Chora Sfakion

[Pimo]

Has anyone been to Chora Sfakion, thinking of taking a drive there whilst staying in Plakias later in the year. Is there much there etc...

[jinky]

Plenty to see and do in Chora Sfakion. One of my favourite parts of Crete (apart from Plakias of course) and I always have a couple of day trips in this direction during a stay in Plakias.
It takes about an hour to drive from Plakias to Chora Sfakion and well worth it.  Try driving up the hairpin bends to reach the Anopoli plateau with great views of the White Mountains and then a little further on to get to the bridge over the Aradena gorge. Or catch the ferry at 10.30 in the morning along the coast to Loutro which is only accessible by boat. Or drive a couple of km out of Chora Sfakion, park the car and walk 20 minutes along the cliff top path to get to Sweetwater Beach, one of the best in Crete.

Chora Sfakion is normally pretty quiet and laid back but gets busier when the ferries come and go, particularly at about 6.30pm when all the walkers return from Samaria to catch their buses home. Leave at the wrong time and you could be stuck behind a bus for several km.

Definitely well worth at least one visit.

[JackieatUrbanAgenda]

If you are in to military history there is a rather poignant war memorial next to the café on the walkway down to the ferry. It commemorates the escape of allied soldiers from Crete in WW2. There are some lovely little cafes and tavernas in the small village.
The gorge mentioned is spectacular as long as (unlike my poor husband) you like heights and rickety bridges. Geologically it is amazing. Just over the gorge is a village that has a bit of a history with (from what I can gather) two families who were deliberately relocated by the authorities as they couldn't live with each other, a classic feud that lasted for years. The village is now deserted...quite spooky !
The road leading up to it is fun too ...usually spotted with goats of all sizes, shapes and colours.

Loutro is lovely...as is the ferry trip. It is a beautiful and rather remote area and worth the visit. O the way from Plakias you can also visit Frangokastelloe, the venetion (?) fortress on the raised beach and the beach itself where the ghost riders are said to rush from the sea on Midsummer's morning. There is also a village (whose name escapes me) thatwas split in two vertically by an earthquake.

Who needs the built up northern coast !

[Pimo]

Many thanks to you both for the useful information, will certainly try and get there this year.

[JackieatUrbanAgenda]

Have just remembered that the earthquake village is Rodakino....there is a tiny ancient bridge to cross !

[Pimo]

When I searched again, I noticed the Aradena Canyon bridge, which looks amazing ! Slightly bigger than the tiny ancient bridge though !

[John R]

The road to Ardena gorge bridge is stunning but no longer frightening as they have widened the road. Still a wonderful windey hairpin track with superb views over the coast

[JackieatUrbanAgenda]

The bridge at the end is a bit of a challenge ! Looks perfectly constructed but seems to make a lot of noise when vehicles go over it....then you realise that the 'sleepers' forming the road platform don't seem to be nailed down. It is a beautiful site....especially if you're a geologist (the gorge bends !) but not so good, if, like my hubbie, you don't like heights !

[Pimo]

So how far is the bridge from Chora Sfakion  ? Is it easy to find in a car ?

[Barny]

I don't think it will fit in a car?

           Sorry,
                Barny.

[John R]

It is only a short drive from Sfakia. I would guess about 40 minutes. Don't worry about driving over the bridge. Rattle but perfectly ok.

[Pimo]

So if I'm coming from Plakias, then I guess this would be about an hour and a half maybe ??

[John R]

Yes I would say that is about right.

[jinky]

If you go on a Saturday, there should be bungee jumpers diving off the middle of the bridge into the gorge. Great to watch, but too scary for me! Also I think it's about 100 euros a pop, so a bit outside my budget.

[JackieatUrbanAgenda]

Yup...it is easy to find...just follow the road east from Chora and the zig zag road up the hill. There are a couple of really lovely local villages and then the gorge..possibly not even 40 mins but perhaps 1hr 40 mins from Plakias depending on the speed you drive. The bridge rattles beautifully ! Didn't see any bungy jumpers on our visit (don't think my husband wanted to) but I can imagine it is a challenge.