Trekking In Turkey: Long Distance Paths

Even though the waymarking was excellent in general, there were a couple of places where I ran into problems.

1. Hiking uphill from the valley towards Hadada, after a certain point going upwards after 1716J I was not able to find the waymarks. There were two clear waymarks followed by a rock on which “Caracan Hotel” and the hotel’s telephone number were painted. After that point there was only scrub and juniper and after having searched both high and low I considered the option to give up and turn back or instead to climb the rather steep stream bed below the marked trail. I chose to follow the stream bed which was tough going, climbing over boulders most of the way, but in the end I joined the marked track, around 1723 I believe, close to the Hadada entry on the top of the hill.
2. The waymarks on the tractor track after Cükür in direction towards Yesildere seem to have been removed due to extensive tree cutting along the track. Leaving Cükür one has to stay on the tractor track for longer than expected when reading the book. The junction with the small track descending steeply towards Yesildere on the left side of the tractor track is clearly marked and one should keep going on the tractor track until reaching that waymark which is at a right bend on the track. After the spring at 1553W there is a forest track on the left joining the tractor track and one should avoid taking that…I took it because I found that it matched the description in the book but luckily I discovered my mistake rather quickly and returned to the tractor track.
3. Egirdir-Bedre – I didn’t find any waymarks leading towards the deserted railway station from where the railroad tracks cross the Barla road. Instead I had to use the GPS to find the railway station waypoint 3401-RRSTN. If I hadn’t had a GPS I may have had trouble finding the station but if one continues uphill through the dense vegetation one will eventually cross the railroad tracks. By the way, walking along the railroad tracks was a fine experience….I felt like someone in a Sergio Leone western ).

Soren