Tuesday, October 6, 2015

The Lycian Way // day 23 // Gelidonya - Adrasan

The Lycian Way day 23.
Distance: 15.0km (370.8km), time spent: 4:52 (141:53).
Altitude (start / end / highest): 150m / 21m / 409m.
Weather: Clear, some clouds.


During the night, there was sounds of animals outside the tent and little sleep as expected. I wake up early to catch the sunrise, the small light from the lighthouse giving small glimpses of what hides behind the darkness around me; I find myself a place on the rocks below the buildings. There is a small ribbon of clouds at the bottom of the sky, but it does not prevent me from getting a nice sunrise. When the sun rises, the water is coloured golden.

Gelidonya Lighthouse in the morning before the sun rises, a small light at the top is all that is left of the light from the lighthouse.

From Gelidonya the trail follows the coastline on the eastside of the cape. First, up in the direction of Markız Tepe, then alongside the mountainsides below Eren Tepe. Going upwards, the lighthouse tower is standing lonely behind among the trees, abandoned until the next hiker comes visiting. The scenery around me is nice and the path is clearly visible, a maroon line between white rocks and stones, relatively good to walk on as well. A sidetrack after the ascent, brings me to a point with a view across Finike Körfezi (the bay of Finike). From where I stand, I can reminisce over the thirty kilometres on the beach.

Sunrise at Gelidonya.

It is better to reminisce about the journey over the mountains in the background. Over this ridge lies Eren Tepe (990m) to the North, and the trail is heading down towards the ocean where Sulu Adası (Water Island) pushes itself up from the water. Allegedly, I was to walk past both the remains of a goatherds' hut and the remains of a house, but I could not see any of them. Goats however are emerging from the undergrowth and are running bleating away from me. It is a path that is not particular spectacular, but still is in the possession of its own charm.

View down towards the lighthouse and the islands outside, Şıldanlar Adaları.

Daywalkers are on their way to the lighthouse. After an easy ascent up to a pass, reddish hills appears below, these are made of a volcanic belt and is part of what makes this part of the coast different from the Southern coast. Behind the red hills lies Adrasan. Musa Dağı (Moses Mountain) becomes apparent. The trail is now heading downwards, past what once was a camel farm and ends up in the outskirts of Adrasan next to a peculiar house. There is accommodation available in the house, in small houses up in the trees.

By walking a little bit off track, I found a point where I could look out across the bay of Finike, the long beach going towards Finike and in the background, the mountains I walked in.

Adrasan itself is a typical holiday place. And the walk through the place pays heed to that, a beach on one side with hotels and eateries on the other. There are not many people here now. What was announced as a six and a half hours long walk in the guidebook got eaten away by only just over four hours. Breaks included (I had a simple lunch at the pass).

View in the direction where the Lycian Way goes along the coast below Eren Tepe.

My early arrival give me some headaches, should I stay or should I go. It should be enough time to get to Olympos or Çıralı, estimated to seven hours and forty minutes of walking, but it is less likely that I would be able to keep the same pace all the way there. Indecisiveness strikes me and it all ends up as it has before, with me leisurely enough call it the day. It does, however, provide me with better time to explore the ruins of Olympos tomorrow.

Almost down by the coast, the trail meanders through some pleasant forest.

The whole journey has begun to be characterized by me hurrying very slowly; in between, it takes more and more the shape of being a lazy walk in the park. Nothing wrong in that however. Or it is a sign that I am beginning to get older.

Red hills just before Adrasan, made by the volcanic belt on this part of the coast.

It turns out that it might just as well be good that I chose to stay; from my bungalow at the guesthouse (Kadir's Tree Garden), I can look up at a sky that turns darker and darker, and a little bit later thunder booms over the mountains. Adrasan is however left undisturbed from the wrath of Heaven, before dinner I stroll down to the beach for a bath (I chose a guesthouse located further up the road from the beach).

Moses Mountain or Musa Dağı.

One of the tourist traps in Adrasan are the restaurants where the tables stands on small platforms in the river running down towards the sea. I let myself happily be caught. While the ducks quacks their greedy laughter around me, I eat a large portion of good köfte.

Restaurant in Adrasan where you sit and eat on platforms in the river.

Today, I otherwise met a large group of hikers in Adrasan, Russians, which also are out on the Lycian Way. Only in the opposite direction, as the Russians I met yesterday. It looks as if the focus in several ways now has turned from the West to the East. They also had a small part in my choice of guesthouse for the day, I saw their backpacks lying at the guesthouse, and thinks that it is always nice to meet other hikers on the trail you are walking on. Though, they were unfortunately continuing further in the direction of Gelidonya. In comparison, I still have not met any other hiker on the trail going in the same direction as I after I left Andriake / Sura.

Musa Dağı and Adrasan Limani in the afternoon.

<- GelidonyaOlympos ->

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