It trends to the northeast from Diaskari Beach in the southwest in the direction of Toplou Monastery near Cape Sidero.

On top the massif are the montane slopes and plateaus of low enough inclination to support pastures, some agriculture or dendriculture, and villages.

At lower altitudes is a maquis: shrubs, grass, scattered trees.

The canyons, or gorges, are cut deeply into the edges of the massif by runoff from above, a process facilitated by the softness and solubility of limestone.

To the north the ravines drain into the Sea of Crete, such as the Toplou Monastery Gorge.