Church of Ayios Nikolaos and Choirokoitia starting at Kakopetriá

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Church of Ayios Nikolaos

   Above the village of Kakopetria, on the slopes of the Troodos mountains in the middle of Cyprus, the Church of Ayios Nikolaos stands under a roof of its own. The name Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis means Saint Nicholas of the Roof, and the explanation is simple: the little Byzantine church was so precious, and the Troodos winters so wet, that a second, steeply pitched timber roof with tiles was built over the original to protect it. The church dates from around the eleventh century, and inside its walls are covered in frescoes from several different periods, from the Byzantine to the later Middle Ages.

   Read the complete Church of Ayios Nikolaos write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Church of Ayios Nikolaos is where the day begins. Next is Church of Ayia Sotira.

2. 2. Church of Ayia Sotira

   This point lies in the northern foothills of the Troodos range, in a landscape of dry stone terraces, carob and olive trees, and villages that tilt down towards the Nicosia plain. What I can say is that the villages around it, Peléndri and Kyperoúnta among them, belong to one of the richest church regions in the eastern Mediterranean. The Troodos painted churches, ten of them on the UNESCO list, are small, steep-roofed stone buildings that hide Byzantine frescoes inside, and one of them, the Timios Stavros, stands at Peléndri.

   Read the complete Church of Ayia Sotira write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Church of Ayia Sotira comes up about 36 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 80 km into the recorded legs you reach Choirokoitia. Next is back through Church of Ayia Sotira.

4. 4. back through Church of Ayia Sotira

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Church of Ayia Sotira 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 Ayia Sotira, late in the day. Next is Church of Ayios Nikolaos.

5. 5. Church of Ayios Nikolaos

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Church of Ayios Nikolaos write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Church of Ayios Nikolaos. That is the ride.