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The Valley of Vouraikos and the region round Kalavryta was a lake. The outlet of waters to the sea formed the gorge, which deepens continuously by the passage of Vouraikos River, ancient Erasinus. The gorge is deeper than the Gorge of Samaria and its length is 20 km. Its narrowest point lies a few kilometres from Zachlorou, ascending, and is called "Portes (Doors)". Its physical beauty, waterfalls, caves with stalactites-stalagmites, the dense vegetation, which alters with the altitude, from olive-trees and oleander, to planes and broom in the spring to fir-trees, rank it as the first gorge in Greece. An additional feature which renders the gorge unique, is its funicular. The small train ascends the gorge everyday, using the median rail in 3 sites for many kilometres, where the gradient is big. The train, already 100 years old, has been till lately the only bridge with the rest of Greece, specially with Athens, since it was the only means of transportation of poeple and goods. Today, equally picturesque, it serves the transportation of thousands of visitors to the gorge of Vouraikos, Mega Spilaion, Zachlorou, ending its path to Kalavryta. |