{"id":4303,"date":"2014-09-11T12:21:26","date_gmt":"2014-09-11T09:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/?page_id=4303"},"modified":"2014-12-17T14:24:02","modified_gmt":"2014-12-17T11:24:02","slug":"road-routes","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/?page_id=4303&lang=en","title":{"rendered":"Road trips"},"content":{"rendered":"

Parts<\/strong> of the following routes comprise of dirt roads accessible only by 4\u00d74 car or bicycle. If you own a conventional car and you wish to tour around the National Park, you should first contact the Information Center to be informed about the road conditions.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Route 1:<\/strong> Dadia-Birds of Prey Observatory -Lyra-Lefkimi<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\tIf you decide to make a tour on foot or by bike, you may head from the Dadia Information Center<\/a> to the Birds of Prey Observatory<\/a> and enjoy\u00a0the outstanding view of the \u00a0supplementary feeding station, where rare birds of prey feed in their natural habitat. If you want\u00a0to use\u00a0your car, you may\u00a0take\u00a0the road to\u00a0the Dadia junction, follow the main road for a few kilometers and turn right after Lykofi. Following carefully the signs on the dirt roads, you will reach mushroom-shaped geological formations and archaeological findings\u00a0<\/a>of particular interest, such as the ancient wine-presses, that were used for treadling grapes, as well as an anthropomorphic rock. Crossing the intersection of Lagyna and following the signs you will reach the settlement of Lyra, where you will have the chance to see\u00a0many different birds species while\u00a0standing under the mulberries. A hundred meters far from the hot spring you will find the Provatonas ravine with the wonderful\u00a0view, before reaching the village of Lefkimi, one of the oldest villages of the Prefecture, renowned for its rocky landscape in the National Park. \n\t\t<\/div> \n\t<\/div> \n<\/div>\n

Route 2:<\/strong> Dadia-Fossilized forest of Lefkimi-Kitrinopetra-Dadia<\/p>\n

If you take the main\u00a0road that leads from Dadia to Alexandroupolis and turn right at the traffic lights of Provatonas, you will reach the village of Lefkimi. There you may\u00a0visit the oldest fossilized forest of Greece with the\u00a0very well preserved rare plant fossils, that date back to about 30.000.000-40.000.000 before present. Heading southwest, you will reach the abandoned\u00a0\u00a0settlement of Kitrinopetra, where the\u00a0open landscape is dominated by\u00a0hedgerows across the fields, that\u00a0constitute a source of food and shelter for dozens of small birds, among\u00a0which are\u00a0the Masked Shrike and the Isabelline Wheatear. Then the road descends and meets the pompously named creek \u201cMega Rema\u201d, where you will have the opportunity to watch\u00a0a very large number of birds, like\u00a0Lesser Spotted Eagles, Short-toed Eagles, the Booted Eagles, Shrikes, Bee-eaters at many other. The road follows\u00a0the river and along the way you are very likely to hear or see Levant sparrowhawks landing into the splinters where they usually nest.<\/p>\n

The dirt road ends at\u00a0the bridge of Pessani, meeting the paved road that connects Dadia to Alexandroupolis. This crossroads is the ideal site for watching birds such as the Middle\u00a0Spotted Woodpecker and the Orphean Warbler. After a short stop to enjoy the view to the of Pessani\u00a0river you will find among the ruins of the old settlement the belfry, a well preserved old stone bridge and some water fountains that are distinguished for their unique\u00a0style. Besides the fruit trees that dominate the site, garland thorns and cloudberries are currently abundant,\u00a0hosting\u00a0the rare Olive-tree Warbler, Sylvia\u00a0Warblers and other birds. Finally, taking the paved road, with the Kapsalo peak rising on your right, you will reach the recreation area of Katratzides, where you may have a rest.<\/p>\n

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Route 3: <\/strong>Dadia-Lefkimi-Kapsalo-Vyrini-Dadia<\/p>\n

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Heading south from Dadia, following the main road to Alexandroupolis, you turn right at the Provatonas traffic lights and you reach Lefkimi, with the rocky landscape. There you may visit the Church of Virgin Mary’s Assumption<\/a>, one of the oldest churches in the area with the wooden temple dating back to the 17th century and the\u00a0Church of Virgin Mary’s Birth<\/a>, one of the most beautiful churches of the region with many icons\u00a0made by painters from Edirne, dating to the beginning of the 20th century. Before reaching Lefkimi you will find the fossilised forest with the rare plant fossils. If you follow the paved road North-West from the village you will get to Kapsalo peak (580 m), the highest peak within the boundaries of the National Park, where you will enjoy the stunning panoramic view, while with some patience you will have the chance to watch vultures and other birds of prey<\/a> flying\u00a0close to you. On the way back you will cross the ruins of Vyrini where you may watch many\u00a0small birds<\/a> flying around , as well as the\u00a0recreation area of Katratzides, where you may have a rest before getting back to Dadia.\n\t\t<\/div> \n\t<\/div> \n<\/div>\n

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Route 4:<\/strong> Dadia-Kotronia-Sidiro-Giannouli-Soufli-Kornofilia-Monastery of Dadia<\/p>\n

Starting from Dadia and heading towards the west,\u00a0along\u00a0the boundaries\u00a0of the strictly protected zone, following\u00a0the river and crossing the ravine with its imposing and beautiful landscape you will be driven to a valley at the confluence of a tributary, where with some luck, you may see\u00a0plenty birds of prey and small birds. After five kilometers, the road leads to the small village of Kotronia, where few\u00a0families still reside. The view from this spot is stunning,\u00a0as you can see\u00a0the closest\u00a0hills of the Rhodope Mountains, as well as the valley of Evros River and the Hellenic-Turkish borders. The landscape in Kotronia is open, thus suitable for bird watching. After a short stop to enjoy the view, you will\u00a0head to the settlement of Sidiro with the reconstructed stone bridge and the AdaTepe peak rising on your right, through an enchanting route in the forest that will reward those who decide to visit\u00a0the boundaries of the National Park. Then you will meet the recreation area of Girlisio and the settlement of Giannouli where you may\u00a0stop to have a rest and walk on the beautiful three-arched stone bridge that dates back to the 15th-16th century, which once connected the mountain trails leading from Sidiro, Dadia and Kotronia to Soufli. In Soufli you will have the opportunity to visit the Silk museums, wander in the picturesque narrow streets and taste the exceptional tsipouro and the unique local meat delicacies such as Kavourmas as well as the famous sausages, whereas taking the road back to Dadia you will meet the Monasteries of Kornofolia <\/a>and Dadia<\/a>.
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Route 5: <\/strong>Dadia-Tris Vryses-Kotronia-Dadia<\/p>\n

Following the road that leads to the recreation area of Katratzides, you will have the chance to enjoy\u00a0the gradual alterations\u00a0of landscapes before turning right at the crossroads\u00a0to Tris Vryses. When you reach the highest point you will find the observatory, where you can rest and enjoy\u00a0the magnificent view. Then, taking the dirt road to Kotronia you will cross the abandoned settlement of Moukade, near which ancient tombs and megalithic monuments<\/a> (dolmens) have been found. Next stop is Kotronia with its old houses and its panoramic view, while the way back along Diavolorema river, the largest stream of the Dadia-Lefkimi-Soufli Forest National Park, with its dense streamside vegetation, bustles with life.<\/p>\n

\"diadromes-paratiritirio-poulion\" Other routes you may follow (routes by conventional privately-owned car):<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Loutros-Pessani-Katratzides-Dadia<\/strong><\/p>\n

This route will compensate those who decide to visit the National Park without following the\u00a0main road. The route is convenient to drive, on a paved road, with a view to the western side of the strictly protected area and many alterations\u00a0of landscapes and vegetation. The road passes through the ruins of the old settlement of Pessani and the recreation area of Katratzides to end in\u00a0Dadia.<\/p>\n

Dadia-Giannouli-Soufli<\/strong><\/p>\n

For those who do not spare much time and have difficulty in crossing dirt roads, this route is ideal to wander conveniently in the northern part of the National Park, along\u00a0the boundaries of the strictly protected zone, through oak forests and pine-oak mixed forests. At the beginning, the route is very interesting with the natural\u00a0hedgerows\u00a0of the small fields right after Dadia and at the intersection of Diavolorema, before or after the river, where you are very likely to watch\u00a0Black Storks\u00a0feeding or even Lesser Spotted Eagles, Common Kestrels, Common Buzzards, Bee Eaters, as well as Little Ringed Plovers. About a\u00a0kilometer after Giannouli, following the signs, you may stop to have a rest and walk on the beautiful three-arched stone bridge of the 15-16th century, before arriving to Soufli. In the town of Soufli you may visit the Silk museums, admire the picturesque cocoon houses<\/a> and taste the famous sausages, while on your return to Dadia you will have the chance to visit the Monasteries of Kornofolia and Dadia<\/a>. \"DIADROMES<\/a><\/p>\n

Click for full size map<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Parts of the following routes comprise of dirt roads accessible only by 4\u00d74 car or bicycle. If you own a conventional car and you wish to tour around the National Park, you should first contact…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4303","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4303","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4303"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4303\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4678,"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4303\/revisions\/4678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dadia-np.gr\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4303"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}