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CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE

Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village and Choirokoitia starting at Geroskipou

Plan this ride

Recorded distance
304 km
Riding-time estimate
6 h 04
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis

Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.

Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.

Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.

Open this ride in CurveScout

Why this ride

304 km from Geroskipou to Geroskipou, about 6 h 04 of riding. It goes by way of Church of Archangelos Michael, Choirokoitia and back through Church of Archangelos Michael. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 800 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. The line favours views over speed.

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

  1. 1. Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village

    According to the Greeks, Aphrodite rose from the sea foam off the coast of Cyprus, and the place where she came ashore was near Paphos. The rock of Petra tou Romiou, a sea stack a few kilometres east of Kouklia, is the traditional spot, and the sanctuary on the hill above, at Palaepaphos, was one of the most important shrines of the ancient world. People came on pilgrimage from across the Mediterranean from the Bronze Age to late antiquity, and the cult went back to a Near Eastern fertility goddess long before the Greeks arrived, with the goddess worshipped in the form of a cone-shaped black stone.

    Read the complete Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village is where the day begins. Next is Church of Archangelos Michael.

  2. 2. Church of Archangelos Michael

    From the outside, the church of the Archangel Michael at Pedoulas looks like a barn, with a steep wooden roof covered in flat tiles coming almost to the ground. Inside, its walls are covered with frescoes painted in 1474 by a local artist named Minas, with bright colours and lively scenes from the life of Christ and the saints, and the archangel himself presiding over the door. It is one of the painted churches in the Troodos region listed by UNESCO, a group of small Byzantine churches and monasteries whose humble exteriors hide some of the richest interiors in the Eastern Christian world.

    Read the complete Church of Archangelos Michael write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Church of Archangelos Michael comes up about 59 km into the recorded legs. Next is Choirokoitia.

  3. 3. Choirokoitia

    Long before the Greeks, the Phoenicians or the Romans arrived in Cyprus, people lived on a hillside above the Maroni river in the southern part of the island, in round stone houses with flat roofs, packed close together inside a defensive wall. Choirokoitia is a Neolithic settlement dating back to around the seventh millennium BC, one of the most important prehistoric sites in the eastern Mediterranean. The inhabitants farmed, herded animals and buried their dead under the floors of their houses. Several of the round houses have been reconstructed near the entrance, giving a vivid sense of how they lived. The site received UNESCO recognition in 1998.

    Read the complete Choirokoitia write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    about 153 km into the recorded legs you reach Choirokoitia. Next is back through Church of Archangelos Michael.

  4. 4. back through Church of Archangelos Michael

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Church of Archangelos Michael write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    back through Church of Archangelos Michael, late in the day. Next is Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village.

  5. 5. Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Back at Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village. That is the ride.

Leg by leg

Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village to Church of Archangelos Michael

Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village → Church of Archangelos Michael is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Church of Archangelos Michael to Choirokoitia

Church of Archangelos Michael → Choirokoitia is 94 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.

Choirokoitia to back through Church of Archangelos Michael

Choirokoitia → back through Church of Archangelos Michael is 93 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.

back through Church of Archangelos Michael to Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village

back through Church of Archangelos Michael → Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

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