Lee & Larry appeared around 09.00 hours, looking forward to our day out, we all headed ashore leaving 'Kejstral' and 'Sea Dreams' to entertain themselves. Their tender was secured next to a few fishing boats, each with vulnerable looking rope, barely attached to the most crumbling jetty ever! Hope it will still be there on our return! The roadway took us into town within a few minutes, being quite early, we caught the fishing fleet arrive back from their nights work. Box after polystyrene box were loaded from boat to shore, some pretty heavily filled with the slippery goods. Crabs stretched their blue legs over to where fingers grasped the handles, then one side steps out of its box in a dash for freedom. Meanwhile cray fish investigate the new surroundings with their long stick antenna, sitting tidily in rows and unaware of their fate. The fishermen, seemingly oblivious to their catch's intention to scramble away, gabble to their friends without stopping for a breath. Yet without even turning his head, the fisherman reaches out to one side and retrieves the wandering crab, while continuing to gossip and laugh. We take the road uphill towards the otogar or bus station, where we have seen the car hire man, when we arrive, his shop is closed with no sign of our car. A neighbouring shop owner takes it upon himself to organise a car, we wait in anticipation of an elevated price to accompany his kind gesture. We negotiate a fair cost for his car for the day, 100tl, we managed to knock him down from 120tl. Let's hope it gets us where we want to go! We manage to find a map with our chosen destination clearly marked and we go, Kevin and Larry in the front, Lee and I with the navigation behind. Saklikent Gorge (Hidden city) is our destination, we have read about its amazing structure and size, we have spoken to friends who have been and loved it, so we must see this natural phenomenon for ourselves. The Ministry of forest and water management, govern this site which covers 4068 acres of land and has been established as a National park since 1996. Snow from the Taurus mountains melt and flow through the rocks, over thousands of years the gorge has been created by corrosion from this water force and flow. The gorge is only passable in the summer months when water flow is at a minimum. It is 11 miles or 18 kms in length and 980 ft deep, one of the deepest in the world. We arrive in the carpark, and follow signs on foot to an entrance gate, it is rather quiet, yet there are staff members everywhere, I guess it will be filled with hoards of tourists very soon. Signs fill the walls of the wooden entrance porch, highlighting rules and hints for the attraction. Walking sandals or water footwear are essential, a rucksack for anything you would like to carry, but it could get wet or damaged therefore, less is good! You really need your hands free for stability. With a little trepidation we walked through the metal gate onto a steel raised walkway, immediately we could see an astounding sight, rockfaces rose up on either side of this huge narrow gorge, the walkway had been built onto the rockface and erected perhaps 10 feet above the gushing stream of fast flowing water. These massive rocky sand coloured walls towered high towards brilliant blue sky, the cool air in this cavern due to a lack of sunlight and the cold water flowing below us was incredible when the temperature outside hovered around 36 degrees it was around 24 degrees inside this gorge. Following the walkway our eyes were drawn to a cascade of white frothing water tearing through a smaller crevice just a few feet away, the powerful spray splattered ice cold drops of mountain water towards us. How can it be so cold in these temperatures at this time of the year, and it's force was incredible as it ripped through these ancient rocks. We left the steel path and entered a waiting area, various little huts had been erected selling water shoes and bags for covering items, not designed to get wet. Our rucksacks held only essential money and one camera, knowing that anything we carried was likely to be immersed. The next challenge was to cross a large very fast flowing stream which poured from those high mountain crevices, a few people balanced gingerly on slippery white rocks, poised ready to leap into the water, a little fear etched on their suntanned faces. As feet touched that racing current, screaches echoed around our cavernous tomb, it was our turn. Icy cold first steps into the shallow fast flowing stream took our breath away, cries of " it's freezing" filled the air, being last in our group to step forward I now knew what to expect, yet the frozen water still forced a shock and gasp. A rope handrail has been erected, which clearly assisted us as the furious current took us all by surprise. We picked our way over huge rocks and slippery boulders until we stepped onto the grey white rock floor beyond. A flat shiny rock floor opening took us deeper into these mountainous clay and limestone walls, massive formations of this beautiful white and sand stone coloured rock loomed high above us. Narrow channels led gushing water though these glistening stones, we stepped across streams and into little rock pools, over large boulders and down the other side. Every step hosted a new pool waiting to be dipped into, the water temperature rose as we graduated through the passages. A few visitors emerged as we wandered through this magical hideaway, eyes glowing with pleasure and wonder. Each person wet from waist to toes yet loving the experience of this unique gorge, cameras snap each new crevice and formation for an amazing collection of memories and treasures. Our path winds into more narrow single file steep climbs, each footstep now lingering and balancing a little longer while searching for that perfect slippy foothold, hands stretch out to grasp at handholds, while splashing through these rocky water pools. Our rucksacks are held higher and we grab each other's hands in this final few feet of now waist high water. As we near the end of this gorge the water warms and rocks narrow a little further deep into the mountain side. This beautiful place narrows and darkens deeply, the pools more tricky to negotiate with our precious cameras, which is where we decide to head back. As we trickle back through the now growing crowds of incoming tourists we are relieved that we chose to come early. Women with small babies struggling to maintain their balance, weave around children that barge their way through the adults, with no fear or worry of tripping or falling. We nimbly pick our way back over this fantastic scenery, through bikini clad youngsters and fully covered Turkish men and women. Stunning sparkling surfaces surround our walk back, sun light flashes through the trees hundreds of feet above giving a warm yellow glow to this amazing place. Freezing cold waters greet our wet but warm feet as we step once again into the gushing flow that we had forgotten at the entrance, then we make our way back across the suspended walkway out into the incredible heat of the sun. What a brilliant place to visit, we absolutely loved the experience and recommend it highly if ever in this area. Once out and exposed once more to the heat, we realise how hot and thirsty we are. At the entrance way a rickety bridge carries us over this now torrential stream which froze our feet a few minutes ago. On the other side is a well established group of snack bars and restaurants, each of them built of decking and balancing precariously over the fast flowing water. We order gozleme, (savoury pancakes) and chicken, rice with beer to celebrate a fabulous morning. We climb onto cushions with typically Turkish, red patterned covers and sit around a flat low table awaiting our lunch. Our view is straight into the vast gorge and looking up towards the steel walkway. Hoards of visitors now line this raised pathway, each scrambling to see the awesome pools and rocks, so happy and relieved we caught this fabulous attraction before they all arrived. Our food was gorgeous, tasty with spices and flavour, accompanied by the gasps and screeches from within the icy waters. only a few yards away. Fortunately I had taken spare clothing for us, we couldn't have continued our day in comfort without them, after our quick change we climbed back into our car. Next stop Kalkan town, we had visited this quaint hillside resort before, however Lee and Larry were yet to be enthralled by its lovely winding cobbled streets and pretty shops and restaurants. We brought our hire car to a parking spot at the upper end of this busy town, this bustling town centre gave no indication that tucked beyond these everyday businesses, lay a very enchanting walkway into an old historical and well preserved 'old' town'. Each step that we took led us gently downhill and into a very different scene, little stone buildings opened their bright painted doors to entice us inside. Gorgeous silks and cotton goods folded neatly across shelves and hung on racks of wood, sparkling materials caught our eye as we absorb these very Turkish delights in such a pretty shop. Vendors greet us as we linger at colourful window displays, golden ornaments and shining lamps sparkle in this hot afternoon sunshine. We smile and reply our thank you to invitations of cay in every doorway, each owner willing us inside to admire and of course purchase yet more fabulous goods. Little coffee shops perch on steps, large plants and soft seats add to these lovely garden rooms, they are almost hidden among these sandstone walls and cobbled streets. We amble down the winding paths, Larry disappears into a fabulous old building, we loiter nearby admiring yet more beautifully dressed windows and displays. Once he emerges, we are surprised to hear that the shop owner has had no customers at all that day, exquisite rugs and brightly woven carpets fill these windows, yet not one has been purchased, such a sad thought knowing that rent and rates for these premises must be extortionate. This delightful town is so inviting and beautiful, yet the tourists are not coming, unfortunately media and hearsay seem to be a huge reason for this sorry sight. We make our way onward towards the small beach and seafront bars, sunbeds line this tiny but fabulous sandy shore. Children splash with their siblings and friends, parents relax with their oil covered bodies poised expectantly for those burning rays of heat. Brightly coloured towels lay sprawled across stark white sunbeds, grass covered umbrellas stand guard over their circle of shade. We stop for refreshments overlooking this amazing sight, this beach tucked just below us on our left with bars and eateries overlooking the small busy harbour on our right. We venture onwards to Kas next, we have seen lots of paragliding each time we have visited this area, the mountains are so high that they lend themselves to this amazing sport, climbers and absailers are also drawn to this fabulous location. We drive in the hope of finding their starting point on the highest part of this mountain range, unfortunately we follow our map, yet still manage to end up in the wrong direction. To add to the frustration we are running low on fuel, and the paragliding seems to be finished for today. Once we realise that this journey is rather futile, we head back towards Kas town. On our route we stop to capture this stunning scenery and our boats anchored directly below, the view is amazing we hadn't realised just how many little Islands sit nearby in the hazy horizon. Back in Kas we enjoy a beer on the seafront, as we relax in this lovely shaded spot we hear a band strike up and play the Turkish National anthem. Everyone around us stops walking instantly, voices quietened and traffic came to a sudden standstill, what a stunning reaction to their National anthem, very unusual to see. We wander over to where the music had begun and found crowds of local people clapping and cheering, it seemed to be an award ceremony for the Turkish underwater sports federation! As our day drew to a sticky hot close we decided to find a typically Turkish Lokantasi or eatery, near our car hire shop sat a very small very basic restaurant. As we pulled out our four chairs it's owner leapt to his feet in a bid to assist his new guests, with a polite 'iyi aksamlar' good evening we were offered water, bread and a yummy assortment of dishes from their stove. Green beans cooked in gorgeous tomato sauce, aubergines with tomato and onions, chicken cooked in a delicious sauce and various other dishes. An enormous plate of mixed salad came with a fresh basket of bread, a pomegranate dressing offering a sweet tasty change to this very colourful salad. We ate and loved every mouthful, more bread and salad arrived until we finally gave up counting the courses. Beautifully cooked food and excellent service, we completed our meal with free cay and a huge thank you for our perfect, and extremely cheap meal.
Our feet were tired, and our tummies were full all we needed now was a quiet evening sitting in our cockpit with a perfectly cold, crisp, pink home made wine and to watch the sun disappear. A fabulous day with great friends in an amazing place, just perfect.
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Sailing Kejstral AdventuresRetired and following our dream of sailing around the world Archives
April 2019
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