The Nymphs, even if they were born at sky, they live in the end in "exquisite forests, river springs and green fields"

 

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The sightseeings

Besides the city, many routes worth a visit, which include villages and locations in the wider Karpenisi area. You will meet villages small and big, known and unknown, all of which have kept their traditional style. In most of them you will see enough natural and historical monuments, that they will make your tour exceptionally interesting.

The route that starts from Karpenisi and reaches Prousos is the most well known and covers the entire Evritania tourist "axis". So, you will meet sceneries of exceptional beauty, either by nature either by man. The entire distance between the city and the Prousos Monastery is breathtaking. You will follow the way south of Karpenisi, alongside the Karpenisioti River.

So, you should visit...

...the Koryschades. The restored mansions and the atmosphere, the smell of wood burning in the fire, is breathtaking. You can visit the Museum of National Resistance. In May 1944 the first meeting of the National Board of Resistance was made here, where they decided to keep fighting the German Occupation. Right across the Koryschades, you will see remnants from ancient graves at the Paleokastro Cliff, as well as wall remnants which were once part of an ancient fortress. You will visit at the nearby "Koumasia" locale an impressive old monastery that was erected in 1650.

...the Fidakia, 17 km from Karpenisi, one of the most beautiful mountain villages of Evritania. It is a small village full of stone houses. But its biggest advantage is the locale, where has a magnificent view on the Lake of Kremaston. Moreover, Fidakia is considered to be one of the supposed locations for ancient Echalia.

...the Klafsi, in the small valley of Potamia. It is worth visiting, because it is in a traditional style and outside Klafsi, you will see the unique Evritania early christian time monument. It is the Saint Leonidiou Basilika Church, erected in 5th-6th century A.D. You will marvel the mosaic floor, which is still in good condition. The construction and its size reveal the importance of the area during that time.

...the Megalo and Mikro Chorio. Both villages are well known tourist destinations. Near Mikro Chorio, you can find the Palaio Mikro Chorio. You can visit there the Saint Kyriaki Church and the Museum, in the old school building. The Palaio Mikro Chorio was abandonded in January 1963, when a landslide forced the residents to move to the new village. The "new" Mikro Chorio, however, is extremely picturesque, despite it was built relatively recently.

The Megalo Chorio is the center of the Potamia Municipality. Their small roads worth a walk, so does the Folk Museum with the traditional clothes, the handy tools, the knitware etc.

...the Prousos, which is the end of the route, is the head-village and known for the Holy Mary Prousiotissas Monastery. Her icon attracts every year many pilgrims. The village itself of course is worth a visit, due to the view to Potamia. The village keeps two towers, one at the entrance of the village and other at its exit. the towers were built by Georgios Karaiskakis, a revolution war hero. Do not miss the exceptional national monument at the villages edge: The Black Cave, near a waterfall. The sight will make amends for the 20 minute walk. The Black Cave was used as a refuge during the Turkish and German Occupation.

On the way to the Holy Mary Prousiotissas Monastery, you will reach a rock where you can see on its back seven shapes of different colors.

They say that those trails belong to the Virgin Mary. She left them there while passing by on her way to the cave, where the monastery was later built. The monastery was build during the Byzantine Emperor Theofilos' Reign.

Its founder was a young lord of the Asia Minor city of Prousa. He rescued the icon of the Virgin Mary and built the monastery in a small cave. Today, the icon is still kept in the same cavity, which has been modified as a small chapel. The icon is appended to Evangelist Loukas and apart from its religious value, it is a magnificent piece of art, decorated with gold and silver in 1824 by Georgios Karaiskakis. The latter played the role of the area's benefactor, as he often sought refuge to the monastery's cave.

Historical evidence prove that the first hermit came to the cave at 7th or 8th century A.D. The monastery is well known for its icon of Holy Mary, which made the monastery into a holy pilgrimage not only to Evritania, but to all Central Greece, Mountain Thessaly and Northern Peloponnese. The chapel where the icon is kept was decorated during 9th-12th century.

The main temple is cross-shaped and was erected in 1754 in the place of an older temple that was destroyed. You can see the main monastery buildings round the catholic, such as the monks' cells, the bank and the guesthouse. There is also an old library in the monastery, where you can find many rare scripts which underline the significant role of the monastery during the Turkish Occupation. Outside the monastery's yard you will see the three-story building of the School of Greek Literature. Apart from the monastery's religious value, its history is also significant. It was demolished and rebuilt many times. The most recent one was when it was burnt down by the Germans in 1944.

...the Saint Nicholaos, which is the first village on our left, just when we get out the Tymphristos Tunnel, 6 km from Karpenisi. It is a picturesque village, noted for the biggest snow coverage days in the whole Evritania, for the lowest temperatures during the winter, for its chestnuts and the boiled beans!

...the Krikello and Domnitsa. If you leave Karpenisi and head to Lamia, you will reach a crossing to the villages Krikello and Domnitsa. It is an exceptional mountain route at the sides of Oksia Mountain. Krikello is a beautiful village, built at 1,120 m height. On your way there you will have to pass the dense forest. When you reach the village, you will see the seven stone water taps, which provide the village with the ice cold Oksia mountain spring water. According to the tradition, in 279 B.C., Aetolians crushed the Gauls' army at Kokkalia locale. The area was named after the numerous bones (="kokkala" in Greek) from the Gauls, after the savage battle.

You can find Domnitsa if you continue your way to the sides of Oksia Mountain and Kaliakouda. You will enjoy the sight of the age-long planes and taste the area's "delicasies".

At Domnitsa, in 7th June of 1942, Aris Velouchiotis commenced the fight against the German Opressors. In memory of this National Hero, a National Resistance Monument was built, and if you visit the area at the first Sunday of June, you will also take part in the celebrations.

There is a Folk Museum in the building of the old Gymnasium, where you can see decorative and useful daily objects and male and female traditional clothes. What is impressive though, is the collection of traditional toys and the clay vases that came to light from excavations at the Fantio lacale at Domnitsa, traces that among more indicate the existence of an ancient village.

You can find the Ampliani Village near Domnitsa. The village was once called Stavropigi, which in Greek implied that there was a cross shaped monastery around. Ampliani is specially known for its textiles. All the areas around the villages are of excquisite beauty. You will see the small canyons that were made from the Krikellopotamos River. The most beautiful of them is the Pantavrechi Canyon, near the Roska village.