It is one of the most remarkable gorges of Sfakia, where a few couples of wild goats still live (the seldom Cretan Chamois).

Its passage starts from the village of Agios Ioannis in Sfakia (at an altitude of 780 m and a distance of 92 km from Chania). You need around 1 hour in order to reach the location of Kormokopos, where there are caves with water, before starting descending the gorge (up to that point, you need a guide).

The gorge ends in the very beautiful piny sand beach of the Libyan Sea, after another 2 hours’ walk. From the beach to Agia Roumeli, you have to walk one more hour. The above crossing covers half the gorge. If you wish to cross all of Elygia, you need an experienced guide and at least 2 days at your disposal. You start from the plateau of Omalos and walk via the refuge of Kallergi and the summit of Melintaou (at an altitude of 2133 m) before reaching the location “Potamos” in the White Mountains.

After a vertical descent of 10 m, you reach the bottom of the gorge and walk on up to the coast of the Libyan Sea. The Omalos – Potami trek takes 6 hours and another 6 hours from there to the coast.

Source Region of Crete