We stepped off the ferry onto Greek soil at 5:30 in the morning, bleary eyed but incredibly excited to have arrived. Greece had always seemed so far away! After a delicious breakfast of sweet pastries in the port town of Igoumenitsa we headed south, beginning our journey with a long slow climb in the rain (rain appears to be an essential part of our first day on the bikes in any country). The scenery was stunning, with lush green mountain slopes, herds of goats and swift flowing streams making the area feel more like North Wales than the sun-baked Greece we had anticipated.
After one particularly heavy downpour, we stopped off in a small café to dry out, and our brightly coloured rainwear and bedraggled appearance provided much amusement for the clientele of older men, especially when Jonathan tried to enter the ladies’ toilet. More hills followed, accompanied by a driving headwind that at one point actually brought us to a complete standstill. That evening we found a beautiful spot to camp on the edge of a long sandy beach, and went to sleep to the sound of the sea and the rain.
We woke up the next day to beautiful sunshine which transformed the landscape around us.
With high spirits and warm backs we cycled along the coast towards the port town of Nidri, where we would catch a ferry the following day to the island of Kefalonia. The quickest way to get there was via the coastal road. Unfortunately, this route included a 2km tunnel beneath the sea, which cyclists weren't allowed to use. With the only alternative being a 120km dog leg through yet more mountains, we did some urgent googling and discovered that a few cyclists had got through. The standard method seemed to involve pretending to enter the tunnel in order to force the security personnel to give them a lift. With this in mind, we cycled onwards, passing the ‘no entry for bicycles’ signs with some trepidation. But after only 5 mins of lingering shiftily in front of the security cameras, a man mirroring Harriet’s ‘trucker chic’ outfit appeared in a van with a little trailer and promptly loaded our bikes and our bods into his vehicle. Our plan had actually worked!
A few more hours cycling along a stunningly beautiful aquamarine coast brought us to Nidri early enough to catch that day’s ferry. Elated, we watched the mainland disappear before the mountainous silhouette of Kefalonia appeared on the horizon. After disembarking and cycling through the picturesque fishing town of Fiskardo, we stumbled upon a sweet little cove where we camped down for the night.
The next day, as we cycled up another hill, we heard excited beeping behind us, and were happily and tearfully reunited with Harriet’s family. We spent a blissful week with them in a beautiful villa in the hills above the Ionian Sea, exploring the lovely beaches and villages of Kefalonia and spending every evening catching up and filling our bods with as much local produce as possible. On one particularly lovely day, we hired boats to drive across to Ithaca and think of Odysseus (Hector lived up to his name and led his boat on a surprise attack against his grandfather’s opposing vessel!)
At the end of the week, we said goodbye with heavy hearts and many tears, before making our way over a stunning mountain pass to the town of Sami to catch a ferry to the mainland.
We then spent two days cycling across the Peloponnese, beginning on the coast and then cutting inland through beautiful valleys filled with vines, olive trees and citrus groves. When we reached the small fishing village of Tolo, we were joyfully reunited with Jonathan’s dad and sister. After many hugs and a celebratory martini (during which Helen declared her brother now looked like a hobo) we were led to a beautiful villa with a spectacular view of Tolo bay, and a resident family of kittens! We spent another wonderful week happily catching up over plates of seafood and Greek salad, swimming together in the turquoise waters and exploring ancient Mycenea and the beautiful theatre at Epidavros.
After another very tearful goodbye, we cycled onwards towards Athens, where the first leg of our trip would finish.