
Artemis - Caledonia 21 km walking route
This is literally our top Cyprus walk, and it is composed of stretches of four official trails, one of which (Artemis trail) is the Cyprus trail with the highest elevation (1,800 meters). Artemis trail is circular, flat and has a length of seven km. Walkers pass by many pines and junipers.
Walkers may see barren rock at the top, while walking next to cliffs at points. Once walkers finish circular Artemis then they walk to Troodos Square via a norther part of Atalante trail. Troodos Square may be a good break point midway down the walk.
From Troodos Square walkers proceed to do almost the entire Persephone trail. The trail offers some interesting views, including views to an artificial hidden lake and towards the end, views to the Limassol coast. At some point walkers leave Persephone and continue on a dirt road west to the upper end of Caledonia Waterfalls trail. Along various stretches they enjoy even more views towards Limassol coast.
The linear Caledonia waterfall trail is very different from the rest of the walk. It runs next to a stream in a narrow valley and naturally the flora and fauna is very different (and richer). With a length of just three kilometers, it is quite steep (one needs to be very careful), and crosses the stream at points. Walkers may hear many songbirds (especially towards summer), though it is rather difficult to spot them. About midway one finds Caledonia Waterfall, a major natural attraction in the area. The water quantity is not significant usually, but the setting is nevertheless idyllic. The trail finishes in Platres village.
We definitely recommend that one does this walk when there is no snow cover (when there is snow here we recommend the 12 km Madari circular trail instead). Closer to summer one may see flowers in bloom that are past their blooking season in the lowlands. Even though it would be possible to do this walk also in summer, as temperatures are upto ten degrees lower than on the central plain (eg Nicosia), because it's relatively long, instead we recommend for summer the 11 km version that includes only the Artemis trail and the stretch of Atalante trail that brings travellers to Troodos Square.
Cyprus Walks Etc offers standard guided walking trips for circular walking routes that include a combination of Artemis and Myllomeris walking trails (one can book under Day Trips from Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaca, Ayia Napa, Protaras) . We offer customisable guided walking trips focused on the Artemis-Caledonia trail walking route. We also offer self-guided walking trips, from a number of villages on Troodos, that mainly include GPS information about the routes and relevant transportation. The route is excellent year round, especially for its vistas on many parts, the particular rock strata at the top and the variety in its vegetation. Because the route is rather long we do not recommend it during July and August. You are welcomed to book with us.