Once on the east coast, it is immediately clear to us how nature has been more generous with this side of Pelion. The beaches are all very beautiful and it is not by chance that one of these, Damouchari, has been used as a natural set for the film ‘Mamma Mia’.
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Arriving from the south going for Tsangarada, the first beach you come to is Lambinou [39.36041,23.21358]. From the main road it is 4 km downhill and just after the monastery, we arrive at the beach’s parking lot, where it is also possible to stay overnight, even though it is not easy to find a flat spot. From there it is another hundred meters on foot to reach the sea, from the stairs of the tavern.
The monastery of Panagia Lambidhonas , just before you get to the beach, is well worth a stop and a short visit. Built in the eighteenth century with some frescoes in very good condition above the doors of the church, which unfortunately is not open to visit inside.
We go back on the road to Tsangarada, and after the apocalyptic moment in the picture on the right, just before entering the village, we turn right towards Milopotamos [39.37532,23.20299] After another six kilometers we arrive to the parking lot at the end of the road: small, rather sloping and with the classic camping bans. In summer here must be hell! We stopped for the night and in the morning we felt in paradise! 🙂
Agios Ioannis [39.41452,23.16561] is perfect for free camping out of season when the campsite is closed. A couple of mini markets remain open throughout the year and from here you can take some interesting walks, for example, just past the Calatrava style bridge, a beautiful pedestrian street leads to the great beach Papa Nero
The huge beach Papa Nero, a 5-minute walk from Agios Ioannis, has the peculiarity of being made of small and polished pebbles. From its southern side a well-marked trail leads, through an half hour very steep climb, to the marvelous beach of Damouchari.
A Damouchari [39.40499,23.17806] can also be reached with the motorhome, but the space to park and do maneuvers is definitely limited. For those who have the courage and legs, better walk there from Agios Ioannis. This is the beach used as one of the main locations for the shooting of the movie Mamma Mia, to which all inhabitants of the village participated as extras.
From the cinematographic beach, passing through the village you’ll arrive at a second beach, much more capacious (pictures below). From here there is a path that leads up to Tsangarada, in a rewarding hike which I will describe in next post.
The last beach we visit is Chorefto [39.45784,23.11837] intrigued by the description of our guidebook, where we read that the second beach on the north end is a paradise for free campers. It really is an ideal place for wild camping and we even saw some huts that seem to be still inhabited, even if we did not meet anyone apart from a handful of stray dogs.
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