Cycling in Northern Greece: From Florina to Nimfeio

Coffee is the engine of Greek morning life. Nobody leaves home without coffee. On the way to Kastoria I even saw a real ‘Coffee-drive-in’. Even for the Netherlands, where we drink coffee at every meeting, that’s a step too far. Here they prefer to have an ice-cold frappé, coffee with ice and lots of sugar. That’s easy to take with you and if you’re a bit tired, you can add more later. Ideal, especially for cyclists. In the warm weather of the region West Macedonia An ice-cold frappé is also just a little bit more delicious than a hand-warm espresso. If you’re going cycling in Northern Greece, a tip right away: without sugar it’s a bit of a failure. For now, I’ll stick to the warm coffee from the Nespresso machine in the morning.

Mechanic Philippos

On the outside, the work shop From Philippos at a second-hand phone repair shop, where we have many of them in the Netherlands as well. The saying ‘never judge a book by its cover’ certainly applies here. First I get to know the Greek ingenuity. An age-old invention to make a sliding door ‘automatically’. With a bottle of water and a string. Genius in simplicity and it leads, again, to one of his infectious laughters with driver Lambros. Meanwhile, Philippos is looking at my bike with a carpenter’s eye. The issue was a bent brake disc, but in the meantime his eye also caught my front derailleur. It wasn’t quite right. I hadn’t noticed that, but he had. Just set the Shimano Di2 on my Optimum in setup mode and five minutes later it’s fixed. I can rightly call him a bike whisperer.

Florina to Nimpheio

With a fixed bike, we head into the mountains. Today’s goal is to explore the route between Florina, the Vegoritida Lake, and eventually the climb to Nimpheio. To get there, we throw the bike in the back of the car and head towards the starting point in Florina. On our way there, we ride over a beautiful climb to the ski station of Vitsi. Yes, indeed. There’s another ski station here too. This time it’s a single meadow with a simple lift, but once again you can still ski here in the winter. The climb is relatively steep but well-paved. You reach a beautiful elevation and there you encounter a Greek military base. Despite the nice view, it’s good to remember that they prefer not to have photos of this place.

 Florina

The town of Florina, located against the mountain ridge of the Varnoundas, is close to the border with North Macedonia. At a roundabout near the town square, a dancing bear with a cello is the eye-catching feature. The relationship is not entirely clear to me yet. The town has a rich and tumultuous history. While we prepare to go for a bike ride, we crash into the lobby of the posh five-star hotel The Lynx. From here you have an amazing view of the city and in terms of facilities, this is ideal for a base camp. The coffee tastes good and the service is of top quality. I get on my bike here and head towards Evora, on the shore of Lake Vegoritida.

Out of the city, into the countryside. 

From Florina, a provincial road runs in a straight line towards Amintaio. Although perhaps better in terms of road surface, I decide to plan a short return after a few kilometers outside the city. I take the larger road and find myself immediately in a time machine. An abandoned bus station, partially completed, but also appears to be housing a working bus. Strange. Abandoned buildings are interspersed with fields of grass. I drive through small villages where the sun sets the rhythm of the day and where the older (male) residents enjoy themselves with coffee and a good conversation. The look of disbelief when they see a race cyclist is one that cannot be ignored. What stands out is that the roads outside the village are often more than fine, but in the village you still sometimes have to avoid a pothole. The charm of Cycling in Northern Greece.

Unexpectedly unpaved

The hastily abandoned railway forms the guiding principle of my route. I expect the freight train at any moment, but it apparently won’t arrive today. I turn right and the road along the railway is a mix of good asphalt and firm gravel. No problem with a race bike, but be careful of large stones. This was not exactly described in the route description. Meanwhile, I encounter several tractors and every time a surprised look: ‘What is that long Dutchman doing here?’ The next village appears and on a T-junction the Wahoo points me to the left. A small mistake, we also call that a ‘mistake’. The road quickly turns into a rough gravel path. A tractor approaches me and the man starts making some strange gestures. What turns out? 200 meters down the road I have to go through a deep ditch filled with water. That’s cycling in Northern Greece!

I get across on my dry feet, thanks to a bar along the side. I glance at the map and see that the main road and the fine asphalt ahead are just a few hundred meters away. Sometimes you just have to accept and work with what you have. In the past, I would sometimes get quite annoyed by things like this. Here in beautiful Greece, I’ll let it slide. Maybe I’ll have one more frappé later? 

Open landscape

The longer route leads via a short climb, along the railway towards Amintaio. On the top of the climb, the landscape opens up and you can see the lake on one side, but also the energy plants of the region on the other. A particularly beautiful view and also a reminder that the energy transition is still in full swing or may still have to begin. The presence of the sun could be a beautiful alternative. Just like a transition to cycling in the city. Because that remains a tricky issue. In all cities, the car is the primary means of transport. A shame, actually, because certainly the old center of Kastoria would be a beautiful pedestrian area where people could live and enjoy life. Time will tell, I understand from my fellow travelers as well. 

Friend Spyros

Even before I drive into the city, my friend Spyros comes along in the car. At first I think some crazy person wants to run me off the road, but it turns out he is a familiar face. Never judge a book by its cover. A few kilometers later we meet up and the warm greeting says enough. I have a Greek friend with me. Together we continue towards Evora. A viewpoint overlooking the lake of Vegoritida, where an energy commune runs a beautiful restaurant and provides activity. 

The road leading there is well paved. We drive through vineyards of one of the region’s largest producers. It is highly recommended to return here for a visit and a tasting. It forms a beautiful backdrop for the underlying mountain range. The climb to Kella can be seen beautifully against the mountain ridge. Has anyone mentioned hairpin bends?

The lake and the climb

The Lake of Vegoritida is a huge body of water, partly surrounded by the mountains that border North Macedonia. On the southern side of the lake there is agriculture and a connection to the rest of the region. The road that runs along the lake is partly shaded. During my trip the temperature is quite high and the wind we have is more like a fan than an air conditioner. That’s a shame. Together with Spyros we set a nice pace. Once we reach the head of the lake the road winds through the agricultural fields. Here you find fruit and vineyards. The (mostly) Albanian workers work in the heat. Due to the fan wind and the burning sun I’m starting to cook myself too. We approach the foot of the climb to Evora and in the village of Panagitsa we park the bike in the square for a cold water drink. Delicious. 

Evora

The climb to Evora is one to remember. From the village, you drive through a central street where the local architect has laid out a kind of spiral. While we start shouting, several residents start speaking to us in Greek. Spyros doesn’t hear it and I don’t understand it. The toothless grandmother who keeps calling me ‘Giro’ sat there smilingly. That smile disappears as quickly as the snow in the sun, because as soon as you leave the village a venomous killer awaits you. Figuratively speaking, because we’re talking about a climb that covers a height of 280 meters in 2.5 kilometers. You read that right. This is the better kind of climbing. My friend Spyros starts driving quite quickly zigzagging down the road. My highest peak in Switzerland seems to be bearing fruit here, because I manage to keep driving on quite well. 

View and more views

‘Where is that Evora?! Does my Greek friend call me after? In the village someone had whispered to me that it was only a kilometer and a half. That last kilometer is actually the problem. It doesn’t come under the ten percent and with peaks of seventeen percent it’s a struggle here and then some. We stop about 400 meters below the top. Why? The view here is amazing and the only hairpin in the climb offers beautiful photo opportunities. The fact that we can even catch our breath a little while doing so is an added bonus. We roll down the last few meters and that’s where the support team awaits us. They’ve already had their fill of the pancakes from the restaurant and Lambros is having another iced coffee. We lie down in the shade. One thing is certain. For today it’s over.

The road to Nympheo

After a longer break, we drive down for some photos, but then we throw the bikes in the back and head towards Nympheo, our final destination. These are such long days and because we are here with another purpose, driving by car isn’t an unnecessary luxury. We still have to shake hands, have coffee, and under the pretext of ‘stretching our legs’, Lambros has a nicotine craving that needs to be addressed. 

The route to Nympheo is mostly through villages and over major roads. The traffic here is quite quiet. You also work towards the final part, which is the climb and the finish at the top of this beautiful climb. 

Nimfeo

The town of Nimfeo was called Neveska in ancient times. That word had three meanings: Bright, Snowy, Hidden. Bright, snowy and hidden. The village is hidden on the mountain; it snows there and it is a beautiful place. Hence the reason why cycling in Greece continues to surprise.

The climb up is one to train for. Steep, almost seven kilometers long and with maximum elevation percentages reaching sixteen percent, this is a climb worthy of a Vuelta, and that in Northern Greece! But be warned: it’s not a goat trail because there’s a nice paved road and the only thing I can really say about it when I climb up is: ‘wow’. The climb takes you right above the valley and the hinterland that we just crossed by car. The view is therefore incredibly beautiful. You can see kilometers away, there are several lakes, mountain ridges, and if you count carefully, you can see four energy plants that complete the view. I don’t find them dissonant in this region. 

A visit to the Don

Once we get to the top, we drive towards the beautiful town of Nympheo. We turn left towards a hotel. Or rather, it’s more of a mansion with a huge garden. Once parked, I realize how surreal the setting is. A huge garden, with a terrace where 40 people could sit down. However, there is only one person there. A man with a Panama hat on his head, a walking stick, sunglasses that wait in the shade until we arrive. In this setting, I find myself visiting Don Corleone from the Godfather. As a joke, I send my wife an app message: ‘Whatever happens, I love you’. Of course, here too, reality is different from what you might think. The man in question owns the house that also serves as a hotel. Very welcoming, driven, and with vision. He apologizes for his poor English, but I notice that he is happy that we are there.

Beautiful place to stay

In the adjacent hotel, or rather a kind of mansion, space has been created for about 30 guests. The house belonged to a former manager and has actually been restored to its former glory, by leaving it exactly as it was. However, with good maintenance, but also with a very careful eye for detail. A wonderful place to end your day or to explore the surroundings from here. Just remember: you have to climb the mountain every time. That is very steep, though. But once you’re there, everything disappears, like snow in the sun!

Route