Day 174 – EU – Greece [Gialova to Koroni]

14/08/20

44km

  From Gialova (Greece) to Koroni (Greece)

Europe

A hot and slow day with a fair amount of uphill and running past the magnificent Medieval Venetian castle of Methoni

Today’s first half of the run was one I had been looking forward to. I started along the Navarino coastline towards Pylos. There I ran through the city and by the walls of the Ottoman fortress, past the 16th century Aqueduct, absolutely stunning against the sunrise. I also passed by some churches, which I remember visiting some 30 years ago.

Past Pylos, the road extended by the coast, with beautiful landscapes, many deserted bays and sandy beaches. With the sun already up and hitting hard, it was a tempting thought to stop by and cool down in the sea. But I still had quite a lot to go through and decided to carry on.

As I reached the Southern cape of the town of Methoni, I was greeted by the amazing sight of the well preserved (and impressively large) Venetian castle. I took some time to walk around and a little inside, as far as I could go, then proceeded to follow the coast to get a good sight from out at sea. Clearly one of the most amazing castles I have ever seen, by its location, sheer size and beautiful construction.

The second half of the run proved more challenging. Very exposed to the sun, with not much shade to get some respite from the sweltering heat. I took again a lot of breaks to cool the engine down, and when the uphill came.. I was toast again! I stopped for lunch in the lovely little town of Chorakopio – and left on a full belly to run the remaining 2km down to the sea, where I stay today.

PS: Today’s run is recorded in two parts as I stopped for lunch at km42, with 2km remaining post lunch].

Check my daily run GPS data on or

Here is the map of today’s run: