Vikos Gorge

The Vikos Gorge is a gorge in the Pindus Mountains of northern Greece. It lies on the southern slopes of Mount Tymfi, with a length of about 20 km, depth ranging from 450 to 1600 m and a width ranging from 400 m only a few metres at its narrowest part. Vikos is listed as the deepest gorge in the world by the Guinness Book of Records among others. The gorge is found in the core zone of the Vikos–Aoös National Park, in the Zagori region. It begins between the villages of Monodendri and Koukouli and ends near the village of Vikos (or Vitsiko). The gorge collects the waters of a number of small rivers and leads them into the Voidomatis River which forms in the gorge. The major part of Voidomatis is only seasonal, and is permanent only at the lowest part of the gorge. Vikos is also a site of major scientific interest, because it is in almost virgin condition, it is a heaven for endangered species and contains many and varied ecosystems. The Vikos Gorge, with a length of 20km, walls that range from 400 to deep, and a width from 400m to some metres at its narrowest part is listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the deepest canyon in the world in proportion to its width, though some gorge lobbyists contest that claim. The main part of the gorge stretches from the village of Vikos to Monodendri, and attains a depth of about 1000m.