Saturday 16 June: Kalamata to home

Breakfast at our rather unglamorous Hibiscus Hotel before setting off on our unladen bikes to the historic part of Kalamata. There is a cycle lane most of the way and we arrive in the old back streets with quaint shops selling hats, leather shoes and exotic blends of hand roasted coffee. We explore the massive market with is humming. Row upon row of vegetable and fruit sellers as well as a very impressive fresh fish section. We are only able to carry dried oregano. An authentic Fredo Espresso in the square by an ancient Byzantine Church. The weather is unsettled and there are occasional drops of rain and stormy clouds are threatening. Unperturbed we cycle to the beach and have our last dip in the Ionian Sea before a Greek salad and some rustic rose wine. We cycle to the airport for 5pm and manage to get our bikes through security. Only a little delayed and we manage to leave Heathrow by 10pm local time. Unfortunately this feels more like midnight so by the time we are home it feels like 3am. Simon does well to stay awake but at least the motorway is empty. Home to reminisce.

Friday 15 June - Izzie's Birthday

The Langada pass. This has been lurking all our holiday...the final day's cycling with 1,600 metres of climbing. The return route from Sparta to Kalamata. I must admit to a somewhat sleepless night, hearing the nearby church bell toll quite often in the night. We set off just before 9 and start climbing straight away. We pass ancient Mystras and continue to climb. The road to Tripi is quite steep. We replenish our water bottles from a mountain spring in the village as it's deserted and there's nowhere to buy anything. Then we join the road from Sparta. Up and up we go through the gorge. We FaceTime Izzie to wish her happy birthday. The ascent takes us the best part of three hours at an average speed of 5 mph. There are no tavernas or shops so we eat wild cherries which grow in profusion at one spot, and drink form mountain springs. Eventually we reach the summit. At 1,600 meters it's actually quite cold and we put on our rain jackets for the descent. 13 miles up and 23 miles of descent. We arrive at Kalamata in mid afternoon stuporous with fatigue and check in to the Hibiscus where we started our travels over two weeks ago.

Thursday 14 June: Gythio to Mystras (30+ miles)

We are on the road by 9am and make our way north west away from the coast towards Sparta. It is quite a main road so we see more lorries and traffic today. The land becomes more fertile with olive groves, cypress trees and cultivated fields as we pass by on the east side of the Tygetos mountain range that we had seen from the other side in Kardimyli last week. It looks very high and arid. At 2407m it is snow covered from November to May. Sparta itself is busy and hot. We have a whiz around the Archeological Museum and see some mosaics and a statue of a Spartan warrior before heading to Mystras. It takes us a while to find our hotel and then we have a relaxing light lunch before cycling up more hills to ancient Mystras in the early evening. We climb up to the castle at 633m with spectacular views of Sparta below and Laconia beyond. Byzantine Churches dot the hillside beneath us. Confusion with our guidebook means that we manage to "miss quite a bit of Mystras" by cycling down to the lower entrance too early. We do not have the energy to walk or cycle back up. Still we have enjoyed the views and got the general idea. A non Byzantine beer before supper. We eat delicious fresh Rainbow Trout in a nearby village frequented by locals visiting the fresh water spring to fill up their water bottles.

Wednesday 13 June

The anchor dropping from a large cruise ship mooring just outside the harbour wakes me around 7 am. We thought we were pretty much the only people staying in this outwardly smart hotel, but the little (indoor) breakfast room is surprisingly busy.

We head off to Selenitsa beach. There are two favourable points about access to this beach: it's flat and short. As I look up from my reading I see a turtle swimming towards the shore. There are nests for the loggerhead turtle (caretta caretta) just next to us where the sand meets the shore. The turtle washes around in the surf and seems to be waiting to make its landward ascent at night to one of these nests, and we can see some tracks leading up to them.

In the early evening we walk to the little island beyond the harbour, which, according to Homer, was where Helen of Sparta (latterly of Troy) and Paris spent their first night together. She ran away with Paris from her husband King Menelaus of Sparta. The ensuing story gave Homer plenty of material for his Illiad and Odyssey. We are cycling to Sparta tomorrow.

Retsina on our balcony with some pistachios and salty peanuts rounds off a strenuous day. Now, where shall we go for supper....

Tuesday 12 June: Skoutari to Gythio (12 miles)

Our shortest and flattest cycling day yet starts with a steep ascent to Skoutari village which requires pushing. My bike feels so heavy no wonder it is so hard to pedal uphill. Without too many hills and with a smooth road surface we reach the outskirts of Gythio in under 90 minutes and decide that we should stay at the beach for the day on the way. Mavrovouni beach is a long stretch of grainy sand interspersed with bedded areas. We find a comfortable spot, free sunbeds for the price of a Fredo Espresso and we are set for the day. We are getting quite adept at wiling away the hours reading, relaxing and swimming in the clear fresh sea. A short cycle takes us into Gythio itself, probably the largest town we have stayed in. Our hotel is on the seafront overlooking the harbour and there is quite a lively buzz about the place. Hundreds of restaurants line the streets with dried octopus hanging on display to encourage our patronage. We manage a cool beer before retsina on our balcony. I suppose that is pre pre drinks! 

Monday 11 June Skoutari

Piercingly bright sun as we open our East facing shutters. Limpid sea. The island of Kythia visible on the horizon. We are the only ones at breakfast and chat to the friendly wife of the manager. She also runs a taverna in a hilltop village in the evenings and works until the early hours. She expresses surprise that we have a 27 and 25 year old....she says it must be the cycling that keeps us young. I want to believe that she wasn't just saying this!

Our day on the beach is interspersed with a visit to a little chapel at one end, perched just above the sea, and another, the chapel of Saint Varvara (is that Greek for Barbara?), which is right on the beach. The first one is unlocked and contains an array of icons and votive candles. The second, dating from the 13 century and restored with EU funds,is firmly locked. We drink rose on our balcony as old Helios' chariot dips beneath the western hills. He's had a busy day.

Sunday 10 June: Kokkala to Skoutari (20 miles)

The wind has been howling all night and does not appear to be abating. We still manage breakfast on the "castle" terrace before hitting the road. White horses fill the bay and we are now heading up the east coast of the Mani. The wind is so strong and never seems to be at our backs however we soldier on having plenty of time to admire the stunning scenery: terraced hillsides of sun scorched grasses with ancient Maniot towers dotted along the way. My hopes of gentle undulation today are soon thwarted and it seems there are a lot of hills. We stop to refuel with Coca Cola in Katronas overlooking the harbour before another climb around the headland into the wind. Breathtaking views as we approach Skoutari. Simon says if his map reading is correct it is downhill all the way. I am losing faith in my navigator. Even our hotel at Skoutari Beach is up another hill but it is a lovely spot and he gives us the best room with a large balcony overlooking the sea. Probably because we are the only ones here. We are not the only ones on the beach however because it is Sunday of course. The locals are out in force and there is a great family atmosphere. Greek salad, garlic dip (not sure my breath will ever recover from this holiday) and courgette rissoles for lunch before a rather sand blown recuperation on the beach. The water is still crystal clear but we do hope the wind drops tomorrow. Take away Rose in a plastic water bottle to drink on our balcony.