GC3CP11 Nikiforos Fokas Fortress E4 CTC (Traditional Cache) in Greece created by OMILOS

GC3CP11 ▼

A cache by OMILOS Message this owner

Hidden : 2/16/2012

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

A cache near Profitis Ilias.

Near Heraklion there is the village of Profitis Ilias. Next to it is the hill Rocca and on top of it is one of the biggest fortresses in the island. The fortress dominates the area. The view to all directions is superb. Today was a beautiful day and you could see till the Lassithi Mountains and Psiloritis. The first inhabitants in the hill are from Minoan times. It is considered that here was the acropolis of ancient town of Likastos. When the Byzantine general Nikoforos Fokas liberated Crete from Arabs at 961ac he built a strong fortress. He built it with the purpose to move the city of Candia (today Heraklion) there. But people were thinking that the harbor was more important than security. Later the fortress whose name was Temenos was maintained by the Genuats and the Venetians. Turks donated to the Venetian traitor of Candia Andrea Barossi. Nowadays you can find four churches in the top of the hill. On the east side Agios Georgios, between the two picks Agia Paraskevi and on the slopes above the village are Virgin Mary and Agios Antonios. You can also see a big part of the walls very well preserved.

To arrive there you have to enter the village and from there you have to follow the signs to the fortress. In the village at a point you have to turn right without a sign (check the waypoint). The cache is in the top. You have to follow the path until a certain point and from there you are on your own. The view from the cache area is awesome.
You can always read our blog for more information about geocaching in Crete

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Arne gur jnyy.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)