Kalidonia waterfall snow trek in Troodos, Cyprus
If you are reading this post anytime in Jan/Feb/Mar, then go for this trek! I assure you that this will be one of the best treks you have done in Cyprus. This doesn’t mean that you can’t do this trek other times of the year, just that you have the snow to wade through. If you are trekking in the US or other parts of the world, many of the trails would be closed because of the presence of ice/snow on the trails. I have experienced this in South Carolina where the best trails were closed because of slippery conditions. Probably, they don’t to get sued if someone slips and hurts himself. But, this adds to the adventure, right?
No such rule in Cyprus! The Kalidonia trail is open throughout the year, be it sun/rain/snow. This trail is at its best in late winter when the track is covered with more than a foot of snow and you have to predict the path and proceed on it. We have done this trail in peak summer, when it was raining, just after it had snowed and each time, the experience is different. I particularly like the snow trek and have been it doing this walk for the last 4 years now, each time introducing a new group of friends to this wonderful trail. Btw, this waterfall is also referred to sometimes as Calidonia
- The trek can be done either from top to bottom or the other way. It is not a circular trek.
- So, if you are really in the mood, you can retrace your path along the trek to reach your starting point or if you have really nothing else to do, walk the 7 km stretch on the road instead of retracing the trail.
- What i do: We always go in n cars such that our entire grp can fit into n-1 cars. We leave one car at the bottom point of the trail (near Platres) and then all of us go (in n-1 cars) to the top of the trail. After we finish the walk, the drivers get into that one car and then go and fetch the remaining cars.
- The snow can be upto a foot deep and it can get very slippery at places, so it is a must to wear good shoes, not the kind which wet your feet after few minutes in snow or sneakers with plastic soles. I have knee-high rubber boots, so i just don’t care where i put my feet! Get one of these, they are great and pretty cheap too. I got mine in Festival Shoes for just 4 CYP 3 years back and I have been putting them to real bad use on the snow and also on the salt lakes.
- Even if it sunny, it can get quite cold towards the early part of the trek (you are warmed up later!) because you trek under the cover of the trees.
- Be prepared to fall often. So, gloves are a must, as even a few seconds of the snow/ice on your bare hands can be terrible. Of course, this means that you have the painful task and removing the gloves often to take photos of the beautiful sceneries you get to see.
- There are lot of stream crossing and some of them are a bit tricky. So, be prepared to put your feet into the water.
Enjoy the beauty that Cyprus has to offer!
Wow! That looks amazing. We’re off to Paphos in a couple of weeks and were really looking forward to doing some hiking in the Troodos.
Your blog has only made us more excited! Hope there’s still some snow around…
Matt..judging by the amt of snow present on troodos..it should last until the end of March, i guess
Hey, this is funny, looking through your pictures brought back memories. I also played in the snow up there, and hiked to the caladonia falls during the summer…
SOOO lovely to see the wonderful pics of you all enjoying the snow.
We took a trip in our hired $x$ in January to the Troodos area and although it wasn’t as snowy, it was a Winter Wonderland with families having a great time.
Your treks are really valuable information which we hope to do when we are over next so if you wnat MORE members Geoffrey adn Savitri are willing!
keep those blogs coming they ar really appreciated and make us feel glad that we have bought a holiday home in Cyprus!
Sleepless in Seatle – go back to sleep or start travelling outside of the US – your photos may be of the Waterfalls in the US but these sure ARE of the ones in Platres Cyprus. We have just been up there twice in 2 weeks and as the others say it is very beautiful….
Gina..Guess you got confused 🙂
Sleepless in Seattle was one of my other posts done when i was in Seattle. I posted a photo of a waterfall in US there and mentioned that “that waterfall” was not the kalidonia one 🙂
hi Rajaram,
I will be travelling to cyprus in october this year. I will be with my wife and 18 month old son. We are very exicted about this trip and the places u have written about on ur blog. However with an 18 month old son with us i was wondering if it would be possible for us to visit these waterfalls or the sea caves or the Akamas george or the numerous bridges u mentioned. Both my wife and I are willing to rough it a fair bit but we have to be realistic with a baby in tow.
I would love to hear ur views or tips that u may have.
I am a 100% snow lover, I always love to visit any place with snow. 🙂
Thanks for sharing images 🙂