Troodos Safari

Troodos Safari
“A fantastic journey traveling through rugged pinewood hills and valleys with breath-taking views and scenery. Marvel at the beauty of the Cyprus mountain areas, the flora and fauna. Take a deep breath of the pure air of the pine forest and enjoy visiting the sleepy little villages dotted along the hillsides”. That's according to Ascot Jeep Safari in Limassol - couldn't have said it any better myself.

Promptly at 8am, A Jeep Defender arrived to take our group on a drive not easily forgotten. Leaving behind a fast highway, we headed for the hills, or, more correctly, the mountains. The temperature at Limassol was 23 degrees. Gradually, it dropped to 6 degrees. Our first stop was at Pano Kivides village. So, all eight of us jumped out of the Jeep. There were two Russian ladies, a young Polish couple with a seven month old boy, a Cypriot driver, and Antonia our Belarusian guide. After a free wine tasting, we all became more relaxed-and that was at 9:30am.

The roads become back - roads impassable by cars. Soon, we were driving through the clouds with sheer drops off the back-road. The Russian ladies were clearly nervous, but strangely, the seven month old child uttered not a murmur. We stopped at Arminou Water Dam to take the obligatory photos. One moment we could see a panoramic view, then the clouds surrounded us, and we could only see about fifty meters in front of us. Then, after more stomach churning drives, we came to Kelefos Bridge. According to Ascot Travel, this is “an ancient bridge which connected two parts of Cyprus many years before.”

Kykkos Byzantine Monastery was definitely a highlight of the trip. Ascot states, “the largest and the most prestigious active monastery in Cyprus”. The photos, however, speak for themselves. And then we arrived at Mount Olympus which is claimed to be 1950 meters. Antonia, our guide, said “on a clear day you can see the Northern coast of Cyprus as well as Limassol”. Because of the clouds and time of year, we couldn't see anything. The Russian ladies wanted to see the tomb of Archbishop Makarios.

A gigantic statue weighing forty tons was moved to its present location because the Archbishop Makarios wanted to be buried at the highest point in Cyprus. According to Antonia, “local custom says that if you leave a piece of your clothing at the tomb, you will be cured of your ills”. Because it was so cold, I decided not to do that.

After that, we visited Platres village. This was a charming mountain village reminiscent of a Swiss Alpine village. Everyone was eager to get there since lunch was waiting for us. Huge chunks of lamb and chicken were quickly devoured. Jugs of wine were also disposed of without hesitation.

Adequately nourished, we came to the spectacular Milomery Waterfalls. We descended by steep rock steps into the base of the waterfalls. We were rewarded by the sight of one of the largest waterfalls in Cyprus. Our trip ended by passing the largest dam in Cyprus.

I should point out that this trip requires an active mobile person. If you have trouble walking or climbing, then this Jeep Safari is not for you.
You can book through your hotel or Ascot Travel directly.