Colin Donihue

There were a few adventures that didn’t make it onto the blog before we had to leave so I’m going to take this chance to catch you up with a few pictures and stories. 

The first was a caving adventure! Mount Zas, the highest peak in the Cyclades, got its name because it is believed to be the birthplace of Zeus. More specifically, Zeus was believed born in a massive cave in the heart of the mountain.

The hike to the cave is a fairly easy 25 minute walk. Approaching the entrance is somewhat anticlimactic. The mouth of the cave has been bricked over leaving only a small doorway with graffiti all around it. If, like most tourists, you wander in, turn on your phone “flashlight” and peer around, you’ll miss everything about the cave making it worthy of its name. I’d made that mistake before, so this time we brought lights. 

Here’s what it looked like with a bit of light:

It’s hard to tell, but those boulders are massive! I got the shot using a long shutter speed while I “painted” the rocks with my headlamp. The main chamber of the cave was created, or at least expanded, by a roof collapse ages ago. Now you can climb up on those rocks, watch the bats swoop by, and admire the expanse of the chamber.  

Here’s another long exposure shot where you can see the team’s headlights as they move through the cavern, climbing those boulders. 

And here’s what it looks like when they get to the top and stand still on that ridge to look at the far chamber! We had an amazing couple of hours exploring Zas cave!