The Arcadian Trails and the Apollo Trails in Lycaion Mountain

The wild land around Lykaeum was tamed by the hardy Arcadians, who year after year, with the axe, the hoe and the goat, tamed the terraces, tamed the springs, pushed back the holly and made it blossom and fruit. They left not an inch untapped, discovering the utilitarian and magical ingredients of their land and making it food, spirit and vision. Finally, tireless, they courageously climbed its peaks to glorify the pioneers of their world.

These primordial nomes left for good, leaving behind their built and intangible monuments. From generation to generation, the place emptied and these illustrious works lost their weight in the void and silence.

It is this silence that this little guide wants to interrupt, turning our gaze back to the basics. For in order for the place to come alive, we must speak its language again, spell the place names again, set aside the mould from the fountains, unpick the paths, and re-pot it with sweat and care. This booklet does not want to stay on the shelves as an anthology of the proceedings of another era, it wants to help us understand the old but mellow world of Arcadia and by presenting it today, to give it the place it deserves.