Kallergi - Xylo Skalo - Koustogerako - Sougia

Long, very rewarding tour through Lefka Ori with a great variety of landscapes. Containing a few sections which require concentration, this is not a walk for tourists but needs some basic experience in the mountains.
Start the tour early - not only because of its sheer length, but during the day humidity may condense into fog on Gigilos col, making it difficult to find the way.
Starting at Kallergi refuge, you follow E4 walking down to Xylo Skalo where you will meet an army of tourists aiming for Samaria gorge. Climb up following E4 to Gigilos col - you will pass by Linoselli fountain, where you can fill/refill your water bottles. There will be no water until you reach the valley of Achlada (90 mins walk from the col) and water there may also require some tablets to be drinkable (I did not try). After Gigilos col you will traverse into Achlada valley, which is the most challenging part of the tour (some sections require climbing). Achlada starts as a plain with only bushes but follows a riverbed very soon and for some hours. Nice forests you will be walking through, before you have to climb up again to circumvent some bold cliffs. Shortly after you reach a chapel, and from there you can walk a road down to Koustogerako (but will use the short-cuts in the upper section of the road). In Koustogerako you do not need to use the asphalt road down to Livada but can take a trail which was heavily used before cars took over in Southern Crete. The trail can be found easily although bushes are fighting back, making it a pretty spiky endeavor. From Livada you follow the asphalt street till you hit an intersection with an unpaved road to Sougia. You can find this easily since it is at the very bend of a zig zag. Walk down to Sougia and enjoy the beach!