coasttocoast.sitemynet.com

We wake up at 05.20 have some kind of breakfast and start at 06.30. On the the bridge over Aksu we take a few groupsphotos one with me missing the second with Anil absent.
One over the bridge we come on a rather new highway running from Isparta towards the coast near Antalya. İt is a very wide road, with at this time not too much traffic.
We see a sign of a lokanta / petrolstation that is about 8 kilometer away. At 08.35 we have breakfast in the lokanta in Çamlık. There are many things to eat written on the window but most are not available, they say: 'too early' but more likely it is always too early!
They have lentil soup and some of the boys take a fried egg of some kind.
The owner tells us that the next 40 kilometer there is nothing to find along this road so he gives us fresh bread.
On the other side of the street is a fruit stand and Anil has to buy something for Rado, who in the end thinks that it is too expensive. In the next stand we buy for the same price all kind of fruit because there is a great chance that we don't see a next one again.
It becomes very hot and we use a lot of water. At one of the hour stops we just arrive near a junction with a village road. Here is a nice sitting place with a roof and deep, dark shadow and a well with ice cold water. An old man sits here and welcomes us. For me this is the site to wait for cooler times and I take of my shoes and lay down a bit.
The boys who always want to stop want now to continue..
We are 'very democratic' and have a vote. My plan has a minority of votes and I bind the boots back on my feet.
We walk in a long line along the road and at some point I get the spirit and walk fast from the back of the line towards the point-man who is as always Douwe. After some kilometers we pass a farm and are stopped by the farmer they give us some strange cucumbers and some tomatoes. The group closes in and more watery vitamins are brought up by this family.
With bags full with cucumbers and tomatoes we walk on. We come near a place with pine trees at the foot of a hill. Here we rest for more then a hour. We eat and sleep a bit. Treatments of Sevgi's blisters takes place here.
After the break we walk up hill. This however much more uphill then expected and becomes a long 2.5 kilometer straight up. It is very hot and traffic is climbing slowly next to us uphill spraying us with their exhaust fumes. We drink all our water in that short stretch of road. Finally on top there is a place in the shadow of the rock side where we sit and wait for the last to arrive, the overheated Sevgi. On the other side we go down again and soon see a place where a fruit seller stands and a spring with cold water. Life is for a moment better again.
We walk a few kilometers on and come near a small lake. Here the water looks very attractive and we make camp on the shore of the lake. After building the tents we swim and sit on a floating terrace.
The evening is nice, we eat our makarna with tuna-fish and go to bed after dark.
==============================================
statistics
from the starting-point = 411 km
to the end = point = 60.3 km
walked today = 21.5 km
total km = 480.1 km
group-members 7
==============================================

Day 26, June 26, Saturday, very warm

36 306809 - 4138689 - KARAÖZ

Although woken up at 04.30 we rise at 05.00. The reason for this is that it was still dark outside.
We have a late start thanks to Sevgi who is folding her clothes as if they have go in the wardrobe.
We walk towards the Gölbase Restaurant, a good 7.6 kilometer away. The mood of Sevgi goes steep down hill. She walks at the end of the long queue that we form. We don't have a stop be fore we reach the restaurant. When we come in she is a bit angry and sits and eats alone.
After this breakfast we climb the road towards a long tunnel. This tunnel has a length of 580 meter and very dark inside. The general expectation is that we will not survive this tunnel. The preparations are that my army lamp is attached to my backpack and with the red filter in it. So the cars might see the end-man (me). We walk close to the wall and close to each other and reach the other side safely without being smashed to pieces.
What follows is a 2900 meter long way down, though a valley with steep walls. We have a rest at the bottom near a well. An easy walk of a few kilometers brings us to Ortaköy. On the way we pass the sign that tells us that we are in the Antalya province. Here the mood of Segvi shows as she refuses to be photographed with us. She says she is an "Individual" on the same way as we are.
We end up in an empty restaurant and sit under the sun-cover, drinking very cold beer and eating our lunch that we buy here in the shop of the same restaurant. It is very, very warm and we are lying down on our camping mats and drink more beer. Knowing that the beer will break us up doesn't make any difference!
There are no other customers in the place and the owners don't really mind what we do.
At 17.00 we leave the place and walk one hour. Water finished soon and as we pass them fruit-sellers give us some free peaches. We stop at one of these places and buy a large watermelon. We eat this big thing behind the 'shop' and sit on a plastic carpet with cold streaming water next to us.
We continue to walk and come in a more occupied area. There are houses and petrol-stations next to the road.
As it gets dark we try to find a place to camp next to an 'Efes' sign, but the place is closed for ever. We end up in a field next to a farmhouse in Karaöz. We ask of course to stay on their field and they give the permission. The field is again a cornfield with sharp 'stick'-like shafts. They penetrated the tent's bottom again, but by now it doesn't matter anymore!
A neighbor comes to visit us and he explains how we have to walk along a DSI channel towards Perge.
We sleep after a dinner in the dark. I Wash myself behind an irrigation channel. The night is damp but we sleep well.
===============================================
Statistics
from starting point = 435 km
to end point = 38.5 km
walked today = 26.9 km
total = 507 km
group members = 7
===============================================