TROODOS MOUNTAINS

mountain range in southern Cyprus beginning immediately inland from Cape Arnauti. It rises to its highest point at Mt. Olympus, or Khionistra (6,401 ft ), about 35 mi (56 km) southwest of Nicosia, and gradually descends to narrow coastal strips on the south and west and to the central lowlands on the north. The Troodos is a massif of eroded igneous rock dissected by steep valleys covered with stands of pine, cypress, dwarf oak, and cedar, now protected as state forests; its peaks are snow clad from December to March. Since Roman times, copper has been mined; chrome and asbestos are also extracted. Most of the island's rivers descend from its heights. Pano Platres (3,950 ft) and Prodhromos (4,900 ft) are popular resorts.