Vikos Gorge

The Vikos Gorge cuts through the limestone massif of Mount Tymfi in the Zagori region of Epirus, north-western Greece. Carved over millions of years by the Voidomatis river, it runs for around 12 kilometres and reaches a depth of about 1,350 metres at its most dramatic point. Because at places its rims stand less than a kilometre apart above a river far below, the Guinness Book of Records has listed it as the deepest gorge in the world relative to its width, a claim that has earned it the nickname of Greece's grand canyon.

The gorge lies within the Vikos-Aoos National Park, a protected wilderness of beech and oak forest, wild herbs and rare birds of prey. The classic full traverse begins near Monodendri, drops down stone-paved paths to the gorge floor and follows the riverbed to the Papingo villages or to the small hamlet of Vikos, a demanding but unforgettable day's walk of roughly six to seven hours. At the northern end the river emerges crystal clear at the Voidomatis springs, among the coldest and purest waters in Greece.

Those who prefer to admire it from above have superb options. The Oxya viewpoint above Monodendri offers a giddy overlook into the chasm, while the Beloi viewpoint near Vradeto, reached along the zigzagging Vradeto Steps, frames the gorge from the opposite side. The clifftop Agia Paraskevi monastery at Monodendri gives another vertiginous perspective.

The gorge is best treated as a day-trip from a base in the Zagori villages or in Ioannina. Late spring and early autumn are the ideal times: the paths are dry, the temperatures manageable and the forest at its most colourful. Summer is walkable but hot on the exposed sections, and the full traverse should be avoided in winter, when snow, ice and high water make the floor genuinely dangerous. Whichever way you meet it, from the rim or the riverbed, the scale of Vikos is humbling.