Train and Rail Travel in Thessaly Page 3 (see Greece train map)

Volos to Pilio on the 60cm line cont.

The journey down to the Pagasitic gulf affords views all the way down the peninsula along the way, and, together with those arched bridges and tunnels and the general beauty of the landscape, is a delightful short journey. The old wooden coaches are pulled by a little steam locomotive; two of the three Belgian built locomotives completely restored.

The original tracks and right-of-way structures were built so well that it took little to ready them for re-use. Tunnel fascades have also been restored by stone masons, and a picnic area has been built near the brook at the Milies station. The Ano Gatzea station has also been restored, including its late 19th century herbal pharmacy, which overlooks the gulf. A trail leads down from the station here to the beach at Kato Gatzea, where there are two campsites. One of the finest of the stone bridges is the five-arched curved stone bridge which is on the first big curve after Ano Lechonia. The Taxiarchos steel bridge is also notable, due to the single track which is laid directly on the surface of the bridge without an embankment. Trails lead off to the north from the railway at the south end of this bridge, where there is a picnic area.

Millies

Milies is a very small village, founded during the 16th century, which flourished under the large degree of autonomy granted Pilio during the Turkish era, establishing itself as a packing center for the peninsula's olive oil, nuts, fruit, and silk products. A native of this village-one Stathis Gouliotis-has restored the old 8-room station guesthouse, making it into an inn and restaurant; he has also co-authored books about this exceptional little railway line. Milies is also proud of the contribution of its 18th century schools to the intellectual/cultural climate that nurtured the independence struggles to come in the early years of the following century. There's a folk museum here with exhibits of local crafts. An sandouri-maker lives in Milies, whose work and workshop were featured in a documentary on instrument-making shown at the wonderful folk instruments museum in Plaka (in Athens). The sandouri is an Anatolian instrument that resembles the 'hammer dulcimer' of western Europe, basically a zither-like instrument with two bridges and many courses (pairs) of strings which are struck with cotton-tipped wooden wands.

Pilio is blessed with many trails, including old cobbled kalderimia that invite long walks between villages, or to outlying beaches. Just 2km from Milies is Vyzitsa, where one can find rooms, but there are much longer walks as well.

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