Aigeira-Akrata Activities Swimming

Paralia Akratas (Krathio) - Korinthian Gulf - October 2012

Swimming in the Gulf of Corinth at Aigeira and Akrata is doable almost year-round since the water temperature never really drops below 15oC.

During the summer months the sea is at a warm 21oC – 28oC range while the rest of the year remains at a comfortable range between 15oC-20oC as you can see at the table below.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Min °C	14.8	14.3	14.5	14.4	16.2	20.9	23.9	24.9	23.8	20.5	17.9	15.3
Max °C	16.7	16.1	16.1	17.5	21.4	25	27.6	27.4	26.9	24.1	20.8	18.6
Min °F	59.4	58.5	58.7	59.1	63.2	71.2	76.5	77.8	76	70.3	65.3	60.8
Max °F	61.3	60.3	60.3	62.2	68.4	75.3	80.2	80.3	79.1	73.9	68.2	64.1

For more information about sea temperature check out seatemperature.org/Aigeira

The combination of the Gulf of Corinth being a fairly deep sea (allowing convection currents) and fresh water from the local rivers of Krios (meaning Cold), Tholopotamos (Blurry/Murky River), and Krathis draining the mountainous terrain means that the surface water temperature can differ slightly from the table above.

What about the wind?

vector illustration of a cartoon cloud that blows wind

Is it going to be windy I hear you ask? The answer is; it is purely a matter of luck.

The prevailing wind during the summer months is blowing from the west (NW, W, SW).

As you can see from the satellite aerial view above, the part of the bay closer to Paralia of Akrata is fairly sheltered from westerly winds. The bay around the centre of Aigeira is better sheltered under eastern/northeastern winds.

During the months of July and August peaks the appearance of periodic winds known as “meltemi”. These northeastern winds are funneled down the Aegean Sea but arrive much weaker in the Corinthian Gulf. In the case of Aigeira they tend not to last for more than a couple of days at a time.

It can be very fun though for both the older kids as well as the younger ones, and of course they also provide a pleasant cooling effect during the day.

Aigeira - "Wave chasers" during summer swell - Aug 2016

Local beaches

Let’s have an aerial overview of the area to help us understand the landscape and get a clearer picture of where each beach is located.

The coast between the rivers of Krios and Krathis stretches at approximately 3.5km (2.2 miles).

Aigeira

The part of the cove around Aigeira is more susceptive to change from the effect of seasonal weather patterns.

Mainly wind direction and force, combined with the tide (although arguably relatively small ~0.3m) can have a significant effect on the beach of Aigeira, that can differ in width dramatically over the course of just a few days.

Aigeira - The Beach During Winter — Aigeira beach, sand is washed out in a storm several times a year

Nonetheless the beach of Aigeira tends to be a mix of sand/gravel the closer to the center you are, whereas you find more stones/rocks further east, near river Krios.

Messonissi and Archontissa Beach, east of Aigeira.

Past river Krios is the small Messonissi beach and further along you arrive at another great swimming location, “Archontissa Beach” that stretches until “Mavra Litharia” Port.