Why this ride
300 km from Kyperoúnta to Kyperoúnta, about 4 h 55 of riding. It goes by way of Choirokoitia, Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village and back through Choirokoitia. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Church of Stavros and Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 300 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 55
- 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. 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 is where the day begins. Next is Choirokoitia.
2. 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
Choirokoitia comes up about 65 km into the recorded legs. Next is Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village.
3. 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
about 150 km into the recorded legs you reach Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village. Next is back through Choirokoitia.
4. back through Choirokoitia
Return visit. Read the place description above.
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
back through Choirokoitia, late in the day. Next is Church of Stavros.
5. 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 at Church of Stavros. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Church of Stavros to Choirokoitia
Church of Stavros → Choirokoitia is 65 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Choirokoitia to Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village
Choirokoitia → Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village is 85 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village to back through Choirokoitia
Aphrodite's Sanctuary at Kouklia village → back through Choirokoitia is 85 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Choirokoitia to Church of Stavros
back through Choirokoitia → Church of Stavros is 65 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.