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One of the most beautiful dragon lakes in Greece is Verliga or Vrigga. The dragon lake Verliga is located above the village of Haliki in the community of Aspropotamos at an altitude of 2,050 meters in a uniquely beautiful location that separates Thessaly from Epirus. It is round (Vrigga in Vlach means circle) and occupies an area of about 10 acres and is formed by ten serpentine waterways. The water is lost in a pipette to come to the surface just below which is the beginning of the Acheloos river. In spring the colors in Verliga are unique with yellow and purple flowers along with the green that covers all surfaces and of course the snow that stays for several months.
According to the legend, a dragon in the form of a snake came out of the rocks of the mountain with a momentum, which, drawing a spinning orbit, sank to the ground, where the waters leave to form Aspropotamos and then Acheloos. To the north of the lake rises Tsoukarela at 2,295 meters which is the highest peak of Lakmos and to the south the rocks of the peak Megas Trapos at 2,240 meters.
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The meadows around Verliga are flooded with flowers in mid-summer. The intense yellow color of the buttercups is mixed with the blue color of the crocuses of the species Crocus veluchensis that spring with the melting of the ice. The variety of plants continues with many and rare species, although it will be difficult to discover them, not so much because they are hard to find, but because you will not take your eyes off the landscape.
The alpine birdlife is just as rich, especially when it comes to predators. There are still a few vultures living in the area, but also golden eagles, cross eagles, snakes, hawks and peregrines. Large flocks of yellow-tailed deer “patrol” the area, while the bird fauna is complemented by many rare micro-birds that visit the alps when the ice melts.
The reptile fauna includes one of the rarest snakes in Greece, the meadow viper (Vipera ursinii) which prefers to live on bare stones, over 1,800 meters. Other species are the alpine newt, the salamander, the yellow mink, the gray frog, the toad, the green lizard and the common viper.
To be in Verliga, follow the path that starts from the Square in Haliki and goes down the Kopraou stream and continue on the forest road that reaches the lake. If you want to make the route through the path, read our article in detail: From Haliki to Verliga.
How to get to Haliki: You head to Kalampaka and then to Aspropotamos villages and then to Haliki or from Trikala Pertouli Neraidochori and then to Haliki.
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