Tanaida had been on my wish list for a long time. I’d already had a small glimpse of what it might offer—first during our hike from Attali to the church of Konstantinos and Eleni, and later when we passed the mountain on our way to Limnionas Beach. And when we finally decided to explore it properly, it did not disappoint.
Tanaida rises north of Dirfi, in a quieter, less‑visited part of central Euobea. It’s not a single peak but a rugged ridge system, with summits like Kalpakovrachos reaching up to 1176 meters. The landscape is shaped by fir forest, rocky slopes, and a broad plateau that opens up between the ridges.
This hike turned out to be more demanding than I expected, but also much more enjoyable, with scenery that felt quiet, remote, and genuinely wild.
How to Get There
The drive to the beginning of the trail near the village of Platana from the center of Athens took us about one and a half hours and was easy to navigate.
We followed the highway to Chalkida, crossed the Euripus Strait, and drove through the city until we reached the coast.
Continuing along the coast, we passed through Nea Artaki and the small wetlands near Psachna. From there, the road turned inland towards the town of Psachna.
In Psachna, we crossed the Messapios River and continued towards Makrimalli and Platana. In Platana, we left the asphalt road and followed a dirt road for approximately five kilometers.
Google Maps directed us to turn left at the beginning of Platana and follow a street called Odos Kipon. This led us onto a rough forest road that ascended abruptly through the woods for a couple of hundred meters.
It later joined a much better road, which took us all the way to the trailhead. To avoid the rough section, drive through Platana in the direction of Attali and turn left onto the first forest road you’ll see just outside the village (You can find the driving directions on Google Maps HERE).
Signposting & Difficulty
Most of the trail was marked with red signs and followed a faint path. It seems the route is not used very often, and in some sections the trail was difficult to find, especially where fallen trees blocked the way.
With the help of a Wikiloc recording, however, we didn’t have too much trouble navigating the trail for most of the time (You can find our Wikiloc recording HERE).
The only unmarked section ran along the ridge above the Tanaida Plateau. This was the most challenging part of the hike, as there was no path, and the terrain was rough and rocky, requiring light scrambling in some places.
Overall, although the hike was only 12 km long with about 600 meters of elevation gain, it was much more demanding than I expected. It could be made significantly easier, though, by omitting the ridge and climbing only to the summit of Tanaida.
Hiking to the Tanaida Plateau
We started our hike about 2 kilometers above the church of Agia Kiriaki. There was no sign marking the beginning of the trail, but the path and the red markings were visible on the right side of the road when driving uphill.
Right from the beginning, the trail merged into a beautiful fir forest and wound uphill among gnarled trees and moss‑covered boulders.
Even though the path was relatively good, we kept losing it from time to time due to its zigzagging nature, overgrowth, and a few fallen trees.
After about 3 kilometers, we came out onto a dirt road at an opening with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. We followed the road for a short while until we spotted a trail branching off to the right.
We joined the trail and continued uphill, meeting the forest road a couple of times.
After another kilometer, we caught the first glimpse of the plateau of Tanaida—a flat, grassy pasture surrounded by forested peaks, with a small white church sitting in the middle.
We made a detour to the church and enjoyed our lunch at its meticulously kept little garden. Once finished, we returned to the trail and continued uphill to the summit of Tanaida.
Tanaida & Kalpakovrachos
The final climb was quite steep but not difficult, and soon enough we stood at the top of Tanaida.
The weather was foggy, and the summit didn’t offer much of a view. Therefore, we continued down through the rocky slopes on the eastern side of the mountain.
After about 400 meters, we encountered another dirt road returning to the plateau. However, our Wikiloc recording guided us to cross the road and head into the forest on the other side.
There was no trail or markings, but passing among the trees was easy, and soon we came out onto rocky slopes. We continued uphill until we reached the top of the ridge and turned left.
From here until the summit of Kalpakovrachos, we walked along the rocky ridge, trying to find the easiest way among the boulders. The closer we got to the summit, the narrower the ridge became, and in the final section we had to use our hands in a few places.
The views were obstructed by thick clouds for the most part, but occasionally, we caught glimpses of Mount Dirfy peeking through.
From the summit, we started our steep descent back to the main trail. This was probably the most challenging part of the hike, and if I were to repeat it, I would use this section for the ascent instead.
At first, we passed a short, confusing stretch of forest with no clear trail and a maze of branches hindering our progress.
But the main challenge came once we arrived at the top of a steep, rocky field. The rocks were large and sharp‑edged, with deep crevices between them, and crossing required a lot of caution and good balance.
We were relieved when we finally saw our trail marked by the red signs and followed it back to our car without any trouble. The hike to Mount Tanaida was much more demanding than I expected, but also far more fun, rewarding and utterly refreshing!
