Epta Piges, Ancient Kamiros and Butterfly Valley
Today is our last day and night staying in Pefkos before heading back to Rhodes town in the morning.
My lovely tour guide friend Julie had given me some information on Rhodes and today we are going to drive North and inland to Epta Piges (Seven Springs).
When we arrive it is hard to identify where the seven springs actually are. Two of my compadres decide to walk through one of the springs via the man made tunnel. My sister and I took a forest path expecting it to lead us to the other end of the tunnel. We never actually found the other end of the tunnel – and for a while we didn’t find our other halves. However, we enjoy the forest walk where we came across peacocks, ducks, geese and turtles. Eventually as we approach the waterfalls we spot the remainder of our gang coming towards us.
Although Epta Piges wasn’t really what I expected we did get some good exercise in in a really pretty setting.
The second port of call today is Ancient Kamiros. We head west across the island and realise we have almost completed a circle from where we finished our trip to Monolithos the day before.
Even when we park the car we can see that this location offers some fabulous views as the site sits on a cliff edge above the sea. It is only 6 euros entry and the site is a lot bigger than I expected. It isn’t too crowded and already this is a much better experience than the one we had at Lindos the day before.
Ancient Kamiros was built by the Dorians in prehistoric times. It was built on three levels. At the top of the hill was the acropolis with a temple dedicated to Athena. A main street leads down to residences for the rich and the poor, down past smaller temples and a place for sacrificial offerings The site ends up at the public baths at the bottom of the hill. All of this was served by a water system that was fed by a reservoir that was built in the 6th century. This water system still works today.
Unfortunately this city was struck by devastating earthquakes in 226BC and 142BC giving it the name of the Pompeii of Rhodes.
As we are in the area we decide to drive to Kamiros Skala, a small port on the West coast of Rhodes. I will be travelling to Halki the following day and wanted to check out the timetables for the boats. I was in a bit of a dilemma as my family fly home the following day and will be heading back to Rhodes town in the morning. I have a choice of travelling back to Kamiros Skala in the morning or to head back to Rhodes with the gang. I know that a ferry leaves from Rhodes town at 3.00am in the morning and I really didn’t fancy the idea of this. However, Kamiros is a small port and I conclude that this is not the option for me. Little did I know at this time that I would be seeing (and travelling on) the Nikos Express another time during my stay on Halki!
Our final visit of the day is the Valley of the Butterflies which is inland and North. We are definitely making the most of the hire car!
I had been told before we arrived that we have already missed the season when the forest is filled with life. In addition to this, the presence of tourists in the valley have impacted on the numbers of butterflies. The guide tells me this – “The butterfly has an atrophic peptic system, meaning has no stomach. From May until the mating period (for the males), and until the egg lying period (for the females) they do not eat. They survive from the energy stored from their previous lives as caterpillars. The disturbance of visitors is forcing the butterflies to fly all day, consuming valuable energy. Visitors should not be denied the enjoyment of viewing the butterflies at rest, but it is prohibited to disturb them in any way (hand clapping, whistling etc).”
It is 3 euros each to enter the valley and again it offers us an attractive walk through a forest with waterfalls and springs. We do see the odd butterfly flitting around the forest but at the end of September all that remains are the stragglers.
We are now exhausted. We head back to Pefkos passing more dramatic landscape.
When we arrive back at the hotel all that is on our mind is sleep but somehow we manage to force ourselves out again for our final meal. We loved Valentina’s Restaurant in Lardos so much we head back there. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about their stuffed plums wrapped in bacon. I ask if the chef will share the recipe with us but the answer is no! 🙂
That is it for our stay in Pefkos. I don’t think it’s a place that I will stay again though we really loved the Eagles Nest. The purpose of this stay was to catch up with a dear friend that I hadn’t seen for 9 years and to explore other parts of Rhodes.
I had said previously that I had in the past dismissed Rhodes and only ever seen it as a jumping off point to another island. However, I have had an opportunity to see how diverse the island is and it has given me a new enthusiasm for it. I’m sure there is still far more to discover!
