The race “Bike Odyssey 2017” will start from Smixi of Grevena and will end in Metsovo. For one more year in this first stage, athletes will be able to ride one of the most beautiful tracks of the whole race. Particularly the passage from the Pindos National Park, known as Valia Calda, is a unique experience.

The Northern Pindos National Park

Bike Odyssey bike race begins at the Northern Pindos National Park, one of Greece’s most exceptional regions. The Northern Pindos National Park was created in 2005, with the unification of Valia Kalda and Vikos-Aoos National Forests and incorporation of the intervening wilderness region. With an area of nearly two thousand square kilometers (1.969.741.000sq.m.), it is the largest National Park on the Greek mainland. The Park includes nearly all the Zagori district, parts of Konitsa and Metsovo, and the western region of Grevena County.

The Park offers a unique combination of natural wilderness regions and traditional villages. A large number of endemic plant and animal species thrive on mountain slopes of rare geologic significance. Eleven regions of the EUwide network of nature protection areas “NATURA 2000” are included at the National Park, eleven Wildlife Refuges, a Biogenetic Reserve Region (Valia Kalda) and two areas that are internationally recognized as bird conservation sanctuaries. The mountain of Orliakas, at the east of the Park region, is an “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.” In 2010, the Vikos-Aoos region, hosting the world’s steepest gorge, was established as an International Geopark by UNESCO, due to its large geological and geomorphological value.

Over 1800 plant species have been catalogued throughout the area. Many flowering plants and herbs are endemic and considered endangered species. Among the fungi of the area, over 2500 species of mushroom have been documented.

Wild life in the park includes 60 species of mammals, the most famous being the European Brown Bear. 187 species of birds, 30 species of reptiles, 14 kinds of amphibians and 17 fish species are known to inhabit the Park area.

The Northern Pindos National Park is not just a nature reserve; it is a cultural monument to the mountain villages and their traditional lifestyle. Churches and monasteries in the Park’s region date to the Byzantine period. Stone bridges, spanning rushing rivers, range to four centuries in age. Within the Park are roads paved with stone and watermills built by local masons of the last two centuries using native rock and distinctive construction traditions.

The Management Agency of the Park was founded in 2002, and since 2007 has overseen operation and management of the region. The Management Agency is one of 28 within the Hellenic Ministry for the Environment, Physical Planning and Public Works, dedicated to supervision of protected wildlife areas and it is administered by an eleven-member Administrative Board.

Some of the Management Agency’s duties include the park protection, the patrolling of the region and the implementation of scientific monitoring and data collection in the Protected Areas, which is a fundamental prerequisite of sustainable environmental management for the preservation of habitats and endangered species (flora and fauna).

The Northern Pindos National Park Management Agency operates five Information Centres: one at Mavranei village in the Grevena region of the park and four at Ioannina, located at Aspraggeloi , Vovousa, Papigo and Metsovo. These provide tourists with the practical, cultural, and environmental background essential to enriching any visit to the Park.  Within the Centres are exhibits and video presentations illustrating the Park’s sites of natural beauty, its flora and fauna, its traditional architecture, regional history and folklore. The staff is available for talks and questions, according to one’s interests. Educational groups from schools, universities, or special interest tours are welcome.