Our excursion of Sunday 10 March 2024 takes us to the dam and lake of Lefkara. We follow a linear trail of 7km distance (14km to and fro). The first section of the walk offers spectacular views of the lake and shrubby vegetation. The second section takes us through the beautiful Kyprovasa valley and reaches a few remains of the old settlement. All the walk is on wide dirt roads. Hiking time is close to 4 hours including breaks, and the degree of difficulty is 1 ½ to 2 (moderate).

Lefkara lake is probably the nearest scenery to an alpine lake in Cyprus; this is on account of the fact that pine trees stretch down to the level of the water, while the contour of the land bordering the lake takes all sorts of shapes, as if there are no straight lines in this landscape.

The dirt roads we shall follow are popular with motor bikers, therefore we draw your attention to the need to walk on the side, and observe the walk leader’s instructions.  

The hike starts at 10:15 am. Antonis is leading the hike, which will go ahead even in light rain; if you need to, call 97803728.

We shall follow the walk with a served meze lunch at the restaurant of our choice in the nearby village of Lythrodontas. Registered participants will receive full details via e-mail the day before.  

To provide you with maximum safety, and in order to have maximum traceability, we require every participant to register, irrespective of your participation at lunch or not. To facilitate arrangements, for your better service, you are required to sms the walk leader or e-mail Xenophon by end Friday, indicating whether you will be joining us for lunch or not.

You have the choice of meeting the group at the hike start, or meet at the designated meeting point in Nicosia. In either case, you need to carry copy of this set of instructions. Meeting in Nicosia offers two important advantages: we drive in full cars, leaving some cars behind; thus, we save in fuel and enjoy the trip in good company. The meeting point in Nicosia is the Handicrafts Centre (Kentro Heirotechnias) on Leoforos Athalassas (Athalassa Avenue), which offers ample parking space. The car trip starts at 9:15 am. Please ensure you observe start times, for the benefit of the group.

How to get to the walk start:

Get to the main junction between Leoforos Lemesou/ Limassol Avenue and Leoforos Athalassas. Zero your odometer at this junction. Drive along the Nicosia-Limassol motorway, heading towards Limassol. At the 25.4 km reading you exit the motorway on your left, at exit number 11, following signs to Kornos and Stavrovouni. At the 25.5 km reading you reach a T-junction; turn right, following signs to Kornos and Delikipos. At the 25.7 km reading you pass a left turn for Nicosia, do not turn left, go straight. At the 26.0 km reading you pass a left turn for Kornos, do not turn left, go straight. At the 30.1 km reading you pass a right turn for Chrysosotiros church; do not turn right, go straight. At the 30.5 km reading you reach the Delikipos picnic site on your left. Zero your odometer here and drive straight along the main road. At the 6.5 km reading you take a right turn into a side road (non-tarmac) that begins to climb; there is a white road sign indicating Lefkara dam at this point. 1.4 km further on, you reach the dam. Park your car on the side. We meet here.

How to get to the walk start coming from Limassol:

Drive along the Limassol – Nicosia motorway, heading towards Nicosia. Exit the motorway on your left, at exit number 11, following signs to Kornos and Stavrovouni. About 100 m later you reach a T-junction; turn left, following signs to Kornos and Delikipos. Drive solely along this road for about 5 km, until you reach the Delikipos picnic site on your left. Zero your odometer here and drive straight along the main road. At the 6.5 km reading you take a right turn into a side road (non-tarmac) that begins to climb; there is a vandalised white road sign indicating Lefkara dam at this point. 1.4 km further on, you reach the dam. Park your car on the side. We meet here.

How to get to the meeting point for the car trip, coming from the Landmark (formerly Hilton) hotel area:

Get yourself on Makarios Avenue, heading out of town and set your odometer to zero as you drive past the Nicosia Landmark (formerly Hilton) hotel. At the 0.1 km reading you reach traffic lights (with the Apoel club building on your right), go straight. At the 0.5 km reading you reach another set of traffic lights, go straight. Driving along, you pass a few more traffic lights, staying on this main road (named Leoforos Lemesou/ Limassol Avenue). At the 2.1 km reading, you reach a principal set of traffic lights. Set your odometer to zero again and turn right here. You are now in Leoforos Athalassas, a very busy avenue. At the 0.2 km reading you see a large empty space on your right and the Handicrafts Centre (a single-storey building) on your left. Park in the parking area. We meet here. The Handicrafts Centre is next to the church of St. Barnabas.

How to get to the meeting point for the car trip, coming from the Presidential Palace area:

Get to the round-about next to the Presidential Palace. From downtown Nicosia you reach this along the Kyriakou Matsi avenue or along the D. Severi avenue. Set your odometer to zero on the round-about and drive along the principal road towards Strovolos. At the 0.3 km reading you reach traffic lights. Go straight. At the 0.6 km reading you reach a 2nd set of traffic lights. Set your odometer to zero again and turn left. You are now in Leoforos Athalassas, a very busy avenue full of shops. At the 2.6 km reading you see a large empty space on your left and the Handicrafts Centre (a single-storey building) on your right. Park here.

Google Maps: Here is a map for those coming from the Landmark (formerly Hilton) area to the meeting place for the car trip http://tinyurl.com/phjc6s7  

Google Maps: Here is a map for those coming from the Presidential Palace area to the meeting place for the car trip http://tinyurl.com/neo9duy

Disclaimer: If you attend a Cyprus Strollers walk you do so entirely at your own risk. The Cyprus Strollers is a social club and neither the organizers nor the leader of the walk are responsible for the health and safety of those taking part. If you do not wish to receive further e-mails, reply to this message, stating so.