Dalyan River and Ancient Kaunos

On 23 September we were back to being just the two of us on board, which felt a little strange, but we had little time to think about that as we had to click straight into tourist mode. The cruise in company group split into 2 groups with the first group visiting Uzumulu, Cadianda and Fethiye, whilst we went for a trip along the Dalyan river to see ancient Kaunos.

The small coach whisked us off to Dalyan where I expected there to be a small sleepy town and a handful of boats running trips up the river. The reality was a bustling waterfront filled with tavernas, tourist shops and hundreds of boats running trips on the river. We asked our boat driver later how many boats there were and he told us there are a staggering 500. Tourism is clearly big business here.

Once we on board our boat, however, we quickly left the hustle and bustle of Dalyan behind us as we motored through the reed beds on the river. Our guide told us that this was one of the fastest tourist boats on the river which prompted the driver to speed up. He'd certainly got a powerful engine hidden under the deck and we surged forward at quite a speed with a huge rooster tail of spray kicked up behind us.

As a result we got to the vantage points for seeing the Lycian tombs carved into the cliffs above us in next to no time.

They certainly are spectacular. We were told that the more ornate tombs were, as you would expect, for the wealthy families.

However, we were also told that the tombs were carved by a mixture of slaves and volunteers and that if any volunteers died whilst carving a tomb then their remains were allowed to be left in smaller plain hole tombs lower down in the cliffs.

Satisfied that we had seen the first of the sights our guide suggested that we might want to enjoy a long ride out on the boat to the entrance to the river where we could swim in the sea. He was a little confused when we showed little enthusiasm for that and we never really managed to get him to understand that being on a boat and swimming off it was regular business for us. We were much more interested in getting to see ancient Kaunos and so that was put as our top priority. Our driver duly fire-walled the throttle and got us there in double quick time leaving our confused guide even more perplexed as to how he was going to fill up our time on the boat as we didn't want to go swimming in the sea.

Fish pens; fish farming is apparently the major activity here outside of the tourist season    

The route up to Kaunas is very pretty with a criss-cross of routes through the rushes and past fish pens. We passed several tourist boats like ours but also ones with families living on board tucked into the reeds. Despite the speed of our tourist boat the driver was careful not to swamp any other craft and he slowed right down to pass them.

On the odd occasion there was a head to head in a channel only wide enough for our boat. There didn't seem to be any logic to it but the drivers knew which boat had to to back up and make space.

Ancient Kaunos

It was a little bit of a surprise when the boat pulled up to a small wooden quay and we clambered out because there was not much sign of an ancient city. Ten minutes later, however, after walking along a path now submerged because of the recent heavy rain, we could see ruins on the hill top. We got our entrance tickets, had a brief from our guide and then were let loose to roam around.

We were up against it on time though because our guide only gave us an hour before we had to be back on the boat. In hindsight we wish we'd asked for double that because the site deserved it but we went on his recommendation and set off.

We quickly realised how much there was to see and so hot footed it up to the theatre.

View down to the Ancient Kaunos archaeological site    

View out to sea across the Dalyan River    

From the top of the theatre there was a path leading up to the summit of the hill and the ruined fortifications there. We raced upwards and were rewarded with spectacular views down onto the archaeological site, the river and Dalyan town.

View towards Dalyan town

Our route down was a little slower because we stopped to briefly chat to some of our fellow cruisers also making the climb up but fairly quickly we were back down at the theatre.

From the theatre we were able to make our way to the ruins of the Roman baths, a basilica and the agora.

There were also the ruins of a housing quarter which we missed because of the lack of time but, on balance, we covered as much of the site as we could have done in the hour we were allocated.

Back on board the boat we finally got the team back together and were able to move on. The guide was keen to show us some of the more peaceful spots on the river and we picked our way slowly through them with classical music playing quietly on the sound system. With the engine switched off it was very tranquil which was delightful. We saw a variety of birds including several vibrant blue kingfishers. They moved so quickly that there was no chance of catching a picture of them.

In contrast I thought I would be able to get a good picture of the turtles when we got to that bit of the river but my camera seemed to be some sort of turtle repelling device. Whenever it was ready to take a shot the turtles were nowhere to be seen. Once back in its case, however, the turtles popped up and swam around freely just a few yards from our boat.

Instead of a photo of the turtles I settled for a photo of a blue crab. We had a cooked one to eat which had turned bright orange. These blue crabs only live in 3 places in the world but thrive here so we had no issues with eating one. The flesh is very sweet and tasty even if getting to it is a little fiddly.

The crab proved to be an appetiser and the next stop was at a taverna for lunch. We tucked into a tasty mezze followed by grilled meat, rice and salad. Accompanied by a cool beer this seemed to hit the spot and get us ready for a visit to the mud baths.

Volcanic ash deposits provided the mud and we provided the, initially slightly reluctant, enthusiasm to smear it all over us, despite the mud bath information assuring us all that it was incredibly good for us. I think a latent kindergarten instinct took over and before long we were all covered in the stuff. After a long shower we judged we were clean enough to spend the rest of the time bobbing around in the hot spring.

Back on board our river boat we finished our tour with time sent in the more remote areas of the river drifting amongst the reeds and watching the wild life. It was very peaceful.

The other team’s bogged- down coach   

The drive back to Göçek was a bit of a drag but nothing like the hassle the first group had. The last location that they had visited was high up in the mountains and the dirt road had been softened so much by the recent heavy rain that the coach got completely bogged in. As we drove back we got regular updates learning that not only did the first rescue tractor get bogged in but the second one did too. Fortunately, they managed to get the second tractor out and, between them, they rebuilt the hole in the road with rocks and stones which gave the coach just enough traction to get free too. Our fellow sailors arrived back at the marina several hours late and completely covered in mud. They were shattered after their road repair exploits and so everyone made their own arrangements for dinner. We ate on board but also enjoyed an evening wander around Göçek town.

Throughout the evening there was much discussion amongst the team about the next leg of our cruise. We had 2 days to get to Kaş but there was little, if any wind forecast. No-one wanted to motor the whole 55 miles to Kaş and so we hatched a plan to move on 15 miles to Gemiler Adasi in the hope that the hint of wind for the following day would develop into something that we could use to sail the balance of the journey.

Göçek, Turkey