Friday 22nd April 2011 (Good Friday) – Kastraki, Meteora, Greece

Jane is still recovering from a bad cough that I generously shared with her so she decided to stay with Henrietta whilst we walked. We took what the map called a 'narrow ascent' to the slim pillar of Adrachti above the village and between two of those massive cliffs. The morning light on the sculptured rocks was fantastic and the whole of our walk was accompanied by the sound of bells as the churches of Kastraki, Kalambaka and the monasteries held their Good Friday services. Is was a very easy walk up and we were full of confidence that the second part of the walk, described as a 'footpath' on the map, would also be easy. We changed our minds when we reached the Adrachti rock and looked south where the footpath should have been. We walked/crawled up the steep hill until we could see that we would need climbing gear to continue. We tried an alternative 'footpath' up to the north but gave up when a squeeze ended with a near vertical section that we couldn't get up. The only option left, apart from returning to Kastraki, was to head down the steep Adrachti Gorge to Kalambaka. It looked much easier than the other routes but if we had realized quite how difficult it was going to be, we would not have tackled it. There were quite a few hairy moments and much team work was needed to get down but we made it and were elated when we got down. “We made it” I shouted and then realised that a funeral procession was passing us, wending its way slowly to the nearby church. The walk back from Kalambaka to the campsite was a doddle – we ignored the short cut using another 'footpath' marked on the map.
The mountaineers are slow starters but by midday they start appearing and by mid afternoon they are dotted over all of the vertical rock faces. There does seam to be a written or unwritten rule that they do not climb on any rock where this is an occupied monastery. This seems reasonable as at times when your monastery is not being invaded by tourists, you wouldn't want a group of mountaineers to appear at your window.
After dinner at a local taverna we stumbled across the Good Friday procession where the Epitaphios (the bier of Christ) is paraded around the village. The Epitaphios is beautifully decorated with fresh flowers such as carnations and lillies and the white sheet that covers Christ's body has been sprinkled with petals. When they reached the church the bearers held the Epitaphios up and the whole congregation clutching lit candles filed underneath it, many kissing it on the way. According to my book, this is for good luck.
Photos: Sourloti Rock over Kastraki – there is at least one abandoned hermitage in a cave part way up the rock; The three intrepid climbers on a very steep descent.