Vikos - Aoos UNESCO Global Geopark, Greece

Clinging to cliffs and ridgelines, the Geopark’s monasteries occupy eyrie-like sites. Their lofty positions served clear purposes: watch over river crossings and mule paths, safeguard communities, and secure the quiet needed for prayer.

Tymfi Dragonlake, at 2,050 meters altitude on impermeable flysch, mirrors Gamila and Astraka’s towering limestone peaks. Shaped by glaciers and fed by snow and rain, the route from the Astraka refuge reveals a landscape where rock and water harmonize.

Towers of Astraka – Rising like giant fortresses above Papigo, these limestone cliffs of Mt. Tymfi were shaped by the 13 km Astraka Fault. Perpendicular fractures guided water that carved terraces and grooves, forming this dramatic landscape.

Carved by the Sarantaporos River into folded Ionian limestones, this 2 km karst gorge resulted from uplift and erosion. The region features a dense system of sulphuric hypogene caves, with sulfur sourced from deep-seated rocks.

Single-, double-, or even triple-arched, the Geopark’s bridges were built between the 17th and 19th centuries in a landscape of mountains, gorges, and rivers that hindered the movement of people, ideas, and goods.

At 2,150 metres altitude, resting beneath Greece’s second-highest peak (Mt. Smolikas, 2,637 m), the alpine lake Drakolimni (Dragonlake) was formed in a landslide depression over fragmented ophiolites, limestone, and chert rocks that once were part of the Tethys Ocean crust.

Evergreen shrubs and oak woods give way to beech and conifers, while at higher altitudes, centuries-old Bosnian pine forests grow on peridotites and serpentinites, scattered among sub-alpine pastures, bare rocks, and screes.

A transient tarn can be found at 1500 meters altitude on Mt. Tymfi’s northern slopes, sculpted by glaciers 480,000–130,000 years ago. Beneath the towering limestone peaks of Megala Litharia, Bosnian pine forests now thrive where ice once carved the mountain’s face.

The Aoos (Vjosa) River, one of Europe’s last wild rivers, crosses the Konitsa plain shaped by the active Konitsa Fault. This 24-kilometer-long NE–SW fault, with displacements up to 1,000m, has uplifted dolomites and limestones, guiding the river flow and its spring formation.

Within the Geopark, 34 settlements are officially designated as traditional for their architectural heritage, exemplifying a harmonious integration of the built environment with the natural landscape.

Stone walls and roofs, perfectly in harmony with the natural environment, define most buildings in the geopark’s settlements. At the center stands the parish church with its bell tower, typical of all villages in the area.

Vikos-Aoos UNESCO Global Geopark – features 51 rare and spectacular geosites across seven categories: springs, faults and folds, river terraces, rock shelters, scenic viewpoints, karst, and glacial forms, each revealing a chapter of the region’s geological history.