Psistrakis Cave

Psistrakis is one of the most beautiful pit caves in Crete, and carries a personal history: on 09.01.1990 my father Kaloust Paragamian nearly died of hypothermia after emerging from it. That near-death experience led to a decision that resulted in my birth.

The cave is 120m deep. A narrow entrance (1×1.5m) opens into a 40m shaft, then a 15×6m chamber with gour pools, a 20m gallery, and a spectacular lake (10m long, 1–1.5m deep). Beyond the lake, a tight squeeze leads to the final 80m shaft, heavily decorated with speleothems.

First explored by members of the Hellenic Speleological Society — Yiannis Nathenas, Kaloust Paragamian, and Stavros Patramani — on 09.01.1990. Visited four times between 2005 and 2008.