AMAZINGPLA.NET

October 2023

After arriving at Thessaloniki Airport SKG, it takes approximately 1.5 – 2 hours driving to reach Mt. Olympus National Park. The easiest way to get there is by rental car. You can either start the tour at Litchoro village (ELEV 293 m) or, if you just have limited time, drive up to Prionia (ELEV 1100m) and park your car there.

At Prionia there is parking space for 30-40 cars. Since we did our tour during low season in October, it was not a problem to find a parking spot. But it can be more crowded in high season or on weekends. At the trailhead in Prionia you can find a little restaurant with a smal souvenir shop and toilets.

Part 1: Prionia to Spilios Agapitos refuge

We started to hike around 3 pm. Just behind the restaurant you will find a small waterfall with ice cold and clear mountain water. The trail follows the small river slighly ascending along Enipea gorge for the first few kilometers. You will mainly hike on trails covered by trees in the valley and you can find an amazing fauna, like fire salamanders or other small animals. During the second half it gets steeper as you will reach the end of the gorge, so you have to ascend up to the refuge, which is located at 2100 m elevation. This first part of your hike takes around 3 hours, we hiked 6.6 km and went 930 m up.

Spilios Agapitos Refuge

We reached the refuge around 6 pm, perfectly timed for dinner. The refuge can accomodate up to 110 guests, you will find everything you need. They even have WiFi there and a wide variety of food and drinks. We slept in a room with ca. 20 bunk beds, but there were only 10 other guests. Unfortunately, some people might be snoring, so be prepared and bring ear plugs 😉

Part 2: Spilios Agapitos to Mytikas Summit 2918 m

To be already almost near the summit for sunrise, we started our hike at 5:30 am while it was still dark outside. If you want to start your hike that early you definitely need to bring a (head) lamp. Sunrise was at 7:30 am and it was just incredible, as we were the only hikers up there at this time. The morning atmosphere was amazing as it was totally calm and the whole landscape was colored in red and orange tones by the morning sun. I recommend to plan your trip to reach Skala Summit (2880 m ELEV) for sunrise. It takes approx. 2.5 – 3 hours from the refuge, depending on how many breaks you do. The way up there is quite steep and in the last part you hike on loose gravel. By hiking up just before sunrise you also prevent to be expelled to the sun too much, since there are no more trees providing shade.

From Skala Summit you need to climb down approx. 100 m and cross a ridge before you climb up again 150 m to reach Mytikas Summit (2918 m ELEV), which is the highest peak of Mt. Olympus. Hiking up there is technically quite challenging and very steep, so you need to be extra carefully. I takes almost 1 hour from Skala to Mytakas peak.

Reaching Mytikas peak offers you an amazing 360° view. On days with good visibility you can see Mt. Athos in the East or even up to Albania or Bulgaria. Mytikas Peak is the highest of Greece, it is also called the throne of God Zeus and supposed to be a holy mountain.

Part 3: From Mytikas Summit descending to Prionia

Most of the hikers take the same way back as the climbed up to Mytikas Peak. Since we wanted to do a round tour we decided to climb down the more challenging Louki route. For this route you should be an experienced hiker and you need to wear a helmet since it’s extremely steep and lose gravel can fall down (on your head). This passage is only a few hundert meters long but you will descent around 200 m of altitude. The average gradient is more than 45°. The safest way to go down here is in the little dried out gorge. If it is rainy and the rocks are wet it is too dangerous to climb down there.

After passing the challenging Louki passage you will continue on normal hiking trails passing the rocky environment. Walking around a big crater this tour will lead you to the Muses’ Plateau (ca. 2600m ELEV). There are a few other refuges, so this is a great stop to have lunch. After a little lunch break we head on towards the South-Eastern edge (2650 m ELEV) of the plateau where the via ferrata offers an interesting but quite steep descent equipped with ropes and steps. Afterwards you will follow down a ridge in a contiously steep descent during the pine tree forests until reaching the parking spot where we started the tour. For descending from Mytakas peak towards the parking spot in Prionia, you can estimate a hike of approx. 7 km, 1900 m down which might take 4:30 h.