The River Evinos is also known as the Fidaris, because of its frequent changes of direction and its undulating course, which resembles that of a snake, or also the Lycormas. It has its source in the Vardousσia mountains and crosses the Aitolia region for about 80 km, receiving the waters of smaller tributaries along the way.
The Evinos delimits the area of the lagoon of Messolonghi at the east, and flows into the northern coast of the Gulf of Patras. Its extensive delta, on which the present-day settlements of Evinochori and Galatas have developed, has an area of about 92 sq. km and is one of the largest in Greece. Its abandoned meandering beds across the plain of the delta can be seen on older aerial photographs.
Interventions involving the straightening of the riverbed and the construction of artificial embankments to protect neighbouring settlements took place in 1959. In the 1990s the dam of Agios Dimitrios was constructed in the mountainous area of Nafpaktia, through which the waters of the Evinos are channelled into the Kokkinos, a tributary of the Mornos, for the water supply needs of Athens.
Prehistoric stone and bronze tools that have been found near the banks of the river, as well as building and burial remains of various periods, document the human presence and settlement around the river. Among other benefits, it offered a land route of communication into the mainland interior, along riverside paths that followed its course.
Crossing the river was difficult throughout the ages. Until the construction of a railway bridge, passage was achieved with the help of ferrymen who knew the places where the river was fordable. This fact is typically reflected in local mythology, in which the centaur Nessos was the ancient ferryman who carried people to the opposite bank on his back.
