Foinikas (river)

The river Foinikas is a river in the northern Peloponnese, Greece. It is also known as Salmenikos River. Its source is on the north-eastern slopes of Mount Panachaiko, near the village of Vounopirgos. It empties into the Gulf of Corinth, between the villages of Longos and Kamares. Major tributaries are Kloumenitis and Stachtaina. The total length of the river is and it flows along the following places, from the source downstream: Damakini, Salmenikο, Kamares. Foinikas is an intermittent river that has a continuous flow in all its length from October to June every year. Close to the sources, the river has a yearly flow but during the summer months, the water is used for agriculture.

History

The river is mentioned by the ancient Greek geographer Pausanias in the seventh volume of his Description of Greece. He mentions the river as a landmark for the ancient city of Aigio: "The territory of Aegium is crossed by a river Phoenix, and by another called Meganitas, both of which flow into the sea". In 1874 the researcher and chronicler Archduke Ludwig Salvator of Austria did a research trip by boat in the Gulf of Corinth and he wrote a detailed book with his observations for the landscape and the populated places of the northern Peloponnese. He names the river Foinikas as "Salmenikiotikos potamos".