The Cursed Mountain Pass of Katara

The Katara Pass linking Ioannina in Epirus to Kalambaka and the Meteora monasteries is one of the highest mountain passes in Greece, crossing the Pindus range at 1,705 metres. It is also considered one of the most dangerous roads in Europe — not merely for its hairpin bends in winter conditions, but for what locals describe as an accumulated curse from centuries of violence committed on its slopes.

The pass was the site of multiple Ottoman massacres of Greek villagers between the 16th and 19th centuries, most notoriously the execution of 300 men from the Vlach village of Samarina in 1779. The pass's name itself — Katara — means Curse in Greek. Truck drivers who regularly use the route speak of an invisible weight that settles over a vehicle as it enters the highest section, making it feel "heavier than it should be." Three separate incidents in 1983, 1997, and 2011 involved vehicles that inexplicably accelerated on downhill sections despite drivers reporting they were braking hard. In all three cases, investigation found the brakes in working order.