Day 26 – Sunday, August 31, 2025

You know the drill – I had a nice swim at daybreak. Here I understood why I did not see the source of the light: there was a cave at the edge of the beach where the group had hung out.

A cave at the edge of the beach

I started riding again and saw a bus heading my way. I signaled to the driver, pointing to myself and then to the bus, hoping to catch a ride. As chance would have it, I was near a bus station on his return route, so a bit unwillingly, he stopped and threw my bike into the belly of the bus. I paid €2.50, and we were on our way to Aeropoli.

The previous day, I had not visited the town; now I rode through it, noting about 15 churches, some with locals making their weekly prayers.

Pretty Aeropoli

Large tower

Still empty streets

A small chapel

It was only 9:15 in the morning, and I realized I had missed something the previous day – visiting the Caves of Diros. They were about 11 kilometers in the direction I had come by bus, with Itylo in the opposite direction another 11 km away. That meant 33 kilometers ahead (11 to the caves, 11 back to Aeropoli, and 11 to Itylo) – seemed doable until 3 pm, even with the ascents. After some deliberation, I decided to go for it.

I rode back on the previous day’s road and, after a few kilometers, took the fork to the caves, with a 5-km descent down to the entrance (I was already dreading the climb back up).

The Caves of Diros are a spectacular underground network of caverns with breathtaking stalactites and stalagmites, explored via guided boat tours through underground waterways. It was little after 10 am, and I got lucky – no wait time. We started navigating the caverns; alas, the “guide” spoke only Greek. Even the young, friendly group from Athens with me could hardly explain anything, as our guide seemed rather uninterested. The boat ride was also cut short due to the crowd behind us. Still, it was nice to visit.

Riding the boat in the cave

Stalactites meeting stalagmites

Wow!

After the visit, I climbed back up, stopping at a ceramics shop to buy some souvenirs – they actually survived my trip home. The ascent was not too bad, and a little after noon, I was back in Aeropoli. With two and a half hours left, I dropped to the coast for a nice swim.

I indeed went in for a nice long swim there!

Around 1:30 pm, I started riding up, giving myself enough time to reach the “under the big tree” spot. I got there around 14:20 and tried hitchhiking – no luck. A 3-story family house had seen me the previous day (as the dog did not appreciate me drinking from the fountain). I asked for cold water – the fountain was rather warm – and an elderly gentleman with a limp and one arm kindly brought me a bottle. A couple with their dog came out; the dog was now friendlier. They said the bus might not run daily, probably not on Sundays, and even if it did, it might not be at 3 pm. Lots of negatives.

I was already preparing for an all-nighter (about 70 km to Kalamata on rough terrain). To my utter surprise, at 14:59, I saw a bus descending from a rural road above the village. At 15:00, it arrived at the station! Yes, it was heading to Kalamata. What a great sight! It was a modern Mercedes bus with air-conditioning. The ticket cost €5, but I gave €10 as the driver was very helpful placing my bike inside. A few minutes later, we were on our way – Kalamata, here I come again!

We arrived at the central bus station (where I had bought a ticket to Patras earlier) around 5:30 pm. I made sure they knew I was bringing a bike the next morning (someone recommended declaring it). For the night, I did not want to camp, so I booked a room for €65 at a local hotel, right on the beach.

On the way from the bus station to the hotel, I spotted a self-service laundry and threw all my belongings (except what I was wearing) into the machine, then went to occupy my small room. Later, I returned to the laundry to dry my clothes – a good feeling to be clean again.

Near the laundry, a fast-food restaurant caught my eye. I got a dinner that filled me quickly – tasty meat, though perhaps a bit too much bread.

Tasty meat, but a bit too much bread

I loitered around the Kalamata beach – everything from folk dance, an anti-Israel demo, to rock’n’rollers – quite eclectic.

Yeah, I guess it was nice

I retired rather early, knowing long travel days lay ahead.

I did not switch on my watch until riding back to the caves, and again not in Kalamata. Strava counted 28 km and 600 meters of altitude – I made at least 10 km more, so let’s agree on 40 km and 750 meters.