Isparta-Istanbul Bike Tour (1505 km)

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6. Day (Kaputaş Beach- Patara Beach) (23 km)


View: https://www.instagram.com/p/BX18xesAFLJ/


Video's Translate : Good Morning. I don't know how a morning you woke up, but I woke up in such a morning.

I liked Kaputaş beach very much, so I wanted to stay here at least until late afternoon. At about 16:00 in the afternoon, I left Kaputaş and set out for Patara. Patara beach was 23 km away.

Grape tree of a cafe on the road

After stopping by Kalkan on the way and touring it a little bit, I arrived at Gelemiş village at around 19:00. Patara beach was 1-1.5 km away from Gelemiş village. The village was a small, beautiful village with Seljuk architecture.

After going down to Patara beach and swimming a little, the officials asked the beach to be evacuated. Since the caretta caretta turtles are breeding season, it was forbidden to stay on the beach after 20:00 in the evening. I was planning to spend the night at the beach, it didn't work. I returned to the village.

After eating my meal, I went to the mosque first to go to bed. Since the weather was very hot, I was going to sleep in the open area in the mosque's courtyard. There were generally drinking water dispensers in mosques along the way. I entered the mosque saying maybe there is a drinking water dispenser here. There was water but my eyes got caught in the air conditioner. While we were coming this far, there was air conditioning in the outer sections of one or two mosques, but the remote was not around. It also had a remote. It also had sockets. I plugged in the electronic devices. I cannot describe the happiness of the air conditioner. I was the king tonight. I had a sound sleep under 16 degrees air conditioning until the morning prayer.

The next day I will be out of Antalya borders. I would like to share some technical information for the part of my journey so far.

Between Isparta - Antalya (Konyaaltı): Although the altitude difference is 1035 meters, I gained an altitude of approximately 1680 meters and lost 2715 meters during 133 km. The road was covered with cold asphalt. Even if there were some erosions, the condition of the road was good. The wind was usually blowing from the southwest direction.

Between Antalya (Konyaaltı) and Muğla (Border): I gained an altitude of 5500 meters for 300 km and lost. The road was covered with cold asphalt again. He was generally in good condition. The wind was generally blowing from the west.

To wrap it up: I cycling against the wind for 6 days (actually the whole trip). I covered an average of 72 km per day. The temperature was effective as I cycled in the middle of August (Over 30 degrees). I climbed near 7180 meters and descended close to 8215 meters. I had a shaky journey on flat roads and descents, both because the wheels of my bike were 700 * 35 mm and the road was covered with cold asphalt. The traffic situation was calm except for central locations. Only the coastal road between Finike-Demre and Kaş-Kalkan was narrow. In these narrow sections, there was no security lane to the west side.

 

[HobbesOnTour]

Thank you very much for this - I really enjoyed it.
I've read a few accounts of cycling in Turkey (it's on my list) and just about everyone finds the country friendly and very hospitable. It's clear from your account that people aren't just friendly to the foreigners.

 

[aytu_14]

7. day (Patara Beach-Fethiye(Mugla)-Göcek) (105 km)

After a good night's sleep, I set out at 6 am. My goal was to arrive in Fethiye by noon. The distance was approximately 77 km. When there were situations such as being well-rested at night, good weather, good road condition, I arrived in Fethiye at about 11 am with a pleasant and good ride.

While I was at Kaputaş beach, I talked to my friend Alperen from the university. He and his two friends were driving behind me, similar to the route I took. We guessed we would meet in Fethiye. They were in Kaş when I was in Patara. When I arrived in Fethiye, I called Alperen. He said they just woke up. When he heard that I was in Fethiye, he was a little surprised. She was thinking of catching me, but she couldn't catch my wind. I learned that they will end their tour in Fethiye and return. Since I wanted to arrive in Marmaris the next day, I said that I wanted to be in Göçek in the evening. We could not come across in Fethiye. Honestly, they couldn't catch up with me. 😛

I was very hungry when entering Fethiye. I wanted to give myself a prize. Since I have been on the road, I have always eaten canned food, so I entered a restaurant. After eating my meal, I wandered around Fethiye for a while. I bought a lock in Fethiye as I left the lock of the bicycle in Kaputaş.

I wanted to go to Ölüdeniz in Fethiye, do paragliding. When I called to get price information, they said that the reservations are full today. In addition, the price was higher than the prices I had checked before starting the tour. I said another time and went down to the beach to cool off in the sea.

I met Doğuş on the beach. I invited him when he told me that I had grabbed the best place and made a joke. He was an interior designer. Her wedding was canceled 2 weeks before her wedding. He came to Fethiye to distract him. Here, too, he got a few jobs while he was distracting. After spending the afternoon with Doğuş, I said goodbye to him and set off for Göçek.

The road was a bit challenging. There were 2 hard slopes of 4 km each. I arrived in Göçek around 20:00 in the evening. I was so tired. Without eating or setting up a tent, I threw my bed into the first greenery I saw - next to the municipality building - and slept.

 

[aytu_14]

8. day (Göçek-Köyceğiz-Toparlar Waterfall-Marmaris) (108 km)

I woke up around 5.00 in the morning, probably because of the effect of the frost that formed in the mornings and because I slept in the open area. I slept well. A hedgehog was passing by when I opened my eyes. "Good morning hedgehog brother!" After I said, I packed my belongings and grabbed a few snacks since I didn't eat yesterday. Meanwhile, brother Osman, who came from Izmir, came to me. He came to Göçek at night. When he saw me lying there he slept a little further on the grass. He said that I slept very comfortably. Then when he saw my bike, he understand my deep sleep. After some conversation with him, I started off cycling. I was planning to be in Köyceğiz towards noon.

We had a little quarrel with two dogs coming out of the garden of the house while we were passing by a house before leaving the main road. I used the bike as a shield between me and the dogs. Once again I thanked my bike.

I stopped by a gas station at the entrance of Köyceğiz. The officer I spoke with said that if I want to enter the water, Koycegiz Lake is very dirty, and the Toparlar Waterfall on the Marmaris road is beautiful. In fact, I wanted to go to Marmaris by passing through Köyceğiz and following the forest road. When I ask this way; He said that he was a military base on the way and that they could not allow the passage. I called the Aksaz military base and asked about the situation. When I said they wouldn't let me, I decided to go to the Shirlar Waterfall.

The dirt road to the waterfall looked a little familiar. I remembered when I saw Grandfather Limonate selling lemonade. I watched it in a documentary. In the documentary, the village and its waterfall were told. I bought a lemonade from grandfather and left my bike there. I went towards the waterfall. It was an amazing place, it had ice-cold water.

Toparlar Waterfall

I left at around 15:00 and started to cycle towards Marmaris. My childhood friend Furkan was doing military service in Marmaris. For this reason, I was thinking of arriving in Marmaris today. I was going faster than my normal pace. The weather was a little spoiled. Dark clouds were approaching. As the rain started to drizzle, I threw myself into a petrol station. As soon as I got into the gas station, the rain got harder Thanks to that, a brother in charge of gasoline invited me to the room and ordered tea. When he found out that I was from Van(The Paris of the East 😅), he talked about a past incident.

The person sitting next to him was from Van while he was taking his young son, who was sick in 1998, from a city (I couldn't remember the city, it may be Erzurum) by bus to the Van 100. Yıl Hospital. His son's illness was serious. Speaking of the shock of the bus, his illness, his son had suffered several times. "Until that young man sitting next to me came to Van, my son cleared there every time he vomit. "When one or two people talked about the situation, they got into an argument with them." He was a little teary while he was describing it. When I asked about his son's condition, he said that his intelligence development could not be fully progressed due to the illness, and that he is now continuing his life at least calmly.

While we were talking, the rain had stopped. I thanked Brother Orhan and set off. There was a 3 km slope in front of me. A heavy rain started again as he climbed the last slopes. I didn't want to go back as I climbed the slope. There was no place where I could take shelter until the rain passed around. I covered the bike and leaned the bike against a tree and started to wait. It rained for half an hour. The flood made a mess. So I was soaked down to the finest detail.

I switched to wet landing. I was a little cold, but there was no problem. For how many days I was overwhelmed by the sun and the heat. I missed being cold. I was not going to complain.

I turned left from Gökova and entered Marmaris road. There are 2 slopes in front of me. I pass the first. When it started to descend again, it started to rain again. I'm drenched again. While I was talking about rain, wind, slopes, I didn't have the strength to pedal on the last hill.

With my bike in my hand, we started walking the last slope between Marmaris and us. On the one hand, raindrops were hitting my face, on the other hand the last lights of the setting sun dazzled me. I could see colored dust particles floating in the air. I could see the colors of the rainbow when I blinked from the raindrops in my eyes. I was feeling the life until my marrow. I was as happy as a lark. It really was. Until I entered Marmaris, I was grinning with all my teeth visible.

Before landing in Marmaris

When I entered Marmaris and looked at the map, I realized that the place where Furkan served his military service was in Hisarönü on the way from Marmaris to Datça. So I wouldn't be able to visit you today.

While searching for a place to eat the canned food I had with me, I came across a restaurant. Its name was Yiğit Restaurant. It is also known as Pilgrim's Place among the people. Prices were very reasonable. I was so surprised. It would be more expensive if you had a meal at home. The man was doing a very good thing.

I started looking for a place to sleep after dinner. Marmaris was overcrowded. It is really difficult to stay in crowded places. None of the parks seemed safe to me. When I went to the mosque, the doors were locked. Even his courtyard didn't feel safe to me. I locked the bike behind the mosque, threw my bed between the mosque and the cemetery and slept.

 

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9. Day (Marmaris-Hisarönü-Marmaris-Gökova) (85 km)

Today I was going to visit Hisaronu with my friend. When I was starting to load my bicycle, the municipal cleaning officer came. We had a little chat about where I came from and where I was going. Since I had been on the road for 9 days, my clean clothes was finished. - Although I did wash it in my hand for the first few days, it was difficult afterwards. - When I asked the man where the dry cleaner is, he said we can wash it in my house if you want. At first I accepted. I got the phone number or something. After I left my laundry there and returned from visiting my friend, I would pick up the laundry and continue on the road.

After we left my laundry there, we chatted a little more with the man. I started to suspect him because of the man's behavior and his conversation. When I asked if he was married, he could not find what he wanted in women as he was single - although he did not say that, it was obvious that he had an interest in men rather than women - he said something. While I was leaving and going to eat, I stopped somewhere and thought calmly. Considering the movements of the state, I said no risk. After I had my breakfast, I called the man and said that I saw a friend that I would stay with him tonight, and returned, took my clothes to the dry cleaner and left.

After wandering around Marmaris and lubricating the chain of my bike, I started to go to Furkan. It was the most disgusting road I have seen in my journey. The road was very narrow and the asphalt was terrible. I have seen vehicles crashing constantly. Very carefully, I reached the Hisarönü Gendarmerie, trembling and shivering. The Gendarmerie Station was in a very beautiful place. It was near the sea. Most of the senior soldiers came here as a vacation spot. Next to it is the Çubucak Orman camp.

I haven't seen Furkan in a long time. He was in the army when I last went to Istanbul. It had passed 1.5 years. After chatting with him and his friends, I wished Furkan and his friends "Good leave" and left there to continue my journey.

On the way back, I met Cihan, who went up the hill with his bike. I had also finished the hill on the opposite side. We had a nice chat with him right on the hill. Then we added each other on social media. Cihan went on hitchhiking trips the next year. He went as far as Iran. Then he went to Morocco.

It was a great chance that I did not crash on this road. The road was so narrow that most of the time the vehicles passed zero. On the way back, a vehicle even crawled onto the bed that was protruding from my bike. Then I stopped a passing vehicle. I wanted him to escort me to a place where the road could be wide. The lady provided a protection with her vehicle close to 2 km. Thanks her. I am indicating the gender by this. When I ride the bicycle, especially on narrow roads, I always make signs with one hand telling them to keep a certain distance to the vehicles. I signal them to stop, slow down, pass by leaving a distance. Along the way, most of the female drivers, perhaps all of them, showed sensitivity to the signs I made and continued on their way. It was one of the points that caught my attention.

I wanted to reach Ören Municipality the next day. For this reason, after taking my laundry, I wanted to leave Marmaris at least in the evening. I would spend the night at the gas station on the road.

When I was leaving Marmaris, there was a slope in front of me. Water was flowing from the mountain on the right, 1 km or so before the end of the slope. I drank a lot, although the taste of the water was a bit grounded because I forgot to fill it. At that time, Mehmet brother, who was passing by his motorcycle, offered to help in the rest of the slope. I tied the bike with a rope and took the remaining 1 km with it. During the conversation, I said I would stay at the gas station. He said that the gas station I was going to was closed was closed and the other station behind him was open.

When I asked the employees at the gas station whether it would be a problem to stay here, they said it wouldn't be a problem. I got a message on my phone while I was going to sleep. In the morning, the cleaner I suspected of goodwill had texted. "Where are you?" When he did not answer, he sent the following message afterwards: "Alooooooo!"

 

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10. Day (Gökova-Akyaka) (25 km)

I woke up in the morning with a mild nausea, weakness and headache. When the wind I was exposed to after the rain, the water I drank from that fountain when I left Marmaris and the coldness of the night combined, it was normal to get sick.

Despite the illness, I cycling 25 km and arrived in Akyaka. On the way, at least the nausea stopped. I had a small breakfast when I arrived in Akyaka. Nausea started again. The headache started to increase. At least I threw myself into the like icy Azmak River to get rid of my headache. My headache stopped and the nausea continued. I got out of the river and lay down my bed and slept. When I slept, there was nobody around. It was crowded when I opened my eyes. The people next to me looked at me and said, "You slept really well and now you're hungry." After, they offered pie and watermelon. But I had to turn it down because I was very nauseous. The health center was closed as it was Sunday today. If it had been open, I probably wouldn't have left for fear of needles. I had to take care of myself. My headache was mostly gone. But once again, after diving into the like icy water of the river I started looking for a place where I could lay down and sweat comfortably. That place was obvious, the mosque.

Azmak River

I drank a soup by force. I drank a pain reliever and a gut medicine. Then I went to the mosque to sleep. I opened my bed. I dressed thickly and forced myself to sleep. After sleeping for 5-6 hours, I was very sweaty. I was feeling better. The headache and nausea had stopped. There was only a little tiredness left. It would pass in the morning too.

Perhaps the situation that tells the essence of the bicycle tour is what I have experienced in the last 48 hours. When I thought about it, my happiest moment was when I was climbing the Marmaris slope. Before that, I could not find a place to escape with the downpour rain. Later, the situation I experienced with that cleaner and my getting sick… My feelings were changing just like the way. "With ups and downs"

After waking up, I met Mumtaz brother, who was on a long tour with his friend. He also stayed in mosques on tours. He said he had been on long tours for about 15 years on his bike. When he told me that I was sleeping because I was sick during the conversation, he wondered where I found the bed I was lying in. When I told him I was carrying it with me, he said it was the first time he saw a cyclist so fond of himself. He liked my bed very much. The bed took up some space on the bike, but I wouldn't be able to rest well if I didn't carry it. Don't look at what I call a bed, as you know sponge mattresses. I fold it by rolling and tying it.

We talked to Mümtaz about our trips in general. He came the way I would go tomorrow. He talked about being attacked by bees in the morning. This was very good for me (!) I was going to start thinking about bees until I reach Bodrum.

After the conversation, I asked permission to eat. After I got back from eating I noticed that my wheel had burst. Just this morning when I was talking on the phone with my friend Mikail, I mentioned that the wheel has not exploded yet. It exploded 25 km after this conversation.


View: https://www.instagram.com/p/BYAZwh-gJoI/


The video I took before entering Akyaka. The road was so beautiful that I said I should definitely shoot a video here. Sick patient I tried well.

 

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11. day (Akyaka-Municipality of Oren) (50 km)

I had repaired my flat tire yesterday, but I had to adjust the tire pressure for a comfortable ride. I couldn't do that with the pump in my hand. I went on a bike Delta, the only bicycle repair in Akyaka. I met his owner Çağatay. He was an agricultural engineer. After doing his own business for a while, he opened this business. In our conversation, we were talking about the beauty of Akyaka and the protection of such beautiful places. He mentioned that a lawyer in Akyaka had been struggling for a long time not to be hotel etc. build and he was successful.

According to him, the best way to protect these beauties was not to go there, not to see them. Let's say you saw it, you won't tell anyone about it. “Don't tell any of your friends that it's nice here! Let them not come, keep this place like this. " said. I can't say I didn't agree, it was a different approach.



After taking care of my bicycle, I thanked Çağatay and set off. He said that there are many beautiful bays as far as Akbuk (Muğla). Just like I did in the bays between Finike and Demre, I just wear my sea shorts; I arrived in Akbuk, taking the green to my right and the blue to the left, by swimming in the bays where almost nobody is present, enjoying the road and the forest.


View: https://www.instagram.com/p/BYDioNZgYVj/


It was around 12:00 when I arrived in Akbuk. I spent time here until the midday heat passed. After the sun receded from the hill, I continued on my way to Ören. I was driving through the woods. I was in those beautiful pictures we saw on postcards.


I arrived in Ören in the evening. I was attacked by bees on the last hill before entering Ören. I climbed the last 400 meters of the slope very quickly thanks to the bees. Thank goodness I did not experience a sting.



I wanted to find a place to set up my tent, walk around the Ören and spend time on the beach. When I got to the beach, I saw several tents set up on the grass. At first I thought it was a camping area, but when I asked, I learned that it was not. The person whose tent was set up told me; When you set up the tent here, the police come and say "Forbidden!" He said that when he asked for a written rule, the police went, and when another person set up a tent, the police did not make a sound. So I set up my tent there and went to buy something to eat in the bazaar.
While I was eating the canned food I bought from Bim, Mustafa came to me in the park. When he saw my bike, he wondered where I came from and where I was going. When I asked why I was going out alone, I said that I couldn't find friends to do such a thing and that it was better to be single. On top of that, he mentioned that he bought a small plot of land and went there with his wife and child whenever he had the opportunity, and sometimes he went alone. Most of the people I chatted with during the tour wanted to get out of the city life somehow. Mustafa had taken a step in this direction. By the way, he was a social studies teacher. Although he did not want to read this chapter, he read it because his father wanted it. I told him that he read and finished although he did not want to, and most importantly, it was a great job to be appointed. After a little more conversation, said he wanted to order a meal if I came to Güzelçamlı. after I finished my meal, I wrote my notes about the tour in the notebook and he offered me a cup of tea.

In Ören, I left my powerbank to a selling kokorec(a type of meal made from an animal's small intestine) shop to recharge before going the beach. It also saw the kokorec well. After dinner I went there to have a "quarter koko". The name of the kokorec master was Menderes. The name of the waiter next to him is Mehmet. He was a very funny, humorous, nutty person. When he found out that I was touring by bike, he asked if I was writing or not. When I said I wrote, he said talk about me too. I met a nutty selling kokorec for you and said I would write. Of course, he understood that I am writing that article for a book. When he found out that I was taking notes for myself, he tried to root for me up by saying things like turning what he wrote into a book.

After my pleasant conversation with Menderes and Mehmet, I left their side and go to sleep. By the way, the kokoreci was delicious. On the way from the main street to the coastal road in Ören, it does its job where there are fishing stands on the left before reaching the beach. If you get in the way, eat a kokorec from this nutty guy.

While I was locking my bike before entering the tent, a 9-10 year old boy named Yankı came to me. They came from Izmir with his family. They had set up their tents next to my tent. Yankı loved cycling. While going to school in Izmir, he used to ride his bike as long as his mother and father were with him. After chatting with him about the bike for a while, I went to my tent.

 

[aytu_14]

12. day (Municipality of Oren-Çökertme-Güvercinlik) (70 km)

While I was collecting my belongings, I noticed that the wheel of the bicycle had exploded. My left arm was a little numb since I had been on a bike for a long time. I got help from a fisherman. Although I told the man 2-3 times that my name was Ayetullah, he said a different name each time. When he said Ismail in the last time, I accepted that my name was Ismail.

After repairing the tire, I made my way to Çökertme. When I entered the market in Çökertme to buy water, I met Oktay, who runs it. I got some information from him about the road. While chatting with him, 3 friends I met at the kokorec shop in Ören entered the shop. After a conversation with them and Oktay, I continued on the road.

Compared to the first days I started the tour, the weather was not too hot anymore. Also, the sun was not disturbing as I was cycling through the forest. That's why I was cycling in the afternoons.

On my way to Mazi Village, there was a hard ramp in front of me again. In addition to the numbness of my left arm, I was now avoiding to force myself on the hard ramps due to the increased road fatigue. In these situations, I was walking. While I was walking like this on a ramp again, a truck stopped next to me. Thanks to them, they left it on the top of the 3 km slope.

In the afternoon, I drove towards Bodrum Güvercinlik. I rode a bicycle alone today at the top of the mountain. Very rare vehicles were passing by. I haven't met people.

It was dusk when I arrived at the Güvercinlik. I wanted to land in Bodrum, but I could not find the strength to reach myself. I spent the night camping at the gas station I first saw.

 

[aytu_14]

13. Day (Güvercinlik-Kıyıkışlacık-Akbük(Didim)-Didim-Akköy) (86 km)

When I woke up in the morning, I could not find the desire to go to Bodrum and spend time there. I didn't enjoy being in crowded, popular places anyway. It wasn't hard to guess what happened there. I am not talking about their natural beauty. I'm sure she has a perfect nature. But it is one of the places with a lot of people. At this density, it reflects as expensive, pollution and dry noise. For this reason I did not want to stop by. I don't know, maybe I made the mistake of not stopping by.

After collecting my belongings and having a snack, I started pedaling towards Didim. After passing Bodrum Airport for 7 km, I managed to turn left at the junction and get away from the noise. A taxi stopped beside me on my way through the inland road through the trees and fields. Kayahan, when he ask where my journey is; I said I was heading towards Didim. He advised me to stop by his village, Kıyıkışlacık and also to see it. I said that I might not be able to come by because the village is a bit inside. He offered me to come with him, saying that he was going there and that he could pick me up and then I could continue my journey from there. I accepted the offer and went to Kıyıkışlacık with him.

This was a small fishing village. While wandering around the village, I was invited to tea by those sitting in the coffee house by the beach. After the conversation with them, I thanked them and hit the road again.

Kıyıkışlacık

On my way to Akbuk, I again came across an inclined road. While I was cycling the slope slowly, I came across Serhat, who was grazing small cattle in the future. I started up the slope after getting off the bike and chatting with him.

Serhat was a nice conversation, a beautiful boy. He was 15 years old. He started telling me about himself, the events that took place in the village of Kızılağaç. He spoke of wolves and pigs descending, beasts, and the subtleties of shepherding. Let me also state this. When I met him, I did not know that he was going out to graze his animals. Because there was no animal in sight. I only heard ringing noises from time to time. A bell attached to the neck of a pioneer animal told where they were. He actually mentioned that he does not need to come, but that people from different places stole animals because we are going to have a festival of sacrifice. When I asked about his school situation, he mentioned that he did not want to study, that his family had been forced to school, that he wanted to open a shop on car sound systems and that he wanted to continue his life on this road. (As of the moment I decided to publish this article (04.2020), I was at the same point with Serhat. Considering the lack of planning in our country, it was a mistake to create a career plan for studying at university and having a profession. I hope he was able to open the shop he dreamed of.) Also met his family. After drinking the cold ayran they offered, I set off.

As I continued towards Kazıklı, there was another slope in front of me. A car coming from the opposite direction stopped beside me as I stopped to take a breath at the top of this hill. They stopped to ask if they were sure they were in the direction of Bodrum. I stated that they were in the right direction. After thanking them and continuing on their way, they stopped again in the future. Later, They come back. They offered hamburgers saying "You are hungry while climbing this hill". Enjoying hamburgers at a relative top, among the forest. Who can say no. Serhat's family had served buttermilk. Now the hamburger. I normally eat my food first. Then I drink. This time the opposite happened. It's okay. I'm out side of my routine.

I had a dangerous moment going down the hill. My speed was at its peak, the road condition was good, the wind was hitting my face because of my speed ... I was in good mood ... Just at this time, a strong wind blew from the side. I was thrown towards the side lane with the effect of the wind. As I was about to fly through the trees, I hung on the brakes and collected my balance. The absence of a vehicle prevented a possible major accident. You took a deep sigh. After this moment, I started to concentrate even more on the descents.

I arrived in Akbuk towards noon. After entering the sea and cooling off, I headed straight to Didim. I arrived in Didim in the afternoon. I was so hungry that I immediately started looking for a place to eat. I saw a shop that sells cooked chicken. I went to the courtyard of a mosque, which is right opposite the shop. While I was eating, a dog "very big" approached me. He could not walk with his weight. I had to split my meal. I had to gave my tribute.

I was afraid it would take it from me in one bite.

Since it was not dark yet and I did not like camping in crowded places, I set out to spend the night in a village outside of Didim. While I was cycling slowly in Didim, I came across a very large historical relic. This was the ancient Greek Temple of Apollo. He looked enchanting under the setting sun. The remains of a building that was once gigantic trying to survive, its resistance ...

Temple of Apollo

I got out of the romantic atmosphere of the setting sun and continued on the road. With the coolness of the afternoon I arrived in Akköy on a quiet journey with my companion(my bicycle) and spent the night there.


Courtyard of the mosque

 

[HobbesOnTour]

It's a wonder you get any cycling done with all the people you meet!

 

[aytu_14]

It's a wonder you get any cycling done with all the people you meet!

I hardly saw anyone the day before. But that day I covered the previous day's deficiency.

 

[aytu_14]

14. Day (Akköy-Söke-İzmir(Fatih Vinç)) (40 km)

While planning this tour, I was not going to stop by Söke after Didim. I was planning to go around the Dilek Peninsula and pass through Kuşadası. But I had to change my route. Why I did that?

It all started that morning when I took the wrong direction. I was going to continue on the road close to the sea towards Tuzburgaz. But I headed towards the main road. In fact, I noticed it after driving about 5 km, but I didn't feel like going back. Because I was downhill. Instead of going back up the slope and going down the other side; I changed the plan so that I would go to Söke and then go back to Tuzburgazı from the inner road. I arrived in Söke with a pleasant drive.


View: https://www.instagram.com/p/BYK2mtSgmrD/


While searching for a place to eat in Söke, I entered a pit carelessly and a noise came from the rim of the bicycle. When I landed and looked, one of the rims spokes on the rear wheel was broken. With this much weight on the bike, I was likely to experience such a problem. This bothered me a little. Because I did not know how to fix such a problem. I had to find a bike repair shop there and I had to fix this problem. Saying that I can decide what path to follow while eating, I pushed the bike with my hand and went to a restaurant. After ordering food at the restaurant, I started thinking.

Could I find a place in Söke to build the rim? There was a possibility. I gave up going to Urla, Çeşme and Alaçatı districts of İzmir during the trip because my budget was limited while I was doing this tour. Another time I would tour only on this route. So now I was going to transit through Izmir. Cycling is not enjoyable where there is heavy traffic. When I went camping in Burdur Salda Lake, people I met there said that I could get on the Selçuk-Aliağa Subway without entering the traffic of İzmir. Kuşadası, Selçuk, I have been to these places before. In our conversations with my brother, he said that if there is a problem in İzmir, I can visit the branch of Fatih Vinc, the company he works for. I also worked in this company during the summer. Instead of using the Selçuk-Alsancak-Aliağa subway line, I could take the train from Söke to Alsancak and then go to Fatih Vinc. I used to spend the night there. With their help, we would find cyclists and repair the bicycle. I would also travel the Dilek Peninsula on my next tour in Izmir.

After thinking about these and making my decision, I called my brother and explained the situation. After the tour ended, I heard that a telegram was sent from Fatih Vinc's central branch to the Izmir branch. In the content of the message - to put it as a rough draft - they stated that a heavy guest will come, and it is of great importance to make all the necessary preparations. Oh, huh? Of course joke. What age do we live in, is the telegram left? They called directly and said. Of course, the content was not like that. They said a maniac is coming.

I went to the train station and bought a ticket to Izmir Alsancak. The train has arrived. Although it was forbidden, I managed to put the bike on the train with a little stubbornness. Friend, what did this bike do to you!



The train approached Izmir around 18 o'clock. It was 7 km away from Fatih Vinc train station. In the industrial area, I started to go there forcibly on a bike with a broken spoke on a road with heavy vehicles and rubbish all around. I sacrificed another rim's spoke on the road. An oncoming vehicle stopped next to me 300-400 meters before I reached the target. "Is famous person you?" said. I was surprised at first. I thought, my reputation came this far. I telling inside “descending from the mountains going up to the mountains; over forests, seas and plains; facing jackals and dogs; pedaling under the sun; It is me, me, who came to this place by staying hungry and thirsty! I said. Then I pulled myself together. I just said "mine" from outside. "Welcome. Fatih Vinc is right there. " said. He was working in the company next to Fatih Crane, he was overtime. They told him that such a maniac would come.

I arrived at the company and found the location of the key, albeit with difficulty. I went in, saluted the cameras, and after taking a shower, I laid my bed in a room. It had air conditioning. The presence of the air conditioner gave indescribable happiness in those very hot and tiring times. Enjoying the little things was the main thing.

Technical information, about the part of my journey from Muğla Border to Aydın Söke:

The wind continued to blow in the opposite direction.

I climbed and descended nearly 8000 m for 550 km. I cycled an average of 68.75 km per day.

The road from Muğla border to Marmaris center was covered with hot asphalt. The road condition and driving comfort were very good. Traffic was calm until the Marmaris intersection. Then it started to intensify.

As I mentioned in my article, the Marmaris-Datça road was covered with cold asphalt. And it was very worn. The road condition was very bad. Traffic was medium density.

After Muğla Gökova, I left the main road and continued on the forest road. On this route, the road was covered with cold asphalt. I can say the general quality is medium. Gravel had accumulated on the roadside due to wear. Traffic was calm.

I covered 983 km in the 14 days of my journey. I climbed approximately 15180 m, descended 16215 m and drove an average of 70.20 km per day.

 

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15. Day (İzmir) (50 km)

I woke up in the morning by knocking on the door. I opened the door and met the employees of Fatih Vinc, (Fuat, Recep and Mehmet) and had breakfast with a nice conversation. Then we loaded the bike into the vehicle and went to bicycle repair. There were no rim's spokes suitable for the bike. He directed us to another cyclist. He said we could find it there. We thanked and left and went to the other cyclist.

I left the bike to the bike's repair shop of Atilla. I thanked Recep for bringing me and he farewell. Atilla repaired the bike very well. He adjusted the hub, brake, gear and tuning. He didn't want to money from me. I made the payment by force. While he was making the bike, we had a pleasant conversation with his brother Orhan and his friend Ahmet. We talked more about my tour.

After I bought the bike, I went to Alsancak. It was past the afternoon. While riding a heavy bike in Kordon, I caught my eye on the km hour. It showed 998 km. Wow! So, almost 1000 km. I stopped after another 2 km. The sun was setting. I cycled a full 1000 km. The atmosphere started to get romantic again. It was necessary to properly immortalize this moment. I asked the first person to stop and take a picture of us at sunset with my bike. Many thousands! Tens of thousands! Hundreds of thousands!

The aesthetic immortality of an emotional romantic moment ...

I met different beautiful people in Kordon that day. First Volkan, İshak, Bora then Çağrı, Fedai, Aytaç, Erkut. There are people whose names I can't remember. I was in a group as one person. They had done an action ride involving pedestrian and car occupation of the bicycle path. I attended them while chatting in Kordon after the ride.

After the group chat, we continued on the road for a while with Aytaç. He had mentioned the tour he intended to do by bike. He wanted to get off Alaska on his bike. One day he will. We follow eachother. I am waiting for the day he will do it. Maybe, who knows, when he ride down from Alaska on that bike, I'll go up from Chile. We will come across eachother around Costa Rica. (Later he toured from India to Nepal on his bike.)
After Aytaç left, I wandered around the inner part of Izmir. Lights, cars, density. I turned back to the beach. I met Erkut. He went from Istanbul to Bandırma by ferry from Istanbul on his bicycle and reached Izmir in 2 days with transit passes. He was going to a festival.
We came across Çağrı and his girlfriend in the morning on the Kordon at night. They invited them to their home. I said that I would go to Aliağa by the first subway and thanked their offer.

In the morning I went to the station. While I waiting for open the subway, I met a homeless person. I could not learn the name because he said the name doesn't matter. We had a little chat with him, then he left. He talked about the places I should stay away from in her neighborhood when he was leaving. He tried to give money. He was putting the money in my hand and I giving it back by force. He was putting it in the bike bag and I forcibly returning it. Finally I won. He was offended because I not taking the money.

I took the subway and went to Aliağa. I went into a mosque in Aliağa and slept.

 

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16. Day (Aliağa-Çandarlı) (40 km)

I woke up around 16:00. While I was collecting my belongings and putting them on the bike, I saw that the bag of the bike had money in its mesh eye. I don't forget money in the bag. Someone from the mosque community must have put it up while I was sleeping.

I went to the market place in Aliağa and bought some fruit. I ate. Then I set out.

In the cool afternoon, on the gentle ramp before reaching the Çandarlı intersection, a cyclist from behind appeared next to me as I was cycling slowly with earphones in my ears. He said he was heading towards Çandarlı. I said I was heading there. We drove together a little while chatting. I thought we would go together. There is a load on my bike. The wind was blowing from the front as usual. For this reason, I was cycling the heavier than it. Friend, be tired of my slowly cycling, saying "Come on, thank you" and accelerated and dropped the slope down the left.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5fLGWrHouk


“…………..
I don't need
Neither money nor love
On my horse
I go towards the mountain
Stars and moon
They say where I'm going…
…….”

When I got to the top of the ramp I turned left this time. The song has changed. "Desperado" started to play. I raised the volume ... At that moment, I rarely encountered a situation during the tour. The wind started to blow from behind. The slope of the road was also slightly downward. I started to speed up. This time the load on the bike started to give me a positive effect. He sat more firmly on the ground. It was not being thrown by the speed. After a while, I saw this friend on his way. I made even more ambition. But I don't know why. I felt that at that moment. It was probably due to the aggressive tone of the music. When I climbed that ramp after waking up, I was fully awake from sleep, my stomach was full, the weather was perfect… I got the momentum. I pulled tighter on the pedal. With this friend, the gap started to close quickly. Meanwhile, Antonio Banderas started to solo with his guitar… So I accompanied him on my bike… I was turning the pedal with ambition and love as if there was no tomorrow…

I caught…
"Greetings…" with a head gesture.
And "transition…" *
No losing momentum!

This friend was left behind for a long time. I turned my head for a moment and looked back. It seemed to be standing still. Hmm… I wonder if there was a problem with the boy's bike? Let me stop… Coming back… Meeting the friend again… "Is there a problem, I saw you as if you were standing on the bike for a moment." I said. "It's okay," he said. Back again… Again the wind is behind, the slope is still downward, turn the pedal, catch the acceleration again… Thanks to him, I arrived at Çandarlı faster than I expected.

* Whenever I listen to this song in the opening of the movie “Desperado”, this moment comes to my mind.
(Even if was not the moment like that exacly) The part of Antonio Banderas where he saw the man with the knife before starting the solo: with the moment when I saw this friend;
when the first part of the guitar solo ended (I mean, The part of Antonio Banderas putting the guitar on the man's head): with the moment of "greeting" ;
The moment he started soloing again: with the moment of "transition";
It is enjoyable to remember this way.
I also want to point that: When I stop and come back after passing the friend; I turned back thinking there was really something wrong with his bike. "You said thank you to me, look what happened, you stay behind like this!" I realized later that I seemed like I said.

At the entrance to Çandarlı, I saw a tent set up on the beach. It was about 45 minutes before it got dark. We met Mustafa in front of the tent. He came to camp with their 2 children. So I set up my tent a little further. The wind was blowing violently. I would tie it to the tree with a rope so that the tent would not fly. But I couldn't do it the way I wanted to. Because my left arm was numb due to holding the handlebars, I got help from Mustafa. While we were trying to secure the tent, 3 more people came. They also set up their tents.



After the tents were set up, the police, who were going to their homes in the evening, saw the tents. They spoke their classic words. "There is a complaint from the environment, tidy up your tents!" We just arrived and set up the tent. Who has complained when. Mustafa tried to explain by saying that I will stop for one night, I will go in the morning, but it did not happen. The police are gone. I said, "Mustafa, never mind, nothing will happen." Other friends also said, "They can't do anything if we stay." Me and other friends stayed there. Nothing happened anyway.

After setting up the tent and settling in, I went out for a stroll along the Çandarlı beach. I went back to the tent because of the excessive wind. And I slept.

 

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17. Day (Çandarlı-Dikili-Cunda Island) (90 km)

I woke up around 8:00 in the morning. The strong wind that was blowing during the night had stopped. I swam in the sea and woke up well.

A walking man saluted as I was going out of the sea towards my tent. I got your hello. When he saw the bike, he asked questions about my journey. While talking about these, he said he also wanted to go on such a tour. He asked me to answer some of his questions if I had time. I said it was okay to ask. Then he said, let's sit down. He said that he wanted to sit in front of the tent while I was going to sit on an empty bank. This request was interesting, but I thought that he was enthusiastic and I said sit down. We sat in front of the tent. After asking a few unreasonable questions, he said that this tour is a good sport and looking at my legs, he said that your muscles have improved. The gaze and conversation of this is not very healthy either. Consequently, my mind went to the event I lived in Marmaris. I immediately got up. I stopped the conversation saying I have to go.

What courage friend! Talking the muscles of a person you just met. People are curious about the places I go because the activity I do is not very usual. They're asking questions. I am unwillingly open to conversation. Taking this opportunity and trying to benefit yourself! Before the tour, I thought of many things in detail, especially the scenarios that could be bad. I will encounter such situations - believe it - it didn't cross my mind. Of course, in such situations, it had a positive effect in the following direction. I began to better understand what their women went through. Knowing is not the same as understanding.

After I packed my belongings and had breakfast, I set off. I continued along the coastline and reached Dikili towards noon. I would go into the sea to cool off. Wouldn't there be one cabin I could change for free? No. I was also a little angry about the morning situation. I started being spoken out loud. "People will go in and change their clothes, go out! Can it get money for this!" Someone spoke from there. "Don't change bro." I did not answer. I walked away with a shake of my head.

Asking people for money for such a thing is shameless. Planting two boards and trying to get money from people for it. The local government or any institution that allows this, they are shameless. We are equally guilty who see such a practice and do not make a sound about it.

(There are many topics that you will think about in detail on the way. I thought about them that day. Maybe these are small things, I accept this. While reading this article, you can say "There are so many bad things happening the world." But we condone these little bad , because we got used to it. Later we overlook and get used to the rudeness that grows. Then we get used to the thefts, corruption ... There is no limit to surrender.)

I set up my tent and got inside and changed my clothes. After entering the sea, 2 people came. When they heard that the dressing cabin was paid, they started to be said among themselves. I laughed that and I said they could change it in the tent. They were hitchhiking. Their aim was to go to Antalya. I've made a few suggestions from places I've gone through. They were just started the tour. They set out from Manisa Soma.

Sunset on Cunda Island

After chilling and eating in Dikili, I left and set out for Cunda Island. I did not stop on the way. I had an angry day. I arrived in Ayvalık before evening. After getting a few things I needed in Ayvalık, I moved to Cunda (Alibey) Island. I set up my camp in the courtyard of a mosque.

Popular places such as Ayvalık and Cunda Island, which I pass by, actually have very beautiful nature. But for most of them, artificiality comes to the fore rather than naturalness. Since motels, hotels, restaurants, dense population, unnecessary lighting and so on did not match my understanding of entertainment, I enjoyed the time I spent on the road and the events I experienced on the road rather than the popular places I visited.
"While looking for freedom on the roads, we realized that the roads are freedom." (* Quote from "Nonstop Otostop")