Chrissi Island or Gaidouronisi
The sunlight in Chrissi island transforms words into images. Chrissi island has a personality, made of the play of circumstances and time. These circumstances, which all together create an identity, include the fish and the water... the winds and the grass... the rocks and the cedar forest... the migratory birds and the human beings.
The crystal blue-green waters of the Chrissi island with the golden sand, invite you to taste the nectar of life, to get lost in the rush and in daydreaming.
What magical qualities has nature bestowed on Chrissi island, which in the embrace of the Libyan Sea, captivates the traveler with its allure? What mysterious force makes time stop, to bow to the splash of the waves and the remains of human presence, on a journey from prehistoric and historical times to the present day?
The visitor cannot resist its call. And if he does not have a private boat to approach it, he can make his dream come true by boarding small passenger boats that depart daily for Chrysi island from the port of Ierapetra, next to the
Eight miles south of Ierapetra, the only city in southeastern Crete, the city of statues as the Venetians called it, lies Chrysi, which many call Gaidouronisi. The people of Ierapetra simply call it "island" and the relationship they have developed with it over time is emotional. For most people of Ierapetra, Chrysi island is not just an island, but also the protagonist of their lives.
In the magic of the Libyan Sea, the journey is usually made with a company of gulls, and more rarely with herring gulls and dolphins. The route is enjoyable as the weather conditions from mid-May to the end of September, when the routes are made, are ideal. After about an hour, the boats approach the southern, leeward side of the island. First acquaintance with Chrysi, at the small pier at the "Vougiou Mati" location.
Hidden and obvious coves, virgin beaches, rare forests, precious habitats, exquisite fauna and flora, which have inhabited the island for hundreds of thousands of years.
The traveler has a whole day at his disposal to harvest the beauties of Chrissi Island, to wander its paths, to dive into the crystal clear waters that sweetly caress it. And when the fatigue of wandering weighs on his limbs, he can taste the delicacies of the Ierapetra Municipality kiosk.
Let us allow the wanderer of the Libyan Sea to speak to us through her diversity, to initiate us into her mysteries and to outline her physical and geographical existence like a Muse.
Chrysi Island is almost flat, with an average altitude of just 10 m. From afar, it looks like a thin strip of land emerging from the sea. It has a maximum length of five kilometers and occupies an area of approximately five square kilometers.
Its highest point is located to the east, at the location of Kefala, and reaches 31 m.
This quiet and eroded hilltop speaks of the patience of rock, san,d and water, which carved in place three human heads facing each other, under which, according to legend, pirates hid their treasure.
For more information or reservations, feel free to contact us at: email:
or Call: +30 694 53 38 846
The tour
The total length of the paths of Chrissi Island is approximately 10 kilometers. The hunters of experiences who will follow them will enjoy, within three hours of a leisurely walk, the variety of landscapes of the island.
From the disembarkation area, a path begins that unfolds along the southern beach. The northern beach, which is just a five-minute walk away, also offers unique emotions. The passage to the northern beach, crowns a forest of cedars rooted on a carpet of exotic sand dunes.
The same path turns north and leads to the eastern side of Belegrina Bay and from there to the top of Kefala Hill. There, between sky and earth, the island's forest outpost emerges, dominating the landscape. Its panoramic view takes the visitor's gaze across the entire island of Chrysi.
At Belegrina Bay, the visitor will be speechless as the beach consists exclusively of countless small shells, while fossilized layers of bivalves are also evident.
Arriving at the island's only house, the walker can admire the layers of human civilization, from the Minoans to the Romans. The salt lake dries its salt in the warm Liva, since historical times. The ancient port, partially submerged, hides under its waters the nautical secrets of the Minoans and Romans, who anchored here. The foundations of ancient buildings and, further west, the 13th century chapel of Agios Nikolaos, are images that make up the puzzle of the history of Chrissi Island.
At several points along the route, ancient wells with crystal clear water are dug up.
On the south coast, red hornstones rise from the ground.
Just a few hours of touring Chrysi are enough to collect colors, scents and images of rare beauty, a special gift, from a special part of Cretan nature.
The rocks and the soil
Hundreds of thousands of years ago, the lava that poured from the bowels of the underwater volcano in the area, when solidified, created the basic rocks of Chrysi Island. On the rocky coastline above the volcanic rocks there are marine sediments, in an impressive palette of colors with, red hornstones, glacis that look like a mosaic, gray sandstones and ophiolites.
On the periphery of the island the landscape is imposing, with colored rocks bathed in the waves. Red-brown, purple, gray, gray-green and even black rocks delimit the coasts.
Most of the surface of Chrissi island is covered by white and yellowish-white sand.... In the flat parts the soil is relatively compact, with fine-grained reddish sand, which is often covered by bryophytes and lichens.
In the dunes the sand is yellowish and coarse-grained and is held together by the deep and extensive roots of the cedars, which create a dense network while their foliage touches the ground.
For more information or reservations feel free to contact us at: email:
or Call: +30 694 53 38 846
Fossils
Many thousands of years ago, Chrissi island was still submerged in water, which is why all the fossils that have been found there are of marine origin. It is estimated that they were deposited on volcanic rocks, 350,000 to 70,000 years ago.
The areas rich in fossils are located at an altitude of up to six meters above sea level, in the northern, northeastern, southern and southeastern parts of the island. A total of 49 species of fossils have been found, of which 13 are bivalves, 39 are gastropods i.e. shells and barnacles, one scaphopod, one coral and one sea urchin.
Vegetation and flora
Although the area of Chrissi Island is relatively small, its vegetation presents an extraordinary variety in relation to its size, with five main types of vegetation.
The island of Chrissi is dominated by cedar, cypress and pine, both in the form of shrubs and trees, as a result of which they are the ones that shape the physiognomy of its vegetation.
To the west and east, the landscape is crowned by sparse scrublands, phrygana as the people call them.
In the narrowest part of the island, within the cedar forest, a cluster of a few pine trees is also found, while the coastal vegetation is sand-loving.
The impressive cedar forest of Chrissi island has an area of approximately 350 acres, an area corresponding to that occupied by the sand dunes of the central - eastern part of the island. Its centuries-old trees, up to 10 meters high, are surrounded by sparse and low sand-loving vegetation... Shrubs are found in some places on the edges of the cedar forest, along with pines and heathers.
The density of cedars in the forest reaches 14 trees per hectare, and their average age exceeds two centuries. Although most trees are 3 to 7 meters high, several reach 8 or even 10 meters, with a trunk diameter of one meter while they are at least three centuries old.
The root of the cedars grows in a radius at least twice their height, while their foliage is dense and reaches the ground. Thus, the root retains sand from the rains. The cedar, for its survival, secretes hygroscopic salts, which during the night hours concentrate the humidity of the atmosphere and give it the water it needs.
Half of the island's area, mainly in the west and east, is covered by forest, on rocky soil, where the shrub cypress dominates along with other shrubby plants.
The northwestern side and the easternmost point of the island have been occupied, on a sandy solid substrate, by a mixed forest of cedars and shrub cypresses.
Shrublands with thyme, heather, olive trees and bulbous plants such as the dog onion, are found on the eastern and western edges of the island.
The sandy beaches are dominated by sand-loving plants, resistant to high salt concentrations, such as the monopetalous lemongrass, the silenes, the coastal milkweed and the sea lily. In recent years, its populations have decreased due to intense human activity.
One hundred different species of plants, corresponding to 1/20 of the Cretan flora, are found in Chrissi island. Several of them are rare and protected by international conventions and laws.
Thirteen plants are endemic, i.e. they grow exclusively in Chrissi island and the neighboring Koufonisi. The most important is a species of colchicum. Since its description, in 1967, it has not been identified in any other part of the world, so its existence and perpetuation, as well as all the plants of Chrissi island, directly depends on the good condition of the ecosystems on the two islands.
The bouzi, the immortal and the tamarisk owe their presence to the human factor.
Human activities
Scattered shells, in the western and eastern parts of the island, prove that the human presence on the island dates back to the Minoan era.
The coexistence of man with the natural environment has been harmonious over time, as a result of which Chrysi has not suffered damage that would have had fatal consequences for its beauty.
Although small settlements have developed on the island in the past, in recent centuries Chrissi island has remained essentially uninhabited.
To the northwest is the church of Agios Nikolaos, patron saint of fishermen, probably built in the 13th century. Northeast of the church, near the coast, is the only house on the island, which is built on ancient installations, which include a small jetty and an old salt pan.
South and southwest of Agios Nikolaos, wells are found, which prove the continuity of human presence from ancient times to the present day. The carved tombs that have survived in the area are monuments of rare cultural heritage. The largest of them is from the Roman era. Chrissi island to this day continues to offer sheltered places for fishermen in the area to dry their nets and rest.
Nature lovers discovered the island several decades ago and made it their destination, building makeshift accommodations under the cedars and tree houses. Today, the construction of makeshift accommodations is prohibited.
Chrissi has been declared an "Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty" and is being integrated into the European network of protected areas "Nature 2000". Thus, it will very soon acquire a special management regime that will protect its rare species and ecosystems, as the sharp increase in its visitors, especially in the last fifteen years, poses dangers.
For more information or reservations, feel free to contact us at: email:
or Call: +30 694 53 38 846