Mount Olympus
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Mount Olympus is the highest mountain in Greece, located in the Olympus Range on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) away from Thessaloniki, Greece's second largest city.
In Greek mythology Olympus was regarded as the "home" of the Twelve Olympian gods of the ancient Greek world. It formed itself after the gods defeated the Titans in the Titan War, and soon the palace was inhabited by the gods. It is the setting of many Greek mythical stories. In the words of Homer:
- Olympus was not shaken by winds nor ever wet with rain, nor did snow fall upon it, but the air is outspread clear and cloudless, and over it hovered a radiant whiteness.
Climbing
Climbing Mount Olympus is a non-technical hike, except for the final section from Skala summit to Mytikas summit, which is YDS class 3 rock scramble. It is estimated that 10,000 people climb Mount Olympus each year, most of them reaching only the Skolio summit.
Most climbs to Mount Olympus start from the town of Litochoro, which took the name City of Gods because of its location on the roots of the mountain. A local from Litochoro, Christos Kakalos, became the first to reach the Mytikas summit on 2 August 1913. From there a road goes to Prionia, where the hike begins at the bottom of the mountain.