17 walks exploring the lush hills and beautiful green countryside around the beach resorts of Arillas, Agios Stefanos and Agios Georgios North (Agios Georgios...... more
17 walks exploring the lush hills and beautiful green countryside around the beach resorts of Arillas, Agios Stefanos and Agios Georgios North (Agios Georgios Pagon), on the NW coast of
Corfu island. North of the headland with the village of Afionas perched on the top, is the scattered resort of Arillas, which has a long, though narrow, sandy beach ending at the shale, clay and conglomerate cliffs of Akrotiri Kefali. The name may derive from the Greek argillos, "clay". The large sandy beach of Agios Georgios (Saint George, the patron saint of Greece) is set in a large, horseshoe-shaped bay. The southern side of the bay has an escarpment of high cliffs, scaled by an old, paved donkey-road leading to the villages behind. Ag Stefanos has a large beach, although the sand has a tendency to be muddier after rain than at the other two resorts, with a gradually shelving seabed. Routes include the inland villages of Armenades, Kavadades, Magoulades, set between hills covered in olive groves; from Magoulades northeast across the island to
Sidari; to Afionas perched high on the ridge between Arillas and Agios Georgios and with fabulous sea-views; to the pretty twin bays at Porto Timoni; exploring the line of villages at the southern end of Agios Georgios bay - Pagi, Prinylas, Vistonas, Makrades, Krini; ascending the spectacular ruins of the Norman castle of Angelokastro; and the descent from Lakones to Paleokastritsa. The routes are mostly fairly easy, with a variety of distances from short to medium-long. The walk between Lakones and Paleokastritsa is steeper than the others, but in general ascents and descents are comfortable. There is almost always shade on the walks, from the ever-present olive groves, though the humidity can be a little high. Some en route villages have café facilities. Large-scale sketch maps of the villages Afionas, Agios Stefanos, Arillas, Armenades, Kavadades, Krini, Makrades, Pagi, Prinylas, and Vistonas are included within the text.
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