North Pelion
Kato Kerasia-Makrinitsa

The Kato Kerasia-Makrinitsa trail adopts the long route between the crowded and rich Makrinitsa and the rural Kato Kerasia via the isolated settlement of Leschiani.

With a length of 14 km, it is one of the longest hikes in Mt Pelion. The most interesting point of the route is the small agricultural settlement of Leschiani, hosting an old church dedicated to the Virgin.

The route Kato Kerasia-Makrinitsa starts from the center of Kato Kerasia and running on paths and alleys reaches the intersection of a dirt road with the asphalt road. From here we follow a dirt road, up to a crossroads, facing a farmhouse. Take the dirt road on the right and meet the beginning of the path.
In the beginning, the path is somewhat unclear, but soon enters a stony terrain, where it is well-trodden.
We cross a ravine with a permanent flow and next climb a meadow and go out on a narrow dirt track, cross it and continue on a clear path until we meet a large dirt road.

We will let this road when we arrive at the first plateau where we can see a large livestock facility: just before the facility, we go downhill to the right direction, following an old dirt road towards a ravine, which is usually dry. Cross it and after a while, walk again on the trail. The same dirt road, which we find again very soon, will take us to the hamlet of Leschiani. There we can see the church of Panagia Leschiani, an old fountain (usually dry) and some farms. From Leschiani, we continue walking on a well-preserved path which reaches the large stone bridge of Leschiani. We cross the stream one more time and go uphill following the trail on the rocky slope. When we reach the plateau of Loutsa, we see a large pond - usually dry by the end of the summer - and the remains of livestock facilities. From this point, we head higher using a clear path which goes along the rocky slope. Our next mark is the location Nyfis Mnima, where we will find another trough, with potable water, and another shepherds installation.
From this point, we go along the axis of aqueduct which supplies the trough and it is almost as broad as a dirt road. This corridor follows the shortest route possible, while there are also many parallel dirt roads. After we reach a large road junction, we enter the last section of our hike. The trail is clearly defined on the rocky and steep slope, but it might be partially covered with dense bushes. After weaving from side to side we cross the next stream and meet the dirt road. This road heads towards Stavros, above Makrinitsa (spot the large shrine). We follow a narrow path, in order to avoid walking on the road, and very soon we find ourselves hiking on the old cobbled paths of the settlement. The widest alley will take us to the town square of Makrinitsa.

Text and photos: T. Adamakopoulos