It has been quite some time ago since I have last visited the area of Ermionida and this time, besides climbing in the wonderful location of Caves of Franchthi, I also had the chance to visit a great trail that was created by the municipality of Kilada.

Kilada is a picturesque traditional fishing village located in Ermionida, not far from Kranidi and Ermioni.  The small village is famous for its traditional shipbuilding and boat construction yards.  The boatyards still continue to make and repair traditional wooden fishing boats, as well as maintaining modern luxury yachts for the residing yachting community. 

About Kilada

Kilada is scenic and peaceful and a perfect setting for a holiday ‘away from it all’.  It is where you can eat freshly caught fish in many of the village tavernas and restaurants.  The village has a small local beach, with an ajoining cafe-bar, which can be reached just past the large church at the far end of the harbour.  However, within 1 km of the village centre, one can enjoy swimming and bathing at Lepitsa beach, which is one of the best sandy beaches in the Ermionida area, with a fish taverna and cafe next to the beach. 

One of the festivals that Kilada is famous for is the annual ‘Fishermans Fiesta‘ that takes place on the second Saturday of August. The local residents, who are mostly involved in fishing, organize a lavish drinking and eating festival with assorted fish and seafood accompanied by local wines. The whole evening is enjoyed by all with dancing and live music, where occasionally famous artists are invited to perform. 

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See other similar hiking activities in the area:

• Ermioni – Katafyki Gorge
• Grand Traverse – Mikrovouni – Asprovouni – Profitis Elias
• Ermioni -Monastery Agioi Anargyroi – Agioi Theodoroi – Pikrodafni – Ermioni
• Pikrodafni – Crow Hill – Pikrodafni
• Mount Didimo

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Hiking Trail of Patimas – Kilada

This trail is a newly established trail from the local church of Kilada in cooperation with the local youth of the village. It is a great example on how to create “something” from “nothing”. In fact, the visitor of this trail can easily understand the passion, love and time these people dedicated in order to develop and maintain this trail.

The trail starts from the Chapel of St. Nicholas which is located in the west-most side of Kilada. In the chapel of St. Nicholas there is plenty of parking space and although in order to reach the parking lot the road is just a dirt road, a normal car can access it without issues.

Along the entire trail, the path is clearly visible, with plenty of trail signs and most of all with many nice sign-boards with wonderful messages.

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Section 1 – St. Nicholas Chapel – Loubitsa beach

The trail starts right from the parking lot of St. Nicholas Chapel and leads to the various beaches and landmarks of the area. The first stop we did was in Loubitsa beach where we found a great pic-nic area, and in fact, we also had the chance to prepare a meal and enjoy it with a splendid view towards the Argolic Gulf, Kreion Mountain (Ktenias) and Mt. Artemisio.

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Section 2 – Loubitsa beach – Koronida (Thea [Θέα])

Having had a short break with some freshly prepared pasta by the pic-nic “hotspot”, we decided to go to explore further on the trail. This time we moved towards the location with the name Koronida or “Thea” (Θέα) which in greek means “view”.

The trail all along is very easy, well signed and by no means dangerous. Though, while going towards the location “Thea”, we had to go through several trail crossroads.

The view from that location is really nice, and one can see a privately owned island, the harbour of Kilada, the Caves of Franchthi but also Mount Didimon.

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Section 3 – Koronida (Thea [Θέα]) – Cave of Corbi

The next section was perhaps the nicest and most exciting section. We moved from Koronida towards the beach of Chonia, but prior of reaching the beach, we had a short visit by the Cave of Corbi. I do not really know the story of this cave, but I suspect that in the past was used by a local shepherd when the weather conditions were rough. 

In order to reach the Cave of Corbi, we had to go downhill, but also to pass through the creek of “Vlacha“.

The Cave of Corbi, is a nice location with a firepit and with lovely view towards the beach of Chonia.

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Section 4 – Chonia Beach

The last section of this wonderful and most of all family friendly trail, is the path that leads to Chonia Beach. From there one can see and enjoy wonderful views towards the Argolic gulf, but also towards Leonidio and mount Parnon.

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Details of the Hike:

• Location: Kilada – Ermionida – Argolis
• Starting Point: St. Nicholas Chapel
• Ending Point: St. Nicholas Chapel
• Trail Signs: Well signed path
• Minimum Elevation: 0 m
• Maximum Elevation: 29 m.
• Total Distance: 2,5 km
• Difficulty: Easy
• Water Features: No

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Other Activities around Kilada Area

Opposite the village of Kilada, across the bay, next to the privately owned Island of Koronida, is the famous 40,000 year old pre-historic Franchthi Cave, now confirmed as the oldest continuously inhabited cave dwelling in the whole world.  The route to the cave is marked with faded red arrows, starting from the far end of the Franchthi beach.

Hiking Activities in Ermionida

• Ermioni – Katafyki Gorge
• Grand Traverse – Mikrovouni – Asprovouni – Profitis Elias
• Ermioni -Monastery Agioi Anargyroi – Agioi Theodoroi – Pikrodafni – Ermioni
• Pikrodafni – Crow Hill – Pikrodafni
• Mount Didimo

Climbing Activities in Ermionida

The rock climbing around Ermionida and generally the Argolis region is all on excellent solid grey limestone. The majority of the routes are single pitch sport climbing routes, though there are some trad climbing routes as well.  However all of the climbing areas are only partially developed, which means there is a massive opportunity to establish new routes in the area.

• Didyma
• Pillars of the Wind
• Katafyki Ravine
• Thermisia Castle (Kastro Thermisias)
• Caves of Frachti
• Rock of Ages
• Dardiza Crag

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Below: This map marks all the mountaineering adventures that have been featured on Olympus Mountaineering so far, including several Sport climbing crags – Select full screen to expand, zoom in for more detail, or click on a marker for a link to the post.