Day 187 – EU – Greece [Kineta to Elefsina]

27/08/20

38km

  From Kineta (Greece) to Elefsina (Greece)

Europe

A hot day on the road, a shipwreck and the stunning vistas of the Elefsina Gulf and islands

The signs for a hot day were there as I started running, before dawn. By km2 I was already sweating and within thirty minutes on the road, my hand towel was already saturated with sweat – and that was before sunrise. In comparison, yesterday, my hand towel remained dry till about halfway through the run. And I did not get to really sweat before the sun was up. Anyway, it was hot and humid throughout.

The view from the coastal road was stunning. At large I could see the outline of the island of Salamina, which was just hiding the Port of Piraeus and the city of Athens in the background. The many bays and rocky mountainous landscapes made it look like a myriad of tiny islands, it was beautiful. I used to go sailing a lot around Salamina when I was training to become a skipper back in 2003. I spent months sailing, and then as I finally got the diploma from the Olympic school of Piraeus, I discovered windsurfing. And I never set foot on a sailing boat after that!

As I approached Elefsina, which is a major industrial area of larger Athens, I saw a huge shipwreck lying on its side, abandoned. This is a problem in the Gulf of Elefsina, one I thought they had endeavoured to tackle some years ago. Apparently the problem is still present as about 50 such wrecks still lay in the Gulf these days. I wonder about the environmental hazard they pose, in addition to being quite an eyesore.

I stay today in the centre of Elefsina – trying to stay off the sun and rehydrate, as tomorrow promises to be an even hotter day. The perks of running in August in the hottest country of Europe!

Check my daily run GPS data on or

Here is the map of today’s run: