Chóra - Lámira - Strapouriés - Evrousés and back

Evaluation: Elaborating on the marvellous hike no. [1] you can follow a trail that is not marked from Lámira to Strapouriés. You can then take the (only barely marked) hike no. [10] to the beautiful watery spot of Evrousés. The return route follows almost the same trails, unless you prefer to turn to Ménites when you have arrived in Strapouriés – for this alternative route we refer to my hike Chóra - Lámira - Strapouriés - Ménites. This hike gets an evaluation of **.

Estimated time: In actual hiking time the hike till the church of Lámira takes 1h05; walking to Strapouriés will then cost about 20 minutes, while the small hike [10] to Evrousés only takes 55 minutes. For the way back you have to count on the same amount of time, which makes all together for a hiking time of 4h40.
You can considerably shorten this hike by taking a taxi to Lámira (7,5 € in 2005) or to catch the 8.30am bus to Strapouriés.

Route description: All hikes leaving from Chóra depart from the main street, at the large church of the Panagía tis Kimísis (which is visible from all over town – for more details you can have a look at the description of the small hike in Chóra itself). Today you follow the main street going inland (to the right when facing the church), until you reach the gymnasio – just before you get to the large, neoclassical building of the Kaïri-library. Next to the gymnasio you go down the stairs on the right – this is the Odos Georgios Empiríkos. You take the first concrete street on the left and a little further down you notice the first sign with the no. [1]. You walk past some beautiful houses in a very green environment until you see a wooden sign - watch out here - announcing the hike + the number [1] that is painted over. Over here you go down the staircase on the right.
Slightly further on you cross the asphalt road and you go straight ahead following a no. [1]. Later on you reach the river, which flows into the sea on the beach of Nimborió. If necessary you can cross the river via the wooden bridge and on the left you notice the impressive hiking sign.  

[Hikers staying near the beach of Nimborió can also leave from the far end of the beach, close to the bridge over the river – also here you can find a hiking sign. You then have to stay on the left-hand side of the river and a little further on you even have to walk in the bed of the river – which is only possible in the dry season. In this way you will also arrive at the large wooden bridge.]

Past the wooden bridge you go straight ahead and via a gravel road you cross the green valley. Strikingly, the valley is full of cypresses and all the way up to the left you can see the dispersed villages of, amongst others, Ipsiloú and Lámira. About 12 minutes after your departure, the gravel and concrete road goes right. A fairly overgrown path goes straight ahead, on the left-hand side of some cypresses; this path is signposted by means of the no. [1].
From now onwards you follow a marvellous monopáti; after some six minutes it crosses a concrete road and it continues straight ahead. Another four minutes later on you cross a small stream by means of an old bridge made out of flat stones. After another two minutes the trail takes a right near a run-down church.

A couple of minutes later you get to a beautiful stone staircase, wonderfully shaded – this shade is so characteristic for Andros! Slightly further down you keep left; you notice a water pipe and a no. [1]. The following narrow path is really beautiful and it runs between high walls. Some concrete steps announce the town of Mesathoúri; at this point you turn left, following the water pipe. At the corner of a large house you keep to the left (there is a no. [1] on the staircase) and you continue between a couple of houses; the path or the steps are made out of concrete and you now proceed in the direction of Ipsiloú. You cross an asphalt road and you continue on the opposite side. Immediately thereafter you reach a spot shaded by a large oak tree: over here you can find an old well with a sign from 1818, the "paradosiakí kríni Ipsiloú".

Your trail zigzags further on, passing some water shoots, gardens and citrus trees. After about three minutes you pass a small bridge from 1929. Two minutes later, at the "PROS LAMYRA", you take a left. You then get to another well and some water shoots. You keep following the markers [1] and also some signs pointing towards Lámira. After climbing up a beautiful staircase you reach the third well of Ipsiloú.

About one minute later on you reach a concrete road, which you follow to the left for a short while (notice the no. [1] on a pole). Slightly further down, though, on the right of a row of cypresses, you can get to the trail again. You then pass a church and another building will wells – there is also a fourth sign with PROS LAMYRA. Later on you go down on the left (there is a sign and a no. [1]).You pass some more cypresses and you walk underneath a couple of fig trees. You cross another asphalt road (there is a sign) and you continue on a flat trail till you get to Lámira. You enter this village on a very beautiful spot, at the Platía 28 Oktovríou, next to the old "parthenagogío" of Lámira – a school for young girls. This is an ideal place to have a rest....

You continue towards the right and slightly further on you reach a beautiful well with a sign from 1840. Via a marvellous trail with houses alongside and with a great panoramic view you get to a concrete road, underneath the large church of Lámira. 

[Over here, hike no. [1] continues to the left, going down by following the main road for a short while.] 

However, you have to go up the staircase opposite the house, in the direction of the church of Agios Sotíras. On the left of this church you go up and in this way you arrive at an inclining concrete road, which you follow further upwards. After 3 minutes you go straight ahead up a concrete staircase – on the left of this staircase you see a white commemorative plaque in memory of a certain N. Andréas (dating from the year 2000). After 13 steps you go right on the small concrete path and about one minute later you take a left on a paved monopáti between walls – over here you have a nice view on the town of Chóra!

After another 2 minutes you arrive at a crossing, where you go straight ahead and up. About 6 minutes later you get to a junction between the houses of Mesathoúri; near a tall wall made of natural stone you take a left. You now follow a concrete path going up slightly. After a couple of minutes, though, you have to watch out: just before the trail will pass along a beautiful row of cypresses, you have to go up on the right on a stone staircase – this is the Odós Ioánnis Athinaíou. The nice and broad trail brings you to a cemetery after another 4 minutes and then to the asphalt road in Strapouriés by following a concrete staircase. You notice the church on the right, but you take a left on the main road.

In this way you get to the large tavern I Terpsichóri tou Pertési after about 2-3 minutes. This tavern is situated on the right, a little away from the road, but unfortunately it is usually closed off season.    

Immediately past the tavern, near the corner of a concrete wall, you find a staircase on the right with on the steps the promising trail marker [10] – unfortunately, though, this will be the only indication of the entire hike.

You thus follow the staircase on the right and after a little over one minute you get to a well. You NO NOT go straight ahead, despite the red dot, but you take a left and walk underneath a large doorway; you then go up the steps. You continue going up on the steps, for about 9 minutes, until you reach some streaming water. Slightly further you keep to the left in order to continue following the water.

A little further down you arrive at another small stream; you walk underneath a kind of aqueduct and then you take a right directly, along a gutter with streaming water. You proceed until you reach a beautiful spot with plane trees and lots of water – in earlier days there used to be a number of water wills on this place.

You continue on the left and the following part is really beautiful with a large view. When you get to a plateau you take a right, on a broad trail between walls. You arrive at a building that turns out to be the water tower and you cross a side-road. On the opposite side you descend into the valley on a beautiful trail – on your right and in front of you there is a great panoramic view on the deep valley with to the right the villages Apíkia and Steniés. About 5 minutes later you reach the simple chapel of Taxiárchis.

Your trail continues to go down in the direction of some dense vegetation. This is a lonely, but easily passable path between vertical stones. Next, you plunge into the bushes and about 15 minutes after Taxiárchis you reach another beautiful spot, in the bed of a river with water and many plane trees.

You continue and you arrive at a lot of steps – sometimes you walk on a thick layer of leaves, which is quite a strange feeling in Greece. You thus get to the first house of the hamlet of Evrousés.

At a junction with lots of water pipes you have to take a left and then you go up a little. Thereafter, though, you keep to the right all the time and in this way it takes you about 10 minutes to describe a large circle. You thus reach the right-hand path again, which means that you can start to walk back.

You descend steeply and after about 8 minutes you get to the beautiful spot near the small river again. Some 10 minutes later you reach Taxiárchis and after 5 more minutes you get to the side-trail. You continue on the path on the right-hand side of the water tower. After 3 minutes you keep to the left and after another 3 minutes you arrive at the water where you take a right, following the gutters. A little further you take a left underneath the aqueduct and then you follow the many, many steps in the direction of Strapouriés. You go down quickly now and about 15 minutes after the water tower you already reach the well with the large tree. You go right underneath the large doorway and 2 minutes thereafter you arrive at the main road near the tavern.

Today we choose to return to Chóra along the same route.

[If you would follow the asphalt road to the right for a couple of more minutes, until you have passed the small sports field, you would get to a rock. Over there you would find a concrete staircase on the right-hand side of the road – this is the beginning of the marvellous hike no. [9] to Ano Aprovátou and of the alternative hike to Ménites – see my hike Chóra - Lámira - Strapouriés - Ménites.]

For the regular return route you have to take a left and after about 3 minutes, near a large electricity pole and some 200 metres before the church, you can see a beautiful staircase on the right – this is the way to go back to Lámira following your familiar trail. The following indications can thus be brief:

- first, you walk on the nicely paved lane with cypresses and then you take a beautiful broad staircase (Odós Ioánnis Athenéou)
- at the side-trail you take a left and after about 2 minutes you go right again (Mesathoúri)
- another 2-3 minutes later on you get to a crossing where you proceed straight ahead; you go down and slightly further you take a right at a junction
- you get to a concrete slope and then you go down the steps on the right-hand side of the church of Lámira; you thus reach the asphalt road, where you get to hike no. [1] – about 17 minutes after your departure from Strapouriés.