“Walk the Gorge”
A Personal Story
DEMETRIUS MAZACOUFA
WINTER 2013:
Reports coming out of Greece are filled with stories of the
continued erosion of the economy and the resulting hardships visited upon the Greek people. Not long afterwards,
I read for the first time about the E4, a 10,000 km (6,200
miles) hiking trail that starts in Spain, winds its way through
France, Switzerland and Germany, stumbles a bit into the
eastern European countries of Romania and Bulgaria, works
down through mainland Greece, crosses the width of Crete
and nearly collapses with exhaustion on Cyprus.
Over the next few weeks, I reach out to friends with the
suggestion that they join me in a walk across Crete along the
E4. I propose it as a fundraising event to help charities in Crete.
To encourage their participation, I show them YouTube
Walk the Gorge walkers gather at the main Chania bus station
for the early morning drive to Samaria Gorge National Park.