The steady drone of chain-sawing from nearby and distant olive groves can only mean that winter is fast approaching. For (as Pooh would have noted) chain-sawing means wood piles, and olive logs, and wood stoves (zompas), with maybe a little something simmering on the top.

And cosy evenings with shutters closed, and crosswords, music, books, or DVD of your choice as temperatures fall and winds rise outside.

Crete though has an average of 300 days of sunshine annually, and statistically 22 of these fall in November, so don’t put the walking gear away yet. But shorter days require shorter walks, and this one, from Krios beach over to Viena, approx. 45 minutes each way, is ideal.
Krios is 9km west of Paleochora, at the end of the road, although the E4 footpath continues to Elafonisi (see below). There’s a twice-a-day bus (around 7.00am and 2.00pm, check in the bus station), or drive/take a taxi ; the 2-hour walk through Koundoura is uninspiring once the road leaves the coast, and not recommended.

As with Kadros, we first visited Viena with Tony Fennymore, and his notes, included here, will provide much information as to what to see and look for there. From the car park and taverna on Krios beach, walk along the shore to a rocky promontory, and climb over this to a small sheltered bay with a rock islet offshore. At the far end of the beach the path heads inland, way-marked with cairns and E4 black/yellow paint, climbing to join a rough track. Leave the track at a cairn, and take a path, left, gradually losing height, eventually veering left down a rather loose gully to reach the sea.

Viena is a fascinating place, where “there would appear to be a partially man-made anchorage out of a natural, protected harbour, and the remains of a Hellenistic/Roman sanctuary.” On the shore are the broken remains of several marble columns, which Tony believed once formed a temple here. “The actual building appears to have been located just a short distance back from the shoreline, where there is a raised platform for a room, with a ramp down to the sea, and the columns appear to have formed a portico/arcade at the front.” Where the columns came from, or how they arrived here, is a Stonehenge-like enigma, as they “are of marble or a type of red granite which does not appear to be of local origin.”

So why was a temple built here? Tony thought that it “could well have been a sanctuary or place of worship, and acted as a place of pilgrimage when voyaging around the headland”, and where libations and offerings were made before or after a long and hazardous sea journey.

Shards and fragments of pottery are everywhere, the remains of vessels once containing oil or wine. Tony speculates on the importance of the natural cave in the outcrop high above the cove. “The cave is no doubt the ‘key’ to the site, although there is no evidence whatsoever of any human habitation or use of the cave as a place of worship. In ancient times it could have been deemed to be a ‘home’ of one of the Gods/Goddesses, and it may have been capable of producing natural sounds, ie. from the wind – a sign that the Gods were speaking, or a Siren.” The Sirens were mythical sea-nymphs who lured passing sailors to their deaths with their sweetness of song. Odysseus, who possibly passed this way, filled his crew’s ears with wax, and lashed himself to the ship’s mast, to avoid such a fate. The climb to the cave takes around 20 minutes, and provides a fine retrospective view of the bay, but nothing of historical importance.

The water level in Hellenistic times (323 – 67BC) would have been far deeper than now, due to the raising of the level of the shoreline at this end of the island. “The cove/lagoon has a natural mole to form this protected anchorage, and it would appear that rocks have been cleared away from the cove so as to facilitate the mooring of boats. No doubt the cove was an ideal lair for pirates, and the site would have been looted.”

Water was of course essential, and “to the east of the platform is evidence of a well or pit, an important feature insomuch as the anchorage could well have been a stopping place to replenish water supplies of the boats.”

So what happened here? “From the various positions of the columns, the sanctuary was either badly damaged by an earthquake, or some attempt has been made to remove the columns for re-use.” That is, the site was destroyed and ransacked. Quietly contemplating before walking back to Krios, sitting on a column brought here over two thousand years ago, only one thing is certain – we shall never really know ……

So, ‘kalo xeimonas’ – have a good winter, and remember the words of the poet Shelley:
“If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind ?” In just a few weeks time the almond blossom will be appearing, and soon afterwards the cherry trees will be “hung with bloom along the bough.”

The 10km walk from Krios to Elafonisi is described in our book ‘Ten Walks around Paleohora’ by Bob & Lynne Tait, available from ‘To Delfini’ bookshop in Paleochora.

Viena Beach, Paleochora Viena Beach, Paleochora

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Arkadi gorge in Rethimno west Crete

Katholiko gorge in Akrotiri, west Crete

Crossing the White Mountains

Theriso Gorge in Chania, West Crete

Asfendos Gorge in West Crete

Manoliopoulo - Skonizo in Chania

Sfakiano gorge in Sfakia, west Crete

Hiking: Agia Roumeli - Agios Ioannis by south West Crete

Hiking in Chania Prefecture, West Crete

The Gorge of Elygia or Eligia, East of Samaria gorge

Rokka Gorge in Chania, West Crete

Walking from Paleochora to Anidri

Mili or Myli gorge in Rethimno west Crete

Kandanos Gorge - Spina gorge

Kallikratis gorge in Sfakia, west Crete

Manolis Rooms in Paleochora, West Crete

Silde apartments in Chania, West Crete

Delta studios and apartments in Chania West Crete

Ilios apartments in Maleme Chania

Falasarna Beach and Kisamos area in Chania, west Crete

Fournoti Beach by Lefka Ori

Sfinari Beach by Kisamos area in Chania, west Crete

Halikia Beach and Paleochora area in Chania, west Crete

Tripiti Beach by Lefka Ori

Agios Antonios Beach by Sougia

Marmara Beach by Loutro area in Chania, west Crete

Kavros or Kournas Beach in Georgioupolis in Chania, west Crete

Kalamaki - Galatas Beach in Chania, west Crete

Grameno Beach and Paleochora area in Chania, west Crete

Maleme Beach in Chania, west Crete

Agia Roumeli Beach by Samaria

Koutelos Beach in Fragokastelo

Rapaniana Beach in Chania, west Crete

Pachia ammos Beach and Paleochora area in Chania, west Crete

Krapi plateau in the White mountains

Limnakaro Plateau by Lassithi Mountains

Stroumboulas plateau in Heraklion

Kallikratis plateau in Chania, West Crete

Nissimos plateau in the Lassithi mountains

Erganos plateau in the Lassithi mountains

Lapathos plateau in the Lassithi mountains

Askifou plateau in the White mountains

Vothonas plateau in Chania

Ziros - Chandras plateau by Sitia, East Crete

Omalos plateau in the White mountains

Omalos - Simi - Viannos plateau in the Lassithi mountains

Gious Kambos plateau in Rethymno

Nida plateau in the Idi mountains

Asfendou plateau in the White mountains