Central Greece
South of Thessaly and Epirus, the region of Central Greece extends from the Ionian Sea on the west to the Aegean Sea on the east, encompassing the southernmost territory of mainland Greece. (Some geographers combine Thessaly and Epirus in their description of Central Greece.) The region includes the island of Euboea (Evvoia), which extends 180 kilometers from northwest to southeast parallel to the east coast of the mainland, separated from the mainland at the city of Chalkis, north of Athens, by a very narrow waterway. The island, which is the second largest in Greece, is formed by an extension of the Pindus spur from the Magnisia Peninsula to its north. Euboea's mountains are interspersed with fertile valleys that produce olives, grapes, and grains, although there are no major rivers. The east coast, which faces the Aegean Sea, is rocky; the island's only harbors face the Vorios Evvoikos and Petalion gulfs between Euboea and the mainland.
The mainland portion of Central Greece forms a "foot" extending southeastward from the Gulf of Amvrakikos, the inlet that defines the northern border of Central Greece on the Ionian seacoast. The main range of the Pindus Mountains extends southward into the western part of Central Greece. The Pindus is extended by the Parnassian Range, which is close to the mainland's southern shore and rises to 2,457 meters at Mt. Parnassus, mythical home of the Muses. The Helicon (Elikon) Range, which includes the historic city of Thebes (Thivai), extends the Parnassian Range southeastward toward Athens.
The main rivers of the region are the Kifisos, which forms an east-west valley as it flows from the southern Pindus into the Gulf of Vorios Euboea west of Khalkis, and the Acheloos, which empties into the Ionian Sea after flowing southward from the mountains of Epirus. In the district of Boeotia (Voiotia), between the Gulf of Corinth and Euboea, the Kifisos and the Asopos rivers form two extensive fertile plains where grain, tobacco, grapes, and olives are grown.