On this road, you shall find nature lovers and travellers as well as archaeologists, geologists, even poets. Start in Aigira, where there’s a big church. The sign shows you the way to Eges, Monastery, Seliana, Perithori, Exochi, on a winding, yet quite…decent road.
The village of Lambinos is behind us with its two traditional Greek cafes and two taverns and you can now get a bird’s eye view of the Corinthian bay. There are coniferous trees, almond tress, wild flowers and spring grass, all merging harmoniously with the grand, wild beauty of the mountain. The vegetation changes as you see all those olive trees right below in Aigira.
At 5.3km, a sign warns us that Ancient Aigira is to our left and another sign that the Mycenaean acropolis is to our right. Here, you must stop. Step on the brakes, pull over to the right side of the road, but not on the bend, and walk down the descending country road that takes you to Ancient Aigira. Right before your eyes is Aigira’s ancient theatre, very well preserved. The ancient Greeks must have been having a very good time here, since they were able to see the coasts of Achaia and Corinthia and the mountains of Sterea Ellada.
As you go back to your car, make sure you don’t miss the Mycenaean Acropolis on a hill to your right. Get on your car and keep on driving. You will see the villages of mountainous Egialeia perched on the mountain and the cracked land. The road is 5 metres wide, which is just enough space for two cars. Be extremely careful. At 6.8km there’s a vista and a stone spring. At 7.1 km to the right, the road takes you to the Monastery of Agia Ekaterini. Before you drive into Eges, you have the opportunity to admire the wonderful, steep canyon, on either side of which there are numerous maple trees, welcoming you in their own, unique way. You find Ancient Hydromastefsi as you enter the canyon.
At 9.4km to the left, a road takes you to the chapels of Agios Ioannis and Agios Andreas. At 9.8km you go through Eges at an altitude of 600 metres, at the foot of the steep slope called Evrostina. The area used to be called Vlovoka. The houses are made of stone. "A maximum number of 50 people live here in winter" says the friendly old man that we meet and goes on to tell us about the legend according to which the name "Aiges"comes from the ancient Greeks’ trick to put torches on the horns of the animals ("Aiges"= goats) and scare away their enemies by making them believe they had a big army.
At 9.9 km to the right, a country road takes you to Agia Kyriaki. You cannot drive there, but going on a motorcycle would be an option. At 10.5km to the right, you find the village’s library and the bare rock called "Maglavas".
The village Monastiri or Vergouvitsa starts at the church of Agioi Theodoroi. The landscape becomes softer and sweeter and you feel as if you enter a totally different world.
At 13.4km, to the left, there is a temple of Mother Mary at an altitude of 700 metres and you go ahead, you can see river Krios to your right. The crossroads ahead takes you to Analipsi and to the Evrostina plateau and then to Zaholi and Rozena of Korinthia. You must take care with the narrow country road. At 18th km, you drive below the settlement of Kolokithianika-Seliana that is inhabited only in the summer. You enter the village through Seliana – Felloi, where only 5 to 7 families live at winter time, whereas in the summer it turns to a favourite destination just like Aiges. There is a very well-preserved old primary school here, a work of Syngros.
Seliana is a traditional settlement in the Municipality of Feloi. At 18.5 km turn to the right to get to Ancient Feloi. The maple tree that you will find there has a circumference of 4.5 metres and make sure you don’t miss the old chapel of Agios Vasileios. On your way out of the village a small road takes you to the Monastery of Agioi Apostoloi.
At 18.6 km there is a fork, Exochi is to your right and Perithori to your left. Take the road to Perithori. In the distance you see the evergreen mountain of Andilalos. At 21 km you see Perithori at an altitude of 950 metres, with a square at its centre and the church of Agios Vlassios. That celebrates on 28th and 29th June. The primary school and the traditional springs are made of stone. You can choose one of the many traditional taverns for a nice Greek meal.
Route on a country road
At 18.5 km out of Seliana there is a sign that leads you to the Monastery of Agioi Apostoloi and the place where they breed game. It’s a scenic drive through the forest, at the sound of running waters. After about 10 km, you find Sarandapiho of Korinthis. At the beginning of the 20th century, there was a hotel and an airport here. Now the village is deserted and it’s only in summertime that the traditional greek cafι opens for only one month. You are at an altitude of 1,300 metres. From that point you can drive to Tarso – Goura – Feneos and then to Zarouhla, or you can go through Perithori to reach Zarouhla. What is most amazing in this route is that you go through a beautiful forest.
