For many people it is a dream to one day in their life climb a mountain. The highest mountain on Crete is the Psiloritis with a height of 2456 meters. In the wintertime the mountain is covered with snow and ice, but during the summer this has melted. The mountain looks fairly impressive and can be seen from many angels on the Island. During the years the people living on the mountain discovered paths that where leading to the top. They were able to find ways to walk to the top without "climbing". There are several known paths now which, if you know them, are quite safe to walk. The starting points of the walk differ. The main ways up to the top are from Anogia and from Fourforas. Recently they opened a new entrance to one of the paths leaving from Livadia. This makes it possible to drive up to a height of 1700 meters with a car and from there on walk on a path of about 3km to the top.

If you arrive on the highest point of Crete, you will find the Holy Cross. For the Cretans this is an important memorial and many of them kneeled down in front of this cross one or more times in their life. Besides this, the top of the mountain gives breathtaking views over a large part of the Island. The sea on the north and south coast of the Island can be seen. If the weather is clear, amazing pictures can be taken form the many small villages on the slopes of the mountain.

Find the Psiloritis Mountain on this Google maps location: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Psiloritis,+Syvritos,+Crete,+Greece&hl=en&ll=35.248423,24.750137&spn=0.314022,0.676346&sll=35.21421,25.442963&sspn=0.600255,1.352692&t=h&z=11

It is advised to make a guided tour to the top of the mountain. The walks are different in duration and as with every mountain, the weather can change quickly. This can bring you in problems and knowing what to do and where to go can save you from this.

For more information visit the website of the Greek association of mountaineers Rethymno: http://eos.rethymnon.com/index.html