Description
The Madari natural trail is among the best natural trails for hiking in Cyprus. It is a circular trail of 13 km long and is considered as a difficult one based on the trails we have in Cyprus. The elevation gain/loss is about 600 meters and the peak of the mountain is at 1600 meters. This is a very beautiful trail as it offers panoramic views of the surrounding area and also magical paths under the dense forest called “Adelfoi”. The trail needs approximately 4 hours and 30 minutes to finish it with an average speed of +/- 3 kph.
Viewpoints
I can categorize it into 2 legs. The first leg is Doksa si o Theos towards the Madari Fire Lookout, going uphill. This route provides you with stunning panoramic views from both south and north in several viewpoints. To the south you will see the village of Kyperounta and Chandria and to the north you will be able to see the coast of occupied Morfou and Mesaoria.
The second leg is Madari Fire Lookout towards the Doksa si o Theos, which is a different route of course. The forest of this route is more dense thus you are surrounded with green most of the time. Additionally, when reaching the Madari Fire Lookout, you may go up there and have a 360 view of the whole area.
| Part | Route | Route Name | Distance (km) | Duration (hours) | Difficulty level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leg 1 | Leg1-1 | Doksa soi o Theos – Madari Fire Lookout | 3,8 | 2 | 2 |
| Leg 2 | Leg2-1 | Madari Fire Lookout – Selladi tou Karamanli | 3,6 | 1,5 | 3 |
| Leg2-2 | Selladi tou Karamanli – Moutti tis Choras | 3,8 | 1,5 | 2 | |
| Leg2-3 | Moutti tis Choras – Doksa soi o Theos | 1,8 | 0.5 | 1 |
Starting points
You have the option to start the trail from various locations. Most popular ones are:
- Madari Fire lookout (main starting point)
- Doksa si o Theos
- Road Spilia to Madari junction
This natural trail route is also in google maps, so there is no way of getting lost. However, you may also find below my GPS route.
Note: Doksa si o Theos means “Bless you God” and it’s called that way because of the route’s difficulty and when hikers finish it usually they appraise God for helping them out.
Personal Comments
I’ve visited it 3 times already and it never gets old or boring. It is one of my favourite trails and I’ve hiked it in winter and autumn and the beauty of this trail still amazes me. I definitely recommend this trail. If you are a beginner then plan ahead, do parts of this trail as a start or even do as many short breaks you want. A smaller but of the same beauty trail is the “Teisia tis Madaris”, which starts from the Fire Lookout and goes to a different direction. This trail is shorter and easily done from beginners.
Natural Trail Information
| Description | |
| Starting points | Madari Fire Lookout: GPS Coordinates: 34.956453, 32.995277 Doksa si o Theos: GPS Coordinates: 34.955979, 32.963184 Road Spilia to Madari junction: GPS Coordinates: 34.967399, 32.961708 |
| Ending point | – |
| Distance | ~13km |
| Difficulty (1 – easy, 2 – moderate, 3 – difficult) | 3 |
| Trail type | Circular |
| ETA finish time | ~4:30 hours |
| Elevation Gain/Loss | ~600 meters |
| Altiltude | 1047m – 1587m |
GPS Map
Gallery
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Ελληνικά (Greek)
