Lefka Ori
Lefka Ori is a Greek national park on the island of Crete. It was founded in 1962 on the territory of the Samaria Gorge - the deepest gorge in Europe. The Samaria gorilla in length stretches for more than 15 km, and the width decreases from three hundred meters to three. Park area 48.5 km2.
This name was given by the gorge in honor of the nearest village of Samaria, the village was previously named after the church of Osias-Maryas. The inhabitants of the village were resettled after the assignment of the territory as a national park.
The land of Lefka Ori Park was mastered by a man a very long time ago. Then they discovered the ruins of temples, which were possibly built in honor of Artemis and Apollo. In the 6th century BC, the famous city of Tarra was located in the gorge, which even had its own coins. On one side of the coin, a bee minted, and on the other side a goat's head. In those days, the river in the gorge was called Tarreos. Greek and Roman scholars mentioned the city of Tarra in their writings. During the reign of the Romans, the city reached its peak. When the Turks captured the island, residents of the Safaki region defended themselves in the gorge, who, after bloody battles, were able to hold the Samaria Gorge. During World War II, the Greek government emigrated to Egypt went here.
The National Park was created to save the unique White Mountains ( Lefka Ori ), its flora and fauna. Only here lives the mountain goat cree cries and several other rare species of plants and animals. From animals to the gorge it is easy to meet cunits, badgers, partridges, golden eagles, eagles, as well as over four hundred species of plants. Almost the entire park is covered with forests of cypress trees, pines and oaks.
The first tourists on the territory of the gorge appeared in 1931, when the Greek climbing society began to organize rare trips of tourist groups. Since 1962, hiking has become systematic, in 1969 the Lefka-Ori National Park was taken into circulation by travel agencies. About two hundred thousand people pass through the park over the year. And at the peak of the gorge there can be 3,000 people, so that it creates some difficulties for movement. Therefore, you must go to the park as early as possible. It is best to visit the national park in the spring, since it is very hot here in the summer.
It takes about five hours to pass the gorge. For unprepared people, the route can be very painful. The route passes along the river, which almost completely dries in summer. For convenience, the trail is equipped with places for relaxation with toilets and water sources. The safety of the park is monitored by foresters on mules.
The route is laid so that visitors can see local attractions: the churches of Agios Nikolaos, St. Mary of Egypt, Osia Maria. On the route comes the village of Samaria, whose houses have been restored. The village has a pharmacy, telephone, helipad forest guard point. Four kilometers from the village is the narrowest part of the gorge, called the Portes mop. In this place, the width of the Samaria Gorge is approximately 3.5 meters, and the height is almost three hundred meters.
In winter and early spring, Lefka-Ori Park is closed for visiting, because from the rains, rabid streams of water rush through the gorge, and stone blocks break from the mountains. You can’t sleep in the park, for this, visitors check at the entrance and exit to the park. The entrance is paid.
