Travel Guide Lassithi

Located in the hinterland of Agios Nikolaos, at 850 m above sea level, this plateau is the most important of all Crete, but also the most famous. It is here that the largest number of windmills would have been, according to some natives, almost 10 000 in the 1950 s and 1960 s. However, the famous image of these Cretan mills with their wings of white fabric no longer corresponds to reality. Today, electric pumps are preferred to irrigate the fields. However, if they are not really used, the mills (stripped of their white suit) are still part of the Saisissant landscape. From Neapolis (which is one of the entrance of the plateau), kilometers from a winding and picturesque road take you to the plateau, large oval plain surrounded by mountains. We then discover, from the top, a real and impressive patchwork of cultivated plots, which stretches on no less than 72 km 2! There you can see the windmills that made the celebrity of the place. The main activity here is rural: fishing culture, apples, cereals, potatoes, almonds and anything that can grow at this altitude (between 900 and 850 m) and under this climate. These crops are irrigated by water from groundwater which fills in autumn and spring with the water of sometimes torrential rain which descends from the surrounding mountains, flooding the valley and which has been raised with these famous mills in summer, when the soil is dry (one understands why the 17 villages in the plateau are in height…). The land is particularly fertile and cultivated since the Minoan era. The Romans developed a irrigation system that the Venetians, in the th century, cleaned and improved by installing the water, the windmills you see still today. Cycling enthusiasts: The 25 km of circumference of the valley are without significant differences, so here is a relatively easy route to discover the whole!The most important village is Tzermiado, but the main attraction is the cave of Dikti, near Psikro. It is here that Zeus would have grown up, raised by nymphs and hidden by his father Cronos who wanted to devour him. Some will even tell you that it is here that the father of the gods was born! This cave has also been the subject of archaeological excavations, some of which, dating from the Minoan period, are exhibited in Heraklion museum. To access the famous cave from the car park, you have to walk a good quarter of an hour following the stone path. The E 4 European hiking trail passes through the plateau. The ideal, if you want to discover the plateau, is to spend at least one night in one of the villages (Aghios Giorgos is the best option) and to go cycling (the villages are bound by a circular road) or cross the walk on foot. Whatever season, it can cool up there in the evening. Provide a sweat or a little wool. A great feast takes place on August 29 th when all the inhabitants find themselves at the Chapelle Ioannis chapel before they go as they should.