Text: Olga Karagianni, Katerina Pantazi
Photos: Olga Karagianni, Antonis Sassalos
Translation in English: Dimitra Pappa

On Sunday, June 29th, a group of twelve hikers gathered from various parts of the island (Katakalaious, Stenies, Fellos, Zaganiari, Kapparia, Niona), with the goal of caring for and maintaining Route 19: Piso Meria – Prophet Elias – Stavros beach. This route currently has no regular volunteer caretaker—what we in our organization call an “orphan” route without a Route Angel!

We were all well-equipped with shears, pruners, saws, brush cutters, hoes, and all the necessary tools and marking materials to maintain one of the most beautiful trails in the network. The route touches the southern edge of Andros and reminds us how close we are to Tinos!

We started early to beat the sun, but there was a lot of work on the trail and it took five hours to reach Stavros beach around 1:30 PM! The team was outstanding and worked hard on maintaining the path, while the cool breeze helped us get through the work. Along the way, we trimmed back a large amount of overgrown vegetation blocking the trail, placed fallen stones back on nearby walls, and added or improved the trail markers.

Our rewards were many! Great company, stunning dry-stone structures along the route, breathtaking rural landscapes in southern Andros, and a refreshing, relieving swim at the magical Stavros beach near the chapel of the same name! The highlight came after the hike, at the cottage of Giorgos and Eirini Rombou, where the warm hospitality of Mrs. Eirini—who came down especially to greet us—welcomed us with generous treats and wine!

A heartfelt thank-you to everyone who joined the maintenance hike and contributed to the maintenance of the trail. Special thanks to the Rombou family for their hospitality, the refreshments they prepared for us at their cottage, and the transportation back to our cars, as well as to Iraklis Gavras for his company and help with the return to the route’s starting point.

We invite anyone interested in becoming a Route Angel for this path—it’s truly one of the most beautiful in our network! See how you can become a volunteer caretaker of a trail through the link here.

A short break from maintenance hikes—see you in September with the cool breeze!