After a spectacular (lots of stars) but loud (lots of waves) night we get up before sunrise to pack our things and start the ascent awaiting us before it gets too hot. Passing some nice viewpoints we soon reach the shoulder of the hill and head back inland, passing the village Vatos. Now we have to cover a few kilometers in the Ropa valley, where we either have to walk through high grass in the burning sun or fight through dense and prickly brushes. Slightly tiring and the landscape is quite boring as well, but what can you do. Around lunchtime we arrive in Giannades, where it is quite hot and mostly shadeless. A small supermarket provides lunch as no restaurant or cafe is available, and we just head out of the village to eat and rest in the shade below some huge olive trees.
Most of the afternoon is spent covering kilometer after kilometer through endless olive groves down to Elly Beach. I had heard that the path is unmarked and very unclear down there, and that's exactly what the situation is like. After some scouting we find out that the path continues behind the hotel pool - so instead of going along the beach, one has to take the road behind the first row of houses and walk along the edge of the pool. After passing some bewildered hotel guests and some "no entry" and "danger" signs, one will find the first waymarks again. A short scramble, aided by a ladder, takes us directly to the main road, minimarket and campsite near Palaeokastritsa.