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Parnassos2

Mountain·GreeceGreece

Mount Parnassus

2,455m

Pindus

Summit weather

Electron08 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Elevation
2,455m
Prominence
1,590m
Relief
1,787mabove the lowest point within 5 km
Steepest slope
57°within 1 km of the summit
Snow at the summit
Nov–MaySee month by month ↓
Summit
38.5336°N, 22.6206°E

Mountain in Phthiotis Regional Unit, Greece

Mount Parnassus is a mountain in the Pindus (Greece). Its summit stands 2,455 m above sea level. Its prominence — how far it rises above the highest saddle linking it to a taller summit — is 1,590 m.

From the lowest point within 5 km (668 m), it rises 1,787 m. The steepest side is the east face: 31° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 57° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.

The nearest town is Aráchova, 7 km away at 941 m: 1,514 m below the summit.

Read more on Wikipedia

Scores

Mount Parnassus for skiers and climbers

Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.

Hiking & mountaineering

6.5/10

Difficulty to the top

Hike

Most path sections around the top are T2 on the SAC hiking scale.

Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.

  • 1.2/2.54 waymarked routes and 4 path sections nearby
  • 0.5/1.52 huts and shelters
  • 1.5/21,514 m of ascent from the valley
  • 1.4/1.51,590 m of prominence
  • 1.5/1.512 months with summit afternoons above −5 °C
  • 0.3/1via ferratas, climbing and glaciers

Ski score

5.5/10

  • 2.1/419 km of downhill runs
  • 0.8/1.520 ski lifts
  • 1.5/1.51,600 m between the lowest and highest lift station
  • 1.2/32 months of snow at about 1,450 m

Runs by difficulty

  • Easy 9 km
  • Intermediate 8 km
  • Difficult 2 km

Snow season on the slopes (estimate)

Around 1,450 m, in the middle of the ski area: snow from January to February (some years from December to March).

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

20 lifts · lift stations from 650 to 2,250 m · 0 km cross-country

How these scores are made

Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.

Plan your visit

Stay, climb and get there

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Snow

When there is snow on Mount Parnassus

At the summit, snow from November to May. Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Summit2,455 msnow from November to May
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Halfway up1,698 msnow from December to March
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all month
Aráchova941 mno snow
No snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snow
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.

Summit weather

Mount Parnassus, month by month

Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.

On an average July afternoon the summit reaches about 19 °C; on January nights it falls to about -10 °C. In 3 months of the year it stays below freezing at the top even in the afternoon. In July the 0 °C line climbs to about 5,410 m, above the summit: the top thaws on an average afternoon. Across the region, August is the driest month (19 mm) and December the wettest (79 mm).

1,000 m2,000 m3,000 m4,000 m5,000 mSUMMIT · 2,455 mARÁCHOVA · 941 mJanuary: 1,880 mFebruary: 2,050 mMarch: 2,560 mApril: 3,180 mMay: 4,070 mJune: 4,930 mJuly: 5,410 mAugust: 5,350 mSeptember: 4,580 mOctober: 3,700 mNovember: 2,850 mDecember: 2,100 mJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0 °C on an average afternoon 0 °C at dawn the summit
MonthSummit high °CSummit low °CAráchova high °C0 °C line (m)Rain & snow (mm)Wet daysSun h/day
January-4-1061,88072103.7
February-3-1072,05063104.5
March1-8102,56061105.9
April5-5143,1803577.5
May100204,0702969.0
June165264,93026410.9
July198295,41024311.8
August198295,35019310.9
September144244,5804268.1
October8-1183,7005885.9
November3-5122,85073104.4
December-2-882,10079113.4

Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 469 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.

Relief

The mountain in profile

Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. True scale: no vertical exaggeration.

West – east
2,455 m488 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmWE
South – north
2,455 m673 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmSN
Steepness by direction
30°N: 9°NNE: 16°NEE: 31°ESE: 18°SES: 18°SSW: 6°SWW: 12°WNW: 17°NW

Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.

Around the mountain

Huts, lifts and trails around Mount Parnassus

Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.

Mount Parnassus seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 5 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

A lift reaches Κελλάρια (2250m) at 2,250 m — just 205 m below the summit.

  • 2mountain huts and shelters

    Μιχάλης Δέφνερ (1,820 m)

  • 7cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts and rack railways

    Βάκχος, Ηρακλής, Αίολος, Αφροδίτη and 3 more

  • 1ski areas

    Χιονοδρομικό Κέντρο Παρνασσού

  • 4waymarked hiking routes

    Εθνικό μονοπάτι O22, Άγιος Νικόλαος - Μονή Ιερουσαλήμ, Τιθορέα - Λιάκουρα

  • —via ferratas
  • 2climbing crags and routes

    Γεροντόβραχος

  • —named glaciers
  • 7viewpoints

    View point, Πυργάκια and 5 more

  • —campsites
  • 22hotels, B&Bs and chalets

    Κτήμα Αμφίκαια, Elatos resort & Health club, Hotel Skamnos, Tagli Resort & Spa and 18 more

  • 45restaurants and cafés

How hard are the paths?

4 path sections within 5 km, by SAC hiking scale (T1 easy walk … T6 difficult alpine).

T2T3
  • T2 mountain hiking
  • T3 demanding mountain hiking

Towns at the foot

  • Aráchova7 km · 941 m
  • Káto Tithoréa12 km · 162 m
  • Amfíkleia12 km · 389 m
  • Delphi12 km · 560 m
  • Polídhrosos14 km · 382 m
  • Desfína15 km · 576 m
  • Steíri16 km · 454 m
  • Eláteia17 km · 178 m

OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Photos

Seen by climbers and visitors

Mount Parnassus (5986587627)
Erik Drost · CC BY 2.0
Mount Parnassus (5987143886)
Erik Drost · CC BY 2.0

Recent years

How each month compared at the summit

Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
1991–2020 average-4-315101619191483-2
2020±0.0+1.7+0.8−1.5+0.2−1.7−0.6−0.4+0.6+1.5−0.6+1.7
2021+1.7+1.5−1.4−0.7+0.2−0.1+1.3+2.6+0.3−3.2+0.1−0.1
2022−0.9+1.0−3.7+0.9+2.3+2.2+0.3−0.2+1.6+1.6+1.6+3.4
2023+2.6±0.0+0.7−0.9−2.3−1.1+3.9+0.8−0.9+3.3+3.0+2.9
2024+1.3+3.1+2.1+3.9+1.0+5.1+2.5+2.1+0.8+1.8+0.3+1.1
2025+2.6−1.3+1.9−0.8−0.8+2.2+3.1−0.1+2.1−1.5+1.6+1.9

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

About these numbers

Names, elevation, prominenceWikidata (Q105261) · CC0
Relief, 3D view, profilesCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0
Around the mountain© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

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