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Mount Parnitha (, , Katharevousa and Parnis/ Parnes; sometimes Parnetha) is a lightly forested mountain range north of Athens, the highest on the peninsula of Attica, with an elevation of 1,413 m, and a summit known as Karavola (Καραβόλα). Much of the mountain is designated a national park, and is a protected habitat for wildfowl, first created in 1961. The summit is located 18 km north of Acharnes and about 30 km north of the Athens city center. The mountain covers approximately 250 km² of land. Other peaks include Mavrovouni (Μαυροβούνι), Ornio (1,350 m), Area (1,160 m), Avgo or Avgho (1,150 m), and Xerovouni (Ξεροβούνι, meaning "dry mountain": 1,120 m). It also has two shelters Mpafi and Flampouri. Parnitha National park, official site. The name of the mountain dates back to Ancient Greece, when it was under the ancient of Acharnae and Decelea.
A notable monument of later periods is the Monastery of Kleiston. It is a Byzantine Empire monastery dated from 13th century. It is mentioned by Pope Innocent IV in 1209 with the name Monastery of Kyras. Southeast of Parnitha, in a dense forest, is Tatoi Palace. It was the palace of the Greek royal family and it was built in 19th century. Today it is abandoned.
Parnitha has also natural monuments. The cave of Panas is on the west slopes of the mountain at a height of 750 meters. It was a worship site in antiquity. Near the cave there is the steep gorge of Gouras and the gorge of Keladonas river. A beautiful site of the mountain is Beletsi Lake, on the east slopes of the mountain, near Afidnes, and it is important place for migratory birds. In general, the national park is known as the "lungs of Athens".
The fire consumed dozens of acres of forest across two prefectures. Firefighters, helicopters, and planes were brought into action across the mountain area and its edges fighting the enormous blaze, which took days to contain. It spread rapidly with the help of intense winds, and intensified into the northwestern edges of Attica, including both Ano Liosia and towns and villages such as Fyli, near Thrakomakedones, Pyli and both Skoura and Schimatari north of the mountain. From Athens, inhabitants could see the mountainside burning throughout the night. In Schimatari in Boeotia, it ruined several acres of forest and businesses. The fire claimed 80% of the rare Greek Fir and Aleppo Pine forest, 150 animals of the red deer population (an endangered species), birds, and other rare animals. The remains of the green firs and pines are scattered around its edges. The smoke from the massive destruction formed a line that traveled east over Attica, southern Euboea, Chios, to the edge of Turkey, approximately 350 km away.
On June 30, the fire was mostly contained and warnings of new fires were reduced, as only a few fires were slowly burning sporadically in separate parts of the mountain. The main blaze was completely put out on July 1. At the edges of the burnt parts, several fires slowly continued to burn in sections after June 30, with a slow expansion.
Scientists estimate that the area's recovery time may be as long as a century. They predict the effect of the loss will only begin to be felt in the coming years; the air may become a little stale and the already known problems of air pollution and smog in Athens may reappear and intensify. Temperatures could also rise and flooding may become a problem for several years. The Ministry of Environment is currently considering a conclusive reforestation program, while many citizens marched on the streets of Athens to express their disapproval of the handling of the situation. More recently, reforestation has been underway, and the government will be receiving tens of thousands of trees to be planted around the mountains, most of them from outside the country, albeit at a small scale thus far.
Investigations are still underway as to the fire's cause. One scenario suggests a transformer belonging to a major power line exploded due to overuse and overheating by the 47C heatwave, some days before the fire. Another holds that this was one of the many arson attacks that have claimed forested land in Greece over recent decades to illegally clear formerly-protected land for expanded real estate.
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