Turkey on two feet

Published May 26, 2015

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Istanbul - Halfway up a slope in Turkey, we tried to keep a close eye on Burak ahead of us. Our guide to the country’s latest outdoor challenge, the ultra-long-distance walk, Burak knew all the scratch-free ways through the scented, knee-high scrub. Besides, he had our elevenses in his backpack.

We paused to admire one of the many asphodels that emerge like a horticultural miracle from the hard, dry ground. Tall and thin, with pretty, miniature blue flowers, they grow out of big bulbs that manage to escape being eaten by porcupines. It’s the kind of thing you miss if you only visit the sun-baked Turkish beaches.

Just an hour west of the frantic holiday resort of Marmaris, we were enjoying a five-mile sampler of the Carian Trail – the latest, and the most formidable, of Turkey’s new paths, twirling and twisting around the high and narrow Loryma peninsula, near Bozburun. The total length of the trail is 500 miles, but it would require several long holidays to cover that kind of distance.

Just below us was a line of deserted coves, well out of range of the day-tripping boats from Marmaris. An enormous black bird described princely arcs over the cliffs. It was an eagle, but which one? Our bird book gave us a choice of three.

A yacht drifted out of a bay, on water like a flat, deep blue mirror. When it had gone, there was nothing on this unchanging coast to link it to the modern world.

The Roman politician and poet Cicero crossed from somewhere close to here to nearby Rhodes to practise oratory on the beach. Returning today, he would hardly see a change.

These waters are rich in history. Somewhere out there they found the Serce Limani, a Bronze Age wreck and one of the most important finds in the Mediterranean. In the cargo was tin from Afghanistan and copper and amber from Syria. It’s on show in the Underwater Museum in Bodrum.

We passed under a hill crowned with powerful fortifications. Byzantine, or Greek, or older still? These ruins stand high, haughty, and aloof. They have withstood aeons of weather and earthquake. They will still be here in the far-off future.

Turkish tourism usually calls to mind comfortable hotel holidays close to the beach, with balmy boat trips, jeep safaris and coach outings to fabulous archaeological remains. And for good reason. Visit the country in high summer and apart from early morning and late afternoon, you won’t walk far in the burning sun.

The best time is the blissful pre-dawn hour in the golden-creamy light, when the slightest countryside sound carries for miles in still, syrupy air.

The new long-distance routes allow Turkey to lure visitors in autumn, winter and spring. We sampled the Bahceli to Taslica stretch of the Carian Trail in late September, when the temperature was in the mid-20s. The regional government opened this epic route in 2013, and it meanders through south-west Turkey, often hugging the coast, linking small villages, ancient sites and olive groves, on paths and stone-paved roads. It strikes up into forests, and swoops down into quiet bays.

The trail honours the Carians, who lived here 3 000 years ago. Their high time was during the rule of Mausolus. His tomb was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

Burak was leading us over the traditional ways of local shepherds and beekeepers. We noticed red and white flashes were painted on stones, trees and any handy object every 50 yards or so, sorting out tricky changes of direction.

Walkers settle any remaining navigational doubt by building up a cairn, a pyramid of stones. It’s the tradition that applies from Snowdon to the Himalayas. We added a symbolic pebble to reinforce the message of this Stone Age GPS. Even in such a natural landscape, you see hints of human design. Where did those neat little trees with their welcome circle of shade come from? Planted by a considerate shepherd? No idea. We took a welcome break under one, as Burak shared his traveller’s picnic of nuts, dried apricots and figs.

We walked on, happy in our private timewarp, somewhere between Alexander the Great and St Paul, who was shipwrecked on such a coast as this. Then something called us back to today. We rounded a hillside, and the path turned downhill, to the first sign of life in hours – the strident, very late in the day crow of a cockerel from across the valley.

Our final stretch was over a narrow, stony path between two stone walls. Reaching a cafe in the tiny village of Taslica (it was good to see the Carian Trail motif displayed prominently in its window, alongside a map of the route), we discussed the day.

We decided that the standard ramblers’ statistics of miles or hours simply didn’t fit. Instead, we measured our section of the magnificent Carian Trail as 10,000 breaths of pure sea and herb-infused air.

For further information on the Carian Trail visit cariantrail.com. Turkey’s four other long-distance footpaths are the Lycian Way, the St Paul Trail, the Kackar Mountains Trail, and the Evliya Celebi Way. Exclusive Escapes (exclusiveescapes.co.uk, 020 8605 3500) offers a range of trekking holidays along the Carian Trail. Seven nights’ B&B with three days’ escorted trekking costs from £950pp (about R17 000), including return flights to Dalaman and transfers. A seven-day escorted group trek costs from £1 350pp on a half-board basis, including flights and transfers.

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