Oeta: Mavrolithari-Pirgos peak
Oeta: Mornos Valley
Mavrolithari-Pirgos peak
The ascent to the highest peak of Oeta from the beautiful village Mavrolithari is a fairly long, but extremely interesting route, moving on the SW side of the mountain. The hiking, however, is tiring, not that much due to the altitudinal difference of 1000 m, which is tempered by the rather mild slopes, but mainly by the almost total absence of a clear path and signs, which forces us to keep a constant eye on the navigation of our device.
The route starts with a dirt road on the NW side of the village, which we follow for approx. 600 m. At a point where we see a small flat area on our left, we turn and move in NE-N direction, without having a path to follow (only in small sections the route is somewhat clear). In fact, we traverse the SW end of Oeta through grasslands and fir forest sections, having constantly great view towards the other two legendary giants of Roumeli, Mt. Giona and Mt. Vardhousia.
Soon we enter a dense fir forest, where we still have troubles to trace a clear route. We move in N-NE direction, where the fir forest alters with open plain meadows, with scattered junipers and wild roses. Finally we reach a small ridge called Vretena, at the eastern side of which a dirt road leading to a livestock farm ends. If the shepherd dogs are present, it is wise to access the dirt road by keeping a distance from the pen.
We follow the dirt road for almost 1 km and at the first branching we leave it to move in N-NE direction through a fir covered slope. The route is upward but not very steep. We come out in a clearing, having a butte in front of us, which we bypass from its northern side following the relief of a small gully. Thanks to this gully our route is much more obvious, until we reach a dirt road at an altitude of 1930 m.
From this point we move on the road eastwards, crossing pastures with livestock farms and some rocky outcrops. Under one of these rocky formations, a valuable fountain with large supply gushes on the road level. A few tens of meters after, we leave the road in NE direction in order to cover the last part of the route.
We ascend a low slope at first and once we reach its highest point, a section with smooth inclination opens in front of us, maneuvering among dolines and bulky rocky outcrops until we reach at the base of Pyrgos pyramid. With a final effort we reach soon the Pyrgos peak, with the excellent view towards Mt. Vardhousia, Mt. Grammeni Oxia and Mt. Velouchi to the west, while in the east our sight enjoys the mild relief of the eastern part of Oeta massif.
topoguide Greece
A guide to Oeta
Oeta topoguide is available for Android devices as one of the dozens of available region of Greece via the topoguide Greece application. Oeta topoguide is a member of the Central Greece group. Get the Oeta guide as an in-app purchase through the app.
Oeta topoguide is also available for iOS (iPhone & iPad) devices via the application Topoguide Greece. Get the Oeta guide as an in-app purchase through the app, found in the Central Greece group.
topoguide Greece offers active navigation along the trails, as well as a comprehensive guide to the geography, the nature and the culture of the area.