Why this ride
From Kakopetriá it runs 121 km to Kakopetriá; allow about 2 h 55 of riding. The stops in between: Church of Stavros, Church of Timios Stavros and back through Church of Stavros.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Church of Ayios Nikolaos and Church of Timios Stavros
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 121 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 55
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
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 Stavros.
2. Church of Stavros
High in the Troodos mountains of Cyprus, in a quiet valley below the village of Platanistasa, stands a small church with a steep, pitched timber roof that comes almost to the ground, making it look more like a barn than a place of worship. This is Stavros tou Agiasmati, the Church of the Holy Cross, and inside it holds some of the finest late Byzantine frescoes on the island, painted in 1494 by Philip Goul, an artist whose name is recorded in a dedicatory inscription. The scenes from the life of Christ and the legend of the True Cross, rich in colour and detail, cover every wall. The church is one of ten painted churches in the Troodos region listed by UNESCO.
Read the complete Church of Stavros write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Church of Stavros comes up 18 km in. Next is Church of Timios Stavros.
3. Church of Timios Stavros
The painted churches of the Troodos mountains look plain from outside. Squat stone boxes with steep timber roofs, built that way to shed the snow, they hide inside some of the finest Byzantine frescoes in the Mediterranean, and nine of them were listed by UNESCO in 1985, with a tenth added later. The Church of Timios Stavros, the Holy Cross, at Pelendri, is one of the group, with frescoes from the fourteenth century that show scenes of the life of Christ, in the dark blues and ochres of the period, and an interior lit by only a little daylight so that the figures seem to glow.
Read the complete Church of Timios Stavros write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
36 km in you reach Church of Timios Stavros. Next is back through Church of Stavros.
4. back through Church of Stavros
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Church of Stavros 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 Stavros, late in the day. Next is Church of Ayios Nikolaos.
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.
Leg by leg
Church of Ayios Nikolaos to Church of Stavros
Church of Ayios Nikolaos → Church of Stavros is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of Stavros to Church of Timios Stavros
Church of Stavros → Church of Timios Stavros is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of Timios Stavros to back through Church of Stavros
Church of Timios Stavros → back through Church of Stavros is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Church of Stavros to Church of Ayios Nikolaos
back through Church of Stavros → Church of Ayios Nikolaos is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.