This trip takes us into the forest and ravines, where there are crystal clear waters and lots of green foliage. Also, there are birds and deer. Moreover, this is a journey back into history and the time of castles, huts and sheep folds.....

North of Alexandroupolis, on the road heading towards the village of Avanta, one can see the impressive Byzantine fort, built on a hummock directly opposite the railroad station of Potamos. Of this squarish towers and, at some points, double walls remain standing. This fortification guards the narrow passageway, which makes up the gorge in the highlands of Rodope. It is used by the current railway line and leads to the plains of Komotini. It was a branch road from the main road of Egnatia and it was of strategic importance. Contemporary opinion identifies this fort with the Byzantine Peristeria, where Theodoros Komninos passed through Cratsianu (or better known today as Gratini of Rodope) to get to Evros in 1225 as did the troops of Oumoor and Ioannis Kantakouzinos in 1345.

The hummock of the fort shows that it had been inhabited even during prehistoric times. On the surface, Neolithic pottery (4500– 3000B.C.) has been found as well as hand– made grooved and impressed Thracian pottery (9th– 8th centuries B.C.). Continuing along the dirt road, which passes in front of the Potamos castle and heads toward the naturally narrow passageway of mountainous Rodope, one ends up, after having trekked for about 5 kms. along the railroad tracks, at the well– known cave of St. Theodoroi, which is situated at the center of this hollow. The cave has been transformed into a chapel with an iron screen. Also, frescos on the surface of the cliffs have added to the beauty of the chapel, which is reminiscent of similar cavernous churches of Kapadokia. The frescos belong to two periods. Some of them date back to the 11th century and others range from the latter part of the 12th century to the beginning of the 13th century. The technique used on the frescos reflects the grand tradition of Constantinople.

At the entrance of the gorge at Agioi Theodoroi and tucked away in the hills is the village of Kirki. The small modern settlement, which is known for its taverns and nice wine, got its name loosely translated, from “forty inns” or “beautiful inns” (Kirk– ka). Perhaps the meaning originates from the time when there were inns during the Ottoman period because the area served as a supply station for those bound for Constantinople. On a nearby hill, a prehistoric open– air Thracian sanctuary with a supporting wall has been located. At the Archeological Museum of Komotini, a movable rock from the area of the village, with engraved drawings and ritual cupmarks, is exhibited. These findings date back to the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age. Kirki had the good fortune to be able to present perhaps the last of the traditional Byzantine Iconography atelier in Greece. Adorning the icon screens at the church of St. George are various pieces of this art. The icons of the screen were created in 1926– 1927 by the monk named Kirillos (1871– 1945), who was born in Kirki and learned the skill of iconography at Mh. Athos. Upon returning to his homeland, he set up a workshop. His primary pupil was the folk artist Paschalis Katsikas. They took on many orders, primarily from Russia and Thrace.

Last stop on this excursion is the picturesque area of Sikorachi (‘siko– rahi’ which is a term the locals use meaning sheep fold on the side). Certain features of this area include a perfect climate, evergreen ridges with landscaped recreational areas, extremely clean water and taverns.

After the Byzantine castle of Potamos, the road leads to the village of Avanta. At the northern tip of the village, on a hidden cliff next to where the road narrows and to what the locals call ‘tempi’, the remnants of a second Byzantine fortification are found. Between Avanta and the next community called Aisimi, the hill of Monastiri (Tsepel– Kayia) ascends. On its inaccessible peak, an open– air walled Thracian sanctuary was discovered. This monument endured prehistoric times (9th – 8th century B.C.) as well as the Hellenistic and Byzantine times. Its wall encloses various carved structures, for example a sacrificial stone altar, bowls, a rock with a constellation image of Ursa Major, some carved Pythos, disc symbols of the sun and small steps. Following this road, which unexpectedly ascents and traces a magical journey, one reaches the area of Leptokaria, which is found right after Aisimi. There, on a slope with an altitude of 650 meters above sea level and 32 kms from Alexandroupolis, the Sarakatsanian Association of the Province of Evros made a representation of a seasonal Sarakatsanian bivouac. This representation of a traditional summer settlement of the Sarakatsani nomadic tribe simultaneously constitutes a live museum and a place of entertainment. To the tourist, it offers a unique opportunity to get to know the Sarakatsani daily way of life, to observe the skillful construction of the famous circular hut made from wood and straw, a Konaki with a cross on the roof, the school founded for the mountainous area, and in general the bivouac. At the bottom of the hill there is a stretch of a small village called Leptokaria, which is inhabited by a few families of the Pomak tribe.

In the agricultural region of the village of Nipsa, twenty kms northeast of Alexandroupolis and at the foot of the Rodope mountains, a prehistoric unit of megalithic monuments (Early Iron Age 1050– 650 B.C.) was recently located by a surface research. It belongs to the region of the Thracian tribe of the Kikones, which was made known by Homer and Herodotus. Within a short distance, due northwest of the modern community, a fortress (acropolis) standing on a hill and dating from the 9th– 8th centuries B.C., was found. It guards the passage into the interior of Rodope. On an separate rock, which is located at the northwest tip of the fortress, a carved chamber tomb from the same period was detected. At the site of Drimos, east of Nipsa, rock– cut disc symbols of the sun, a three leveled altar with a hollow, a sacrificial rock and numerous cup– marks which are attributed to stellar formations were located. It has been explained as being the Thracian prehistoric open– air sanctuary as they worshipped the sun and the stars. In the area of the old settlement of Nipsa, northwest of the place where the current village is, rock engraving with linear drawings and human– like figures were discovered. All the Megalithic monuments are found in a forest. Therefor, it is possible that they consisted of a “sacred wood”, like the one referred to by Homer and which was inhabited by the priest of the Kikones, who was named Maronas.