Walking … it’s what we do
September 14th, 2008
Up at 8 o’clock, thoroughly rested after a good night’s sleep. We decided to try out Heather Parson’s book of walks on Skopelos. We don’t do beach holidays, whereas everyone else on Skopelos does. We felt a bit out of place heading off for the hills with rucksack, long trousers, and long sleeved shirts (I don’t do sun either). Walking along the seafront in Skopelos we must have been an odd sight. We had made some compromises though – we’d left our hiking boots at home 
Hiking up roads in full sun isn’t much fun, but once we turned off onto the footpaths it was really very pleasant. The ground is very dry and dusty underfoot, and there’s a lot of scrubby little goat-resistant shrubs which would not be much fun in bare legs. Mostly there’s enough shade so that even the ascents are comfortable.
We found Heather’s book a bit of a challenge. Admittedly, I’m not a guide book person. If I get a book of walks, I like to decipher them on a good map and then use the map. Unfortunately the map with Heather’s book isn’t a walkers’ map – it’s a colourful impression of the island for tourists.
We happily pottered up to a couple of monasteries – pre-Mamma Mia, the island was famous for the profusion of abbots and abbesses; now its just famous for Abba but then got totally lost in a confusion of goat tracks trying to follow Heather’s route to Palouki, at 567m the second highest peak on the island. Still, we had a thoroughly enjoyable day, including a little siesta under some trees.
Back in “civilisation” in Skopleos, we hoped to sneak off to the hotel unnoticed, but made the mistake of stopping for ice cream and fresh orange. Sure enough, Rachel turned up with Pat and Charlotte, heading off to the port to collect some more arrivals (I have lost the plot in Rachel’s extended family). Everyone else seemed to have spent the day on the beach. So Mel and I are now outed as a pair of genuine eccentrics. Today’s disasters so far: one mobile phone had gone for a swim with its owner, and Donald (the vicar) had lost his wallet with all his credit cards.
To round off the evening, the entire party met up at Englesias for a meal at 20.30. Another disaster for the list: the proprietor had been in a car crash that afternoon and was in hospital (in Volos!) getting fixed up – nothing serious, just bones and bruises. The rest of his family had rallied round to keep the business going. We will all remember the apprentice waiters running round looking for takers for meals: “fish! fish! fish!” or “meat! meat! meat!” The good news was that someone had found Donald’s wallet and had handed it in – the biggest incident the police have had to deal with in Glossa for a long time.
We were also told that Heather’s book has a bit of a reputation with locals. They are used to seeing tourists with a copy of the book in one hand, and a bewildered look on their faces.
Big day tomorrow (11.30 on the beach at Limnonari – what else can go wrong – food poisoning tonight?).