Olives, olives everywhere, along this flattish ride
Distance: 69 km
Elevation: 753 m
A ride languishing in the olive groves of the Nicosia plains.
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At 69km and with just over 750m elevation, this is a pleasant ride savouring the olive groves of the Nicosia plains. For years and years, vast quantities of olives have been grown in these villages, picked and pressed to produce oil. With current trends highlighting the health benefits of olive oil, the harvest is now more valuable than ever. Roll past trees that have lived and seen many more days than us and see how olives have helped shape these villages.
I leave the outskirts of Lympia, passing under a motorway and onto the road towards Mosfiloti. It’s a calm ribbon like road with the fresh December green growth creating a sea of green to ride between. Green is known for being a calming colour and its impact brings a smile. Clusters of olive trees (many now stripped of their fruit) occupy small plots and the odd wild olive tree grows along the roadside.
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Through Mosfiloti and towards Sia I stop for the first olive photographs, not that there will be a shortage of options. A roadside tree has yet to be harvested so I take the most of this opportunity and try to get some decent snaps. In Sia, many houses and gardens are decorated for Christmas, even after years here I still find it funny to see gardens with olive and lemon trees adorned with snowmen, santa and a whole host of festive decorations. Two couples share a brew over a garden wall; some traditions are the same throughout the world.
From Sia is the road to Mathiatis, a quiet road with a slight gradient, going slower simply means you can spend longer on it! Along the way are several possible picnic glades, warmed by the morning sun and joined by birdsong. Already I am behind time, too many photographs, and I begin to shorten the planned route.
In Mathiatis I go left towards Lythrodontas, the roadside is littered with leaves following a recent pick. This is the time of year for harvesting. According to the internet (so it must be true!) Lythrodontas has the most olive trees in Cyprus, so I can’t not go. It’s true that as I ride down into the village there are many gardens with trees as well as small cultivations dotted around. For many in Cyprus, an olive tree or two in the garden is not a side hustle, but a means towards producing some of their own food. It’s a way of life from years gone by which many of us could benefit from doing more of in today’s tech crazy world.
Zipping right and towards Analiontas, the F902 road is pleasantly undulating. Having looked this up on maps there seems to be two of these! I suggest if you want to follow this ride you use the gpx file below. I stop to take yet more pictures, this time it’s a simple sculpture of a cyclist. It’s cool and a positive to see. Cycling isn’t widely acknowledged here very often, so anything recognising it should be celebrated. Further along is a garden with an orchard of lemon trees. The symmetry of the rows draws me in to more pictures. It’s also a reminder of the variety of food grown in this region. Again, a reminder of a time when most gardens had fruit trees and vegetable plots.
The bike follows the curves into Analiontas, it is a gorgeous little town that feels well cared for in a traditional style. As in many villages, there is a nativity scene in the village centre and even the bare branches of the deciduous trees have been decorated. Again, the gardens are festive and the roads peaceful. I don’t stop for coffee but the shop is inviting.
The road towards Kampia has a steady gradient, this opens up views to a much whiter, chalkier landscape and there are some small vineyards to spot as well as a monastery on the left.
In Kampia I turn right, on the outskirts of the village an elderly couple are slowly picking their garden’s olive crop. No doubt the oil as well as the manual work is keeping them healthy. Further along the road a group of pickers work much faster using modern machinery to help increase their efficiency. The road is flat and easy to ride although further along the traffic increases so I take a right. This takes me behind the villages of Pano and Kato Deftera and is a much better option than riding through the centre I figure.
After wiggling a route through Tseri, with the Kyrenia mountain range in the background, there is a row of olive trees which must be well over one hundred years old. The gnarly, solid trunks are much wider than my arms could wrap around. I wonder what they’ve witnessed in their years, if they could talk what stories they could tell.
Back to the road (F103) which, like a ribbon, wiggles beautifully through the land past Marki and through Kotsiatis. As I enter the village it feels like the land that time forgot, as though I am on a film set from long ago. Leaving the village is another impressive building, a monastery for the prophet Elias.
I head towards Dali, still passing rows and rows of olive trees, still taking pictures. Further along I pass under the motorway, and the road is slightly busier for a short time. Somewhere along this road I unknowingly missed a turning and therefore changed the final part of the ride. The planned route would’ve taken me around Dali, the mistake took me through the centre. It was a much bigger place than I expected, with lots of shops and cars along the road pulling in/out. It wasn’t a relaxing part! As soon as I could I nipped off to the right onto a backroad before getting myself to the B2 and heading back to Lympia.
