The Monastery of Agios Georgios Gorgolaini is built on the eastern foothills of Psiloritis, near the village of Kato Asites (24km south of Heraklion).

The monastery bears a centuries-old history, intertwined with the history of the island. The monastery’s nickname, Agios Georgios Gorgolain, is attributed, as mentioned in notarial documents from 1629, to the fast flow of water in the monastery’s spring.

The Monastery of Agios Georgios quickly became the head monastery in Malevizi and in challenging times for the country it became a refuge and base for rebels and insurgents during both the Greek Revolution of 1821 and the Cretan Revolt of 1866.

In August 1866 the Ottomans burned down the monastery. In 1868, in a battle near the Monastery, Captain Fragios Mastrachas was killed, and his grave became the courtyard of the Gorgolaini Monastery. The old wooden carved altarpiece of the church is a work of popular ecclesiastical woodcarving of the 19th century.

There are plenty of natural attractions in the area. One of them is the gorge of Agios Antonios. The European Walking Path E4 runs through the gorge and leads to the shelter of the Mountaineering Club of Heraklion. The shelter is nestled in the “Prinos” position at an altitude of 1,100 meters, in a spot covered with oak trees.