Volcanoes and a sunken city

The peaceful gulf of Epidaurus

23^rd May 2015. A relaxing, four hour sail took us from Poros to the harbour at Epidaurus. This is at the head of an impressive gulf surrounded by pine clad mountains on one side and the rugged volcanic peninsular of Methana on the other.  We visited Epidaurus briefly last year and really liked the area, so we were looking forward to having more time to explore.  We had read that there was a sunken city on the other side of the peninsular from Epidaurus, which has been underwater since the volcano at Methana erupted in 230 BC. So the next morning we set out on a 20 minute walk through orange and lemon groves to Kalymnios beach to try and find it. It wasn’t difficult, there’s a painted sign saying ‘Sunken city’ that points straight out to sea!

Cliff opted to stay on the beach as I donned mask and snorkel and waded into the water. Five minutes later I was swimming over paved roads, the walls of houses and huge, pottery storage jars half buried in the sea bed. What an amazing experience, and what a shame I don’t have an underwater camera! Afterwards we walked back along to the restaurant and relaxed on the beach over a very good lunch.

Lunch on the beach after exploring the sunken city

After a couple of days in Epidaurus we decided to cross the gulf to explore the Methana peninsular. The area is known for its 32 'volcanoes' which are actually lava domes created from volcanic activity over the years.

The port of Vathi

Our destination was the little harbour of Vathi,  a fishing village in an unspoilt corner of the peninsular, quite a contrast to the busy resort of Epidaurus. It’s also good base to visit the volcano, and the next day the son of the taverna owner gave us a lift to the bottom of the track that leads up to it.

On top of the volcano

After a half hour hike we were scrambling over the top of the lava fields with stunning views across the water to the islands of Aegina and Agistri. Then another couple who had walked up with us pointed out a track leading to a sign saying ‘Volcano’ and a small opening in the rock.  Inside was what looked like a man-made mine shaft, but as we climbed down into it we realised it was a blow hole with incredibly smooth, flat walls  which had been created by the rock sheering as the volcano erupted.

The entrance to the blow hole

At the bottom of the blow hole