​Our walk in amazing Vikos gorge!

Vikos gorge is one of the jewels of Greece's nature in the wider gorgeous Zagorochoria region (the name Zagori is derived from Slav and means 'behind the mountains'), which is found north of Ioannina, in Epirus, northwest Greece.  In one of a few variations, the walk starts at beautiful Monodendri village in central Zagori and finishes at the village of Vikos (walk length : 9 km / 6 mi, gorge depth of about 1,000 m / 3,300 f). This walk traverses the main part of Vikos gorge and takes nearly 6 hours to complete.  It is tiring for many walkers, as there are a lot of ascents and descents, and as the ground surface is uneven in many places, with small or large pebbles. Instead of taking the Vikos village route from Monodendri village, one could take the diversion to Megalo Papingo or Mikro Papingo village.  The route from Monodendri / Koukouli village to the Papingo villages is longer (12 km / more than 7 mi, about 7 hours of walking); we would recommend this only for the very experienced walkers (we find the walk to Vikos village extremely attractive and more than adequate as far as lovely views are concerned) .  Those of us who want (even) more exercise could start the walk further southeast in the village of Kipi (it would probably take  around 10 hours from Kipi to the Papingo villages). Probably the best time to do the Vikos gorge walk is late spring or autumn. In late spring many wild flowers are in bloom, the gorge is very green as trees and bushes have leaves and there is still a good flow of water in Voidomatis river. In autumn, one can observe the many earthy colours of trees loosing their leaves.  In summer the water quantity in Voidomatis river drops significantly, while in winter many of the trees and bushes loose their leaves.
​Vikos gorge is amazing, and a walk here can be an experience of a lifetime!
​For groups interested in doing the Vikos gorge walk Cyprus Walks Etc organise trips to Zagorochoria.  We recommend that such a trip includes also rafting in the turquoise water of Voidomatis river (very easy rafting in exquisite surroundings). Again the best time to organise a rafting trip in Voidomatis is probably late spring, when it is less likely to rain, while there's still adequate water in the river for rafting.