Lefka Ori  

Lefka Ori - Chania Prefecture (Greece)

LEFKA ORI. Lefka Ori, which literally means the White Mountains are also called the Madares. The mountain has more than 50 peaks over 2,000 meters high, the highest peak Pachnes (2454 m). The White Mountains is the backbone of the Chania district. In terms of area it is the largest mountain in Crete, but in terms of height it is just a bit below the top of the Ida Psiloritis Mountains. Lefka Ori has a lot of high peaks (more than 30 peaks) over 2000 meters high. The highest peak is Pachnes (2452 m.) And is only a few meters lower than Psiloritis. The mountain range spans from west to east and stops close to the district of Rethymnon, meanwhile many plateaus such as Omalos (altitude 1080 meters) and Askifou (altitude 730 m) are formed.

From Omalos you can start the walk in the Samaria gorge, the view here is beautiful. Lefka Ori is actually a large mountain mass that occupies the major part of the prefecture of Chania. On the south side is the mountain towards the sea, there are wild gorges and ravines of exceptional beauty like Agia Irini, Aradena and Imbros. Here is also the Samaria gorge in Agia Roumeli. The villages Paleochora and Sfakia are also on the south side of the White Mountains. The name Lefka Ori does not originate because the mountains are covered in snow even in April and May, but because of the the colour of the rocks. On the north side the mountain is much more gradual to the north coast and the city of Chania.

Text: Yorgos and Wendy Nikolidakis - Revised by Maxine van Hoften

Photo Gallery Chania Prefecture - Photos of Chania Prefecture

Frangokastello | Chania Crete | Chania Prefecture 82 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Elafonisi Crete - Chania Prefecture - Photo 42 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Aptera Crete - Chania Prefecture - Photo 19 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Aradena Crete - Chania Prefecture - Photo 14 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Frangokastello | Chania Crete | Chania Prefecture 39 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Elafonisi Crete - Chania Prefecture - Photo 16 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Aptera Crete - Chania Prefecture - Photo 29 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Paleochora Crete | Chania Prefecture | Greece | Greece  Photo 10 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Sfakia Crete - Chania Prefecture - Photo 8 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk Agia Marina Crete - Chania Prefecture - Photo 10 - Photo GreeceGuide.co.uk

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Average temperature Lefka Ori
January
11.6°C
February
11.8°C
March
13.2°C
April
16.3°C
May
20.1°C
June
24.5°C
July
26.5°C
August
26.1°C
September
23.3°C
October
19.4°C
November
16.1°C
December
13.1°C

Lefka Ori in other languages


Chania Prefecture: Where on the map is Lefka Ori located?

Map of Lefka Ori
The map of Chania Prefecture (©GreeceGuide.co.uk)

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