In Gerakas: Vassilikos - View of the marine park - Pίlos (clay) canyon - Gerakas - Vassilikos The walker’s orientation and safety is solely their responsibility. The present report, the relevant tracks (gpx) and the rest of the informational material are just supplementary. The proper equipment is necessary, depending on the weather conditions and the nature of the route.  Route’s type: circular Route’s duration: 1 hour Route’s length: 3,200 metres Level of difficulty: easy Suggested season: all seasons, weather permitting. In summer, you should avoid midday hours. The route: The start of the route is from the statue of D. Roma in Vasiliko and continues westwards along the small asphalt road. After about 200 metres, the walker follows the road to the left (west-southwest). The road is slightly uphill in good condition for hiking and passes through a dense forest of cypresses, pines, etc. Along the way the road becomes dirt, where traces of the old cobblestone road can be seen. The walker reaches the viewpoint where the sea park of Zakynthos opens up in front of him, with the island of Pelouzo dominating the foreground. Then, he or she turns back at the junction and follows the road eastwards towards Gerakas beach. The road remains dirt but with many intense water features. The landscape has changed with lower vegetation and fewer shadows. Going downhill and after a while on the right (south) the imposing landscape of the canyon of Pelos opens up in front of the walker. The route continues on a mild dirt road where the walker reaches the entrance of Gerakas beach with the Environmental Centre. The route ends with the way back to the starting point (statue of D. Roma) through the main asphalt road (which is slightly uphill). The road passes through a beautiful landscape with crops and tourist facilities for the convenience of tourists, since the beach of Gerakas is very popular. The duration of the hike (not including any stops) is not more than an hour. On the island of Zakynthos there are: Citizen Service Centres in the settlements (from north to south): Alykes, Zakynthos Town, Machirado and Pantokrator. Police Station in Katastari and General Police Directorate in Zakynthos Town. A number of private clinics, medical centres and pharmacies, as well as public health structures are located in Zakynthos Town, General Hospital, and Health Centre in Kallithea. Gerakas One of the most beautiful beaches of Zakynthos is, without a doubt, Gerakas beach. It is located 18 km southeast of the town and belongs to the community of Vasilikos. It is a long sandy beach with fine golden sand and crystal clear shallow waters. At its edge there is a cape consisting of clay that gives visitors the opportunity for a thermal mud bath. On the beach of Gerakas there is also the famous canyon of Pelos with exceptional geological formations, reminiscent of Cappadocia. Pelouzo Pelouzo is an uninhabited island in the Ionian Sea in Laganas Bay on the south-eastern coast of Zakynthos. It can be seen from the bay of Gerakas as well as from Daphne beach. It is one nautical mile from the coast and is part of the Zakynthos National Marine Park, which is included in the Natura 2000 programme, as it is a nesting site for the sea turtle caretta caretta. During the summer months, navigation and fishing are prohibited. The island is beautiful, unspoilt, slightly mountainous, with dense vegetation and rocky coasts. On the side directly opposite Daphne beach there is the only beach on the island with fine, light talc-like sand and an old, half-ruined building. On the opposite side the scene changes. The coast is rocky with a beautiful cave. Pelouzo during the Venetian rule belonged to the Catholic Monastery of Agios Frangkiskos and was granted to the monk Angelos Salviatis. There, he built a monastery and a church dedicated to the Virgin Mary of Evangelistria. Later, Pelouzo passed to the ownership of the Komoutou family, where it still belongs today. The Monastery and the Holy Church were bombed by the Germans during World War II and then almost completely destroyed by the earthquake of 1953. Today only some ruins are preserved. Marine National Park The National Marine Park of Zakynthos was established in 1999 and includes the Laganas Bay, on the southern coast of Zakynthos and specifically the marine area that extends from Cape Marathia to the beach of Gerakas, but also Strophades, which are two islets fifty nautical miles south of Zakynthos. The area is part of the Natura 2000 network of protected areas. The National Park of Zakynthos has as its symbol the turtle. The whole protected area presents basic characteristics of the Mediterranean ecosystem, with sandy beaches, cliffs rising from dunes, while on the nearby mainland there are dense pine forests, fertile agricultural areas and areas covered with natural Mediterranean vegetation.  The National Marine Park aims to effectively protect the special fauna that exists in the southern part of the island and to integrate it into the local community. The most important animal species that are being tried to be preserved are the Caretta Caretta sea turtles and the Mediterranean monk seals Monachus Monachus. While the turtles are found throughout the park and choose the southern sandy beaches of Zakynthos for breeding, the seals are usually found in Laganas Bay, but for breeding they prefer the countless caves on the west coast of the island. Apart from the sea turtle and the monk seal, efforts are made to save other animal species in the park, such as migratory birds, phoenicopters, wild dogs and specimens of the pilgrim hornbill, reptiles and amphibians, such as frogs, turtles, iguanas and water snakes, as well as mammals such as the hedgehog and wild rabbits. In the park's sea there are also dolphins with "bottle snouts", of the species Tursiops Truncatus. During the route, the walker will encounter QR information signs at the following points: a) at the start of the route (on the asphalt road, next to the statue of Roma), b) at the first junction to the left (south - southwest), c) at the viewpoint (where the road ends above the sea), d) at the junction to Gerakas beach, e) at the viewpoint of the canyon of Pilos, f) at the start of the dirt road next to the Environmental Centre , g) in the middle of the asphalt road back