Church of Panagia Chalkeon and The wider area of Mount Olympus
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
326 km
Riding-time estimate
5 h 06
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.
From Ágios Pávlos it runs 326 km to Ágios Pávlos; allow about 5 h 06 of riding. It goes by way of Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu, The wider area of Mount Olympus and back through Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Church of Panagia Chalkeon
The Panagia Chalkeon, Our Lady of the Coppersmiths, is one of the oldest dated churches in Thessaloniki, and it can be dated to 1028 because of an inscription naming the founder, a Byzantine official called Christophoros. It stands on Egnatia Street, right on the old Roman road, in what was the metalworkers' quarter, and the name recalls the trade that filled the streets with the noise of hammering. The church is built of brick in the cross-in-square plan, with a central dome and three apses, and the outside is decorated with tall blind arches and patterns of brick that give the walls a handsome rhythm. In its day it was a showpiece of the new Byzantine style that developed after the Iconoclast period.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Church of Panagia Chalkeon is where the day begins. Next is Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu.
2. Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu
Vergina is a small village at the foot of the Pierian mountains in northern Greece, and for most of history nobody outside the region knew its name. That changed in 1977, when the archaeologist Manolis Andronikos opened a great burial mound here and found royal tombs with astonishing grave goods. The site is ancient Aigai, the first capital of the Macedonian kingdom, and one of the tombs is widely attributed to Philip II, father of Alexander the Great. The prehistoric settlement and the large cemetery of burial mounds nearby show that people had been living and burying their dead here for a very long time before the Macedonian kings.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu comes up about 69 km into the recorded legs. Next is The wider area of Mount Olympus.
3. The wider area of Mount Olympus
The gods chose well. Mount Olympus rises almost straight out of the Aegean, from sea level near Litochoro to 2,918 metres at Mytikas, its highest summit, in barely twenty kilometres, so that from the coast road it looks less like a mountain than a wall of grey rock and dark forest with clouds snagged on top. The ancient Greeks put their twelve Olympians up there, and on a stormy afternoon with thunder rolling around the peaks you can see why.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Church of Panagia Chalkeon. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Church of Panagia Chalkeon to Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu
Church of Panagia Chalkeon → Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu is 69 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu to The wider area of Mount Olympus
Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu → The wider area of Mount Olympus is 93 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The wider area of Mount Olympus to back through Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu
The wider area of Mount Olympus → back through Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu is 95 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu to Church of Panagia Chalkeon
back through Bronze Age settlement and Cemetery of Tumu → Church of Panagia Chalkeon is 69 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.