Feres to Kipi Border to Ipsala – August 22nd
Distance: 24.4 km – Elevation +110 m -150 m
Weather: Sunny. Temperature: High 28 degrees
My accommodation last night was in the comfortable and clean Hotel Anthi. I had arranged yesterday to walk with Jean and Marie to the Turkish border and we started walking at 6.30 am just as dawn was breaking. The route out of Feres followed farm tracks which at first ran parallel with a railway track and later with an irrigation canal. On the way we found two stray dogs stuck in a water-filled well and unable to get out, Marie managed to squeeze into a position where she could grab their necks and haul them out and the two very relieved dogs ran off after shaking their very wet coats.
Jean and Marie’s walking pace was much faster than mine and it wasn’t long before we reached the village of Vrisoula where we connected with the asphalt road for the last 6 kilometre stretch to the border crossing.
Just before the crossing we stopped for coffee in a cafe at the last filling station before the border and caught up with Tom from Pennsylvania who I had met yesterday on my way to Feres and after we all walked to the border crossing.
As I had expected we were not allowed to walk between the Greek and Turkey border posts, a distance of 500 metres because Turkey has classified it as a military zone! So we had to ask car drivers if they would take us across, most refused, Jean and Marie were the first to succeed and after a quick exchange of contact details we said our goodbyes. They were in any event taking a different route through Turkey to the one I had chosen. I was left with Tom together with his cart and his dog Savanna. After many unsuccessful attempts I approached a camper van with a young Belgium woman driver, Maud, who fortunately spoke perfect English and with a beautiful smile she said “yes” and was only too happy to take both of us across, a delightful young woman. Tom and Maud did not have the required visa to enter Turkey, I did have a visa and the border guard let us through but held my passport until both Tom and Maud had paid and acquired their visas from the border office. The total process of arriving at the border and being free to continue on through Turkey had taken 5 hours!
After the border, Maud who was touring Turkey in her camper van said goodbye and said she may be in Istanbul in 10 days from now which is where Tom and I were heading. I walked with Tom to the outskirts of Ipsala where we found a basic hotel and arranged to stay for a first night in Turkey.
