Surfers heaven in Europe - Limnos Island - Greece

in #travel7 years ago (edited)

IMG_6574.jpgWind, turquoise water, empty beaches with golden sand and amazing culture and people. The place you want to surf.
Lets start with the place itself. Limnos (which you can also see written as "Lemnos" is in the northern part of Aegean see. Right there:
It's the 8th largest of the Greek islands.
It's name comes from the greek word for field. This is partly because its quite flat with its highest elevation of 470 m (1,540 ft.). I say partly because it also has a remarkably rich and potent soil. Just to give you an idea, for around two months of staying there with a caravan we got a view watermelons and some tomatoes growing from where our camp sink was draining

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And this was one of the small ones - the big one was good enough to eat so yeah..no pictures.
The diversity of food there is also amazing. One would imagine that an island can offer an abundance of fish but that's only a drop in the ocean of delicious you can enjoy there. Tons of grape, peaches, olives and all types of fruit and vegies are farmed there. The greeks are also fantastic at making cheese- the local types are something that by it self is a good reason to visit the island if you are a cheese lover. And the meat there is also one of the best I've eaten. Before I go there I didn't even know that there was a process in which it's put at slightly above freezing temperature for exact time so it can be super ripe and fine.
But enough about food. That's not the only type of diversity Limnos has to offer. It has those places that you would see on a postcard from heaven.
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See! Heaven.
And this is actually a pic from its desert. Yes! The island ,as small as it is, has it's own desert. IMG_2230.jpg
Well it might be only few dunes, but those few dunes alone have been a reason for many people to visit the island. They have been a set for a few movies as well.
Another wild thing you can see there is a whole vacation village totally abandoned and cleaned from any valuables
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A breath-taking sight this is. And the bay at which it is situated is amazing beyond words. It was built but never opened and it just sits there. Like an attraction for all of us that both like urban exploration and the sea itself. I have yet to see a better combo of both worlds.IMG_2089.jpg
These are only a few of the perks that Limnos can offer.
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The biggest perk of the island surfing. Windsurfing and kitesurfing with all their forms. On the east coast of the island there is a beach called Keros. This is the best spot for learning and riding in general. You get clean shallow beeach up to 100 meters in and sideshore wind. The beach itself is closed enough so even is you fail and go downwind you just get carried to land so it's safe. On that beach there are two surf stations - one Bulgarian and one Greek. I have always been to the Bulgarian one and last two summers I even worked there so i can be surfing for the whole season.
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Although Its a small beach there is no competition between us and the greeks. Not only that but we help each other a lot. At the end of the day we eat together, we party together and we chill together. We are all there to have the best of times and enjoy this amazing spot. Here are some shots from th BG station ![IMG_6540.jpg]
It's really cool cause everyone has a little touch on the station. A small DIY ornament or a little writing on a board or basically anything that brigs that additional comfort and a feeling of home. And when you are there for the season it not only becomes a home but we all become one big family. Everyone there are wearing a smile all the time and we all do things together and help each other.IMG_6634.jpg
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When there is no wind (which rarely happens) or you are done with your session you can also just sit back an relax in the comfort of our small and welcoming palace of peace and love for life at the bar or chill spot IMG_6399.jpg
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The wind there is low in the morning and picks up to an average 20 knot around noon. Then it goes down around 6pm and is almost completely calm around 8 pm when we close the station. Then with no wind it's time for barbecues and going out in the near villages for local dishes and restaurants or just walks.
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Or we just gather at the stations and let loose.
Havig people from everywhere from the world it is fantastic to just spend time together. Each of us has his own story behind surfing and in life in general. Each has his cultural additions to the culture of the spot. each has something new and different to bring to the table. Its like a place for exchanging and sharing experience and life. And with the people who stay for longer you cant help but bind and become really good friends.
The parties are sometimes on the beaches and sometimes in houses around the island and villas. The guys from the Greek station and us from the Bulgarian, the people that are there to ride and on vacation and even some locals that know the islad before surfers discovered it, all of us together, enjoying and having fun, telling stories and making jokes, basically creating happiness and spinning it around. It's magic!
After the night you see everyone in the water riding and this multiplies the happiness even more. IMG_6706.jpg
Overall Limnos is a great place to go to and visit. The wind is nice and the conditions are awesome for beginners and for pros, the food is fantastic and diverse as well as cheep, the people there define love and hospitality and the nature is mesmerising. I highly advise you to check it out next time you want to travel or go surfing .IMG_2104.jpg
Cheers and have a good day :) IMG_2113.jpg

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Good post @rorxco!

Нямам търпение да отидем там заедно, Рорка! <3

Ще ми сбъднеш още една мечта! Обичам те <3

И аз те обичам!

I was wondering what the wave break was going to look like in the middle of the Med...Kitesurfing sounds like so much fun, I know how cool windsurfing is. Awesome looking spot.

Well it's only wind swell on Limnos. You ged side shore on keros and since it's quite the closed bay you have nice flat there. For waves you would go to Gomati. It's a bay on the other side of Keros and after a few days of strong wind the wind swell gets up to 3 - 4 meters and is even but quite saturated :)

Wow, I didn't realize you could get that much wind swell in the Med.

dope! I haven't tried windsurfing. it's probably hard!

yeah, I think it's the roughest. But once you glide it all falls in to place and becomes light and easy in an instance. I do prefer kitesurfing cause you basically fly and ride on water in the same time. Magic stuff

my arms are not strong enough to hold on to the rope. do you use gloves when you do kitesurfing? I feel like my upper body is weak. I suck at push ups but I do great with legs workout.

Wow, what a lovely place!

Thank you for a great article and photos. I wish I could visit there!

😄😇😄

@creatr

Re-Steemed!

Wow :)) thanks a lot for that resteem and the support

Rorxco appreciates you too!
And really find time to check out Limnos - you are going to be amazed by the place and the people there. Maybe next time you can post your pics from there

Thank you, friend. We surfers have to stick together... ;)

but this is kitesurfer? whatever is great to see it!

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