The Lycian way is a new initiative designed to bring independent and adventure minded tourists to Turkey. It's a long distance walk - 530 km of footpath, mule track and forest road following the coast of Lycia from Fethiye to Antalya. It follows the standards set by the French for their 'Grandes Randonnees' - of which they haveove one hundred criss crossing France - the longest more than 3000 km long. The Lycian way is signposted with green and yellow signs donated and erected by the sponsor, Garanti Bank, and waymarked in red and white flashes similar to the French Grande Randonnees.

A new recreational fashion.
But this walk is not only for foreigners - Turks from Istanbul also use it. Recently, second generation city-dwellers have re-discovered their ancestral lands; the Lycian Way marks a new recreational fashion, in imitation of European ways.. Walkers are still rare on this new route; it's possible to walk for a week without meeting a soul. The most popular section is the diversion to Mount Olympos - the physical and spiritual highpoint of the walk.

Where is Lycia?
Lycia is the mountainous bump on the south coast of Turkey, where the Taurus range plunges into the glittering Mediterranean. The Lycian Way follows Greek and Roman roads and aqueducts, traditional nomad trails and forest tracks around the coast, rising over ranges and diverting around deltas. Existing tracks have been linked up to form a 530km continuous walking route which soars along cliffs, winds through forests, pauses at deserted beaches and takes several detours inland. Old fishing villages, now tourist honeypots, such as Kemer, Kas and Kalkan offer supplies, accommodation and a break from the solitude of the trail.

The adventure heart of Turkey.
Lycia is quickly becoming the outdoor adventure heart of Turkey. In this small peninsula it's possible to exercise all your muscles and inclinations for sport - both in the air, sea and land. Today, it's the land that concerns us.
Since it's inception, the number of foreigners walking the Lycian Way has increased by leaps and bounds. The first year, one organised group walked the route. Last year for example, Exodus sent 5 groups - all sold out - and in 2002 plan 10 groups. Other firms and nationalities are also rapidly increasing their coverage. SNP, the Dutch firm, has dramatically increased departures, the French are just joining the scene, and the numbers of individual walkers are multiplying rapidly. And this is all through limited publicity on the web - www.lycianway.com - and due to extensive coverage in the UK and Dutch media. The Sunday Times alone has run 3 full pages on the Lycian Way and will run one more next week. Walking magazines such as the Dutch Op Ped love the walk and plug it as often as they can.
But also available in Lycia are:
- canyoning at Saklikent (the descent of rocky, waterfilled canyons using ropes)
- skiing at Saklikent and snowboarding all around Elmali
- mountain biking on short or long programmes on dirt tracks or more difficult trails
Initiative training
All these activities, coupled with th water borne sports of canoeing and paragliding, makes Lycia an ideal centre for initiative training courses.
These programmes are not easy to put together and even more difficult to sell. But some areas in the UK, for exaple, rely heavily on initiative courses for regular income, with firms planning courses well ahead and to demanding and well-funded standards. The more modern, well-managed Turkish firms such as the advertising agencies and banks are also beginning to adopt this exciting method of executive training.

THE FUTURE OF LONG DISTANCE WALKS IN TURKEY
A new long distance walk.
Kate Clow, the planner and instigator of the Lycian way, does not intend stopping work after just one walk. Although the Lycian Way took about three years to plan and execute, she reckons that with the exerience gained on this first-time venture, she can shorten the time required to one year. In February, she plans to start work on Turkey's second ling distance walk - St Paul's Way. This will be a walk of camparable length- about 600km - starting from Perge, near Antalya, where St Paul disembarked from Cyprus, to Antioch in Pisidia, where he first preached the gospels to the Gentiles. But the wlka will not stop at Antioch - it will circumnavigate Egirdir lake and retiurn to the coast at Aspendos. Part of the route will follow Roman roads used by St Paul and other travellers of long ago.

Sponsorship
Of course such an undertaking will only be possible with sponsorship, but with an existing long distance walk 'under her belt', Kate feels confident that sponsorship and excellent publicity will be forthcoming, and that theproject will be a major new tourism attraction for Turkey. "This area is just as beautiful as Lycia,' she says 'and the route will pass through several National Parks. We expect the active cooperation of the Forestry Ministry in these areas. It also passes near the new Ski Lodge at Davras, thus bringing potential customers to an area much in need of promotion. And finally, it passes three major peaks, all with wonderful trekking and climbing opportunities.'

The world view
Long distance walks are a major attraction in many countries - New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, America, France, to name but a few. These countries make a sustantial part of their tourist income from trekkers, and provide them with services - transport to remote starting points, accommodation while on the trail, equipment purchase and hire - which supplement their national incomes. In some countries, access to popular walks is restricted to prevent damage to the terrain, and there are queues of people waiting to walk. Turkey is a long way from that state, but the attractions of Turkey's scenery, history and mountains could one day move her into that league.

Obstacles and overcoming them
The main obstacle in Turkey is the lack of detailed walking maps. Existing maps are trhe property of the Military and are kept a closely guarded secret. But this barrier may be broken down by access to the European Union. All else is a matter of time and education. Kate is convinced that soon her routes will be supported by an infrastructure of village houses providing accommodation and food for walkers. (Tim Salmon, the Sunday Times journalist, was astonished at the lack of a network of village tavernas, such as exists in Greece) On the Lycian Way, the first village houses will offer accommodation for trekkers this year.

Benefits
A network of walking routes throughout Turkey will have major benefits:
- it will bring visitors into contact with local people and give them an insight into village life and customs, before they eventually disappear.
- It will encourage the conservation of older routes - mule trails, migration routes, Roman roads - and thus of access to remote countryside
- It makes it possible for visitors to watch birds and see plants and to encourage the conservation of their habitats.
- Providing accommodation and supplies will give a secure supplement to the income of remote villages.
- Especially the St Paul's Route will provide an interface between two religions, leading to mutual understanding.
Kate describes a meeting between a small group of trekkers and a shepherd named Mehmet. Mehmet supplied the weary trekkers with tea and gozleme, then said 'I am named for the Prophet, tell me their names.' After introductions and comic attempts to pronounce the names, he asked 'Are these names taken from your prophets?' We explaind that some were; for example, David was equivalent to Daud. Mehmet liked the idea that the visitors shared his prophets too; David was also amazed and intrigued. The other trekkers asked about his life in the hills; Mehmet explained the migration, the problems of educating his children and how the land was owned and apportioned. One of the visitors, a farmer named John, examined Mehmet's sheep and a lively comparison of sheep rearing in Wales and in Turkey followed. The group left with a genuine insight into rural life in Turkey, and a real barrier between Islam and Christianity was completely broken down.
In the wake of the blow to the mutual understanding of the west and east, which took place in New York in September, we owe it to ourselves to take every opportunity to re-establish the confidence of the west in our beautiful country. Trekking tourism is an easy and productive way to do this.

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