Greece: The spoils of Sparta

Wherever I am in the southern Peloponnese the Taygetos Mountains are silhouetted against the sky.

In winter the white slopes gleam through the dark foliage of citrus groves on the Spartan plain which follows the Eurotas River down to the sea at Gytheio. The trees are rich with ripe oranges, the yield so great that the windfalls are fed to the sheep and goats.

For anyone seeking a holiday where you can quietly absorb the ancient sites and museums by yourself, travel on roads almost free of traffic, and mingle with Greeks rather than tourists, the best time to come is autumn and spring.

In the spring, nature-lovers and hikers will find themselves in a colourful natural rock garden massed with wild flowers, and the empty beaches will be warm enough for picnics. In autumn the weather is more settled and the seas still perfect for swimming.

The Peloponnese - shaped liked a five-lobed plane-tree leaf, each lobe with its own spine of mountains - is attached to mainland Greece by the slender thread of the Isthmus of Corinth.

The 100km Taygetos range forms the spine of the central lobe, running down to the Mediterranean Sea to form the southernmost tip of mainland Greece, known as the Deep Mani.

Gytheio, at the top of the Gulf of Lakonia on the eastern side of the Taygetos, was once the main port for Sparta. It became a Phoenician trading station for murex shellfish, sought after for their purple dye.

An ancient theatre and a few Roman remains can still be seen to the north of the harbour but most of the old town now lies under the sea.

Today Gytheio is a lively and picturesque place with a waterfront flanked by elegant and faithfully restored neoclassical houses.

In the central square facing the harbour I have my coffee and spanakopita (spinach-filled filo pastry) at a taverna festooned with drying octopuses.

Behind me the town climbs in steep tiers to Koumaro Hill, overlooking the islet of ancient Kranae - now called Marathonisi - connected by a causeway to the mainland. This is where Helen and Paris spent the first night following their elopement from Sparta, initiating the Trojan War.

In summer, ferries from Piraeus and Crete are frequent and the harbour is busy with cruise ships, caiques and visiting yachts. Well-supplied with rental rooms, hotels and tavernas and close to superb sandy beaches with safe swimming, Gytheio is a good base for holiday-makers.

Excellent roads lead in all directions, inviting day-trips with a picnic lunch or some grilled kalamari at a beach taverna in the summer. In winter you can take a ride into the Parnonas Mountains for a plate of rough bread, tomatoes and goat cheese in a taverna with a somba (wood stove) pumping out heat.

About an hour's drive east from Gytheio is the medieval walled city of Monemvasia, hidden from the mainland behind a colossal rock jutting into the sea. If you are interested in Byzantine churches, there are 40 here.

Monemvasia is an enchanting place and popular with Athenians because it's only four hours away. They stay in beautiful Venetian mansions with balconies, quaint guesthouses or hotels, and spend their money in the city's fascinating boutiques.

The steep haul to the rock summit is worthwhile to see another fortress and the precariously perched 13th-century church of Ayia Sophia.

From Gytheio, the westerly road leaves the coastal plain through the only gap in the Taygetos to reach the plateau village of Areopolis, the chief centre of the Mani.

It is a protected settlement, and although the modern square is unprepossessing the old town with its austere towers, narrow cobbled lanes, barrel-vaulted chapels and stone walls is positively medieval.

Areopolis is a tranquil, dignified place for 10 months of the year but for the remaining two it is saturated with Maniot families returning for their summer holidays. Towers converted into guesthouses provide good accommodation and there are several hotels.

The turn-off for the famous Caves of Glifada (also called Spilia Dirou) is at Pirgos Dirou, 5km south of Areopolis. These caves, once inhabited by prehistoric man, are reputed to be among the most beautiful in the world.

Southwards, the road passes through olive groves and hillsides erupting with the crumbling obelisks of fortified villages.

I drove on to the tip of the Deep Mani to Cape Tainaron, also known as Matapan, to the southernmost point in Greece to find the so-called cave of Hades.

North of Areopolis, at the bottom of a steep escarpment, the small fishing harbour of Limeni hugs the cliffs. This is the birthplace and burialplace of the hero of the Greek resistance, Petrobey Mavromichalis, whose family towers dominate the surrounding countryside.

Nearby, the sandy bay of the ancient port of Oitylo - mentioned in Homer's Illiad - boasts several hotels and fish tavernas, and on a steep bluff above the bay the remains of the Turkish Castle of Kelefa can be seen.

The road drags itself up the northern promontory above the monastery of Dekouloi, with its intricate wood carvings and frescoes, and continues along a high plateau steeped in Byzantium. The frescoes are superb and if the doors are locked someone in the village always has a key.

Here you'll find Stoupa. Though full of German and English tourists, it's a pretty spot built round a curving sandy beach flanked by tavernas and shops; it is stacked with rental rooms and hotels and is disappointingly un-Greek.

A spectacular drive leads to the port of Kalamata, which offers little to the traveller. Nevertheless, it's the end of the railway line from Patras and Athens, has an airport, and is a good jumping-off point for the western peninsular with its crusader castles Methone and Corone, Nestor's Palace and Sandy Pylos, mentioned by Homer.

To the east, against the sky, there again is the sheen of snow on the Taygetos.

CASENOTES


ROADS: Excellent. Secondary roads well maintained but beware of falling rocks.

GETTING THERE: Athens to Gytheio 4 1/2 hours, Kalamata to Gytheio 2 hours. The road is slow.

HIRE CARS: Prices vary considerably. Average daily price for a small car, unlimited mileage, $72, Medium $85, petrol $1.27 a litre.

BUSES: Cheap, comfortable, reliable but limited to main roads.

ACCOMMODATION: To mid-September a double room in a guesthouse or hotel ranges from $57 to $115 a night. Rooms in private homes can be rented from $28 to $45 a night, but these are often full in summer. In winter the prices drop 25 per cent.