Rivers
WARNING TO VISITORS
KEEP THE WATERS CLEAN
Do not urinate or defecate anywhere near the rivers! People use this water for drinking! There is no water treatment on Samothraki, so please do not pollute the streams and waterways!
CAMPING ON STREAM-BEDS IS DANGEROUS
It is dangerous to set up camp on or near a stream bed - even if it appears quite dry. A sudden rainstorm high up on the mountain can send a torrent of water hurtling down, and the river level can suddenly rise. You risk injury or worse. Every year visitors lose their tents and equipment to the wild waters.
Be wise.
Don't camp near running water!!!
DRINKING WATER
FRESH WATERS
Cold spring water at the heads of rivers is of very high quality (with medium-hard water). There are also many cold water springs elsewhere on the island - including a famous one near the roadside at Pyrgou Bay (near Kariotes).
The river water quality is acceptable everywhere for drinking, with slightly elevated levels of ammonia and phosphate during the summer months.
THERMAL WATERS
The water at the thermal pools should not be drunk at all. These waters have recently been properly analysed, and it has been found that they contain contaminants, and exceed the safe limits for human consumption.
Photo Credit: The photograph (L) was taken by the site author. Below: extracted from Google Images.
RIVER LIFE
The streams,rivers and wetlands of Samothraki have been poorly studied by aquatic scientists.
Most of the fauna in the streams are Ephemeroptera, Diptera and Amphipoda.
Some fish are found in areas close to the shore, and in the estuaries, but none in flowing water on the mountainsides. This is possibly because the fast flowing flash-flood waters in winter make Samothraki's rivers inhospitable for fish.
PRISTINE
Samothraki's streams and rivers are in near pristine condition.
There are many waterfalls. These are commonly followed by small plateaus, with long pools of water, as in this photograph.
Some of these pools have sandy beaches.
The locals call these ponds Vathres. The Xiropotamos River has five large terraces of this type.
Due to water extraction for domestic use and agriculture, only a few of the streams reach the sea in the summer, and the lower reaches of some of the rivers can be polluted.
Photocredit: The photo (on L) by the site author.
WETLANDS
There are eleven small wetland habitats on Samothraki, including a unique salt water lagoon system. None of these wetlands is currently protected by special zoning. They should be. Coastal development is a new phenomenon on Samothraki - apart from Kamariotissa, until recently no-one built near the shore. The wetlands are now at risk everywhere on the island.
These estuaries have not yet been properly researched, and the species that live in them have not been fully classified.
There may be eels and other fish in some of these estuaries.
Photocredit: The photo (on L) by the site author.
SOME OF THE RIVERS OF SAMOTHRAKI
DRONE FLIGHT UP THE FONIAS RIVER VALLEY
This drone flight shows some of the distinctive geography and biology of the Phonias river.
This is the most visited river valley on the island, and in summer there are always many tourists to be found lower down in the valley and at the first waterfall.