The Avakas Gorge in Cyprus is only four meters wide but 30 meters deep. This hike leads over rocks and through water = adventure guaranteed!
Here you can find all the information + the GPS data.
Indiana Jones feeling
The hike through the Avakas Gorge in Cyprus is one of the most scenic trails on the island (and accordingly popular). It is quite an experience to walk or wade between the vertical, in places even overhanging rock walls, because the path repeatedly leads through the riverbed over stones to the other side of the stream. Only at midday does the sun reach the bottom of the steep and narrow gorge. Hanging plants such as the endemic Centauria acamantis grow here, but also fig and olive trees, wild carob trees and oleander.
Key Facts about the hike through the Avakas Gorge in Cyprus
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Walking time : 5:00 h
Altitude : 374 m up and down
Length : 12.6 km
Accessible by public transport?
It is not possible to travel directly by bus. From Pafos, bus number 616 goes to the church of Agios Georgios in Peyia. Just before the final stop at the Sunset restaurant, there is the stop Ag Georgiou Pegias 9, which is the closest to the Avakas Gorge. However, the walk to the entrance of the gorge is 3 km. For more information, visit the Cyprus by Bus website.
Stop for a break along the way? Just before the entrance to the gorge there is the restaurant Viklari Peyia
GPS data: I have uploaded the GPS data for the hike to the Outdoor Active website
Start and end point: parking lot at White River Beach, 10 m.
Directions: From Pafos on the E701 to Agios Georgiou Pegias. From there continue towards the Akamas Peninsula and Lara Beach. From the car park at White River Beach the road is no longer asphalted. This is where the hike begins.
Parking: There is ample parking available at the White River Beach car park. Show point directly in Google Maps.
Hiking guide: Rolf Goetz: Cyprus – South & North, The most beautiful coastal and mountain hikes , Rother Bergverlag, 2023.
directions
From the car park at White River Beach, the hiking trail leads north for the first 500 m along Lara Road by the sea. Here you follow the gravel road eastwards past the restaurant to the entrance to the gorge, where there is an information board. After that, the hiking trail first leads along a dirt road that is closed to private traffic, then through an open valley and into the gorge. The next and most spectacular section of the hiking trail leads through the river, which normally has water all year round. The steep rock walls are sometimes very close together. In some places, rock barriers block the way. Here you have to find the right path yourself. But since the gorge is narrow, the path is easy to find. After about 3 km, the gorge widens and the hiking trail crosses the stream several times. Some large boulders block the direct path here. After 4 km, the hiking trail leads out of the gorge via some steps. There are several options for the way back. For the tour described here, you hike another kilometer eastwards up the mountain. On the plateau, many goat paths cross the trail, making orientation difficult. At the information point for the Avakas Gorge, turn right onto the wider gravel path that leads past a few farms with goats, sheep and donkeys across the plateau back to the starting point.
On the way from Pafos to Avakas Gorge is the "Edro III Shipwreck", which is worth a detour.
Further information and links
The Visit Cyprus website provides useful information on accommodation, events and activities.
Here you can find all my blog posts about Cyprus
WEATHER
Cyprus has an intense Mediterranean climate with long, dry summers (from mid-May to mid-October) and mild winters (from December to February). Cyprus is blessed with sunshine. Even in December and January there are six to eight hours of sunshine per day. In the summer months, however, the average is 11.5 hours!
February to May and September to October are the best months for hiking
ARRIVAL
Lufthansa flies nonstop from Munich to Paphos once a week. Ryanair flies twice a week from Memmingen.
If you want, you can offset the CO2 emissions of your flight, for example through Atmosfair.
CARDS
The publisher Kartographos has three hiking maps at a scale of 1:25,000: Tróodos, Tóchni, Akámas.
EQUIPMENT
For most hikes, light hiking shoes or trail running shoes are sufficient. For the Avakas Gorge, hiking sandals and hiking poles are helpful. Take enough refillable water bottles with you.