Kalamaki beach
Kalamaki is a small seaside village located 65km southwest of Heraklion, between Matala and Kokkinos Pirgos. The beach in front of the village is only a small part (2.5 km) of the long seafront of Messara Bay. The beach has blond sand and the seabed has a long smooth rock, quite slippery. Large waves that are usually caused by the northwest winds, combined with the rocky bottom, make it difficult to access the beach sometimes. In front of the village, the beach is well organized with umbrellas, sunbeds, taverns, rooms, lifeguard, playground, water sports, etc, but if you want to stay remote you could walk to the southeast, till Kommos beach, which is preferred by nudists.
Moreover, you can walk to the north until Afratias, where the beach of Pahia Ammos is located. The beach has some places with rocks. The beach is completely unorganised and far from facilities; only a small park is used for cultural events, such as concerts, in summer. North of Afratias, you will meet the military Airport of Timbaki, which now functions as a resort for the personnel of the Greek Air Force. Access to the beachfront of the airport is not difficult, as the fence ends at the beach. However, do not even try to pass on the other side because you will be arrested. You might also see some people parachuting and skydiving from some small aircrafts, used by a parachuting club in the airport. In the summer of 2008, a small aircraft fell in the sea of Kalamaki and its lucky pilot survived. The airport of Tymbaki has a great ecological importance for the plain of Mesara, because it is crossed by the River of Geropotamos, which exits on the beach. Geropotamos is the greatest river of the area and hosts hundreds of rare birds at its several ponds.
In the sandy beachfront of Messara Bay, the protected loggerhead sea turtle lays its eggs. Thus, it is better not to walk on the dark parts of the beach at night during the summer months, in order to avoid destroying the nests and not to frighten the turtles. Kalamaki has not a remarkable history, as it is a quite new settlement. It is the seaside resort of the residents of Kamilari, a traditional village that is worth visiting. It is believed that in ancient times Kalamaki was a small harbour of Phaestus or Gortys, but there is no strong evidence.
