rocks rather far into the sea, and then take a picture back

5. Balos and Gramvousa

Yo-ho-ho, a pirate life for me!

It is a bay and two islands nearby, which was used by pirates in the older days. It is now recognised as one of the main sights on Crete due to the beauty of the bay and especially blue water. 

Shades of blue and lunar landscapes

You can reach Balos either by car or by boat.

The views are spectacular, but I'm walking in the blazing heat with a baby, and already getting worried.

The boat leaves from Kissamos once a day and comes back there once a day as well, leaving you a full day to explore Balos. Also, being a boat, it will only take you to the sea level point, aka the beach. If you want to see the breathtaking view from the top, you have to climb all the way up yourself.

View on Gramvousa

We wanted more flexibility, so we took the car. The distance from our hotel was about 20 km, and our speed also was around 20 km/h for the whole duration of this drive.

Goats and sheep hiding in the shade of a small church

And after arriving there we were met by local goats. First it was funny. Then they wanted to climb in the car and steal our oranges. Stealing food is never funny. 

Aaaa, do not steal our oranges!

Older and younger thieves

You leave your car at the car park closest to the viewpoint, but there is still some 30-minutes walk through a mega-hot mini-desert before you can enjoy the view. I did my best to hide Mark from the sun, but he is actually in the photo.

There are three of us in this picture, yes! Mark didn't get to enjoy the view though.

6. Milia Traditional Village

Milia is a kind of eco-settlement, a preserved village, looking the way it was supposed to do a couple of hundred years ago, but of course having the nice perks of modern life, such as clean and comfortable bedding and internet. 

Our original plan was actually to stay in Milia for the whole week, as it seemed perfectly within our concept: eating traditional Cretan food and watching beautiful Cretan landscapes. However, although within the concept, it was far out of our budget. But we did want to visit it.

It is actually newly built from the old stones

The road went up and up the mountain and then – when we thought we already are on the top – up again. I was happy that Zsolt did all the driving and didn’t even offer my help for this ride. And the view was really worth it: you feel on top of the world.

On top of the world

In Milia we met a nice manager, who seemed very angry about the refugee situation and what the people are forced to go through (remember, it is now April 2016), discussed the politics of Victor Orban and other dictators, and gave us a guided tour around the village, which was actually extremely peaceful. Later I definitely could consider some yoga or writing retreat there. 

Beautiful architecture

He got so fascinated with Mark that he gave him a little bottle of local raki as a present with the instructions to dig it into the ground in our yard and later dig out for Mark’s wedding. We decided to disobey the instructions slightly and to keep it only until his 18 birthday. Still long enough. 

And beautiful views

We had lunch: some very random grass freshly picked from the mountain, steamed, sprinkled with salt and drizzled with lemon juice and olive oil (very generously).

Weeds with salt, lemon and olive oil

And then some bean stew. 

Beans with carrots and potatoes

It was there we found out that the actual famous traditional Cretan diet is not what we have imagined. The base for it is not feta cheese, fresh fish or grilled goat meat. It is climbing up and down the mountains picking herbs and beans from your almost vertical garden. And yes, a lot of bread and olive oil. And if you are lucky, some yoghurt and fish – once in a blue moon. Locals, please correct me if I’m wrong.

7. Lake Kournas

This was our last day trip in this visit, so I remember it now with a little hint of sadness, even though the lake is definitely worth visiting. 

Emerald water

It has emerald water colour and two highlights:

- Goat dishes, which you can taste in small open restaurants on the shore of the lake
- Lake turtles. For this you have to rent a little pedal boat and go around the lake. 

Geese taking a walk along the shore

The first mission – goat – was successful. The second – seeing turtles – not so much, we saw about half of the turtle properly, and managed to catch none of them for pictures.

More geese and more green water