Sertavul to Yapinti – 9th October
Distance: 28.3 km – Elevation +130 m -1280 m
Weather: Sunny. Temperature: High 33 degrees
Ĺast nights hotel was clean and comfortable and cost 80TL (£11). I slept well and left before breakfast at 7.30 am. It was a cold morning with a brisk wind giving a distinctly autumnal feel, a 3 layer start to the day but by 10 am summer had returned, the wind had dropped, and temperatures rose to reach 30 degrees.
Whilst yesterday was up, up and up, today was down, down and down. The first 10 kilometres were flat walking followed by a continuing descent for the next 18 kilometres with an elevation loss of 4000 feet. The Sertavul pass is the main route through the Taurus mountains. I know many walkers prefer inland tracks but on days like today I find the open road liberating, and as I walked in the crisp morning air I thought of the armies, the Roman legions, the Crusaders, the Mongol hordes, travellers, pilgrims, and nomads who would have passed through here on their way, as I was, to the Mediterranean and then perhaps on to the Levant and the Holy Lands.
There was a distinct change to the panorama of yesterday, the landscape was more beautiful and spectacular, the rugged limestone hills clad with conifers, junipers, dwarf oak and small shrubs, with views stretching across the valley of the Göksu River to the distant brooding Western Taurus Mountains. I have crossed a few mountain ranges on my journey from Canterbury but for me, the Taurus Mountains are the most magical and inspirational.
In ancient times this was wild Isauria and the now near-extinct leopard would have roamed, mountain goats and wild boar are found in the more remote mountains, and bears and wolves venture down during the winter months in search of food. Fortunately, although I would have loved to have seen the ibex or mouflon, the only wild creature I encountered was a red squirrel.
I had a few offers of lifts, as usual, one from a young Turkish family on their way to Mut. The mother had a beautiful baby in her arms, she spoke very good English and when I thanked them for their offer and said I wanted to walk she said, almost pleading ” please come with us so that we can talk”, I always feel a little sad when refusing such kindness, but more so this time because they were lovely and I would have enjoyed talking to them.
Like yesterday the road was mostly empty of traffic and the mountains were very quiet, there was a certain peace and stillness, walking became effortless, I was almost floating. Before I started walking from Canterbury I had been introduced to the writings of the Irish poet and philosopher John O’Donohue. A collection of his writings and interviews can be found in “Walking on the Pastures of Wonder” where his words on mountains seemed to echo in my thoughts as I walked :
“I love mountains. I feel that mountains are huge contemplatives. They are there and they are in the presence up to their necks and they are still in it and with it and within it. One of the lovely ways to pray is to take your body out into a landscape and to be still in it. Your body is made out of clay, so your body is actually a miniature landscape that has got up from under the earth and is now walking on the normal landscape. If you go out for several hours into a place that is wild, your mind begins to slow down, down, down. What is happening is that the clay of your body is retrieving its own sense of sisterhood with the great clay of the landscape.”
Just before the village of Geçimli, I came to a large deserted recreation and rest area where I found water fountains enabling me to fill my water bottles. From the recreation area, I could see a large overhanging rock, full of man-made and eroded caves, an extraordinary sight. This area was a late Roman period Christian complex which included the Alahan Monastery, the rock-cut Alaoda Church and the rock-cut Alahan cemetery. The whole complex is thought to have been an early Christian pilgrimage location. Perhaps the caves were cells for visiting pilgrims. It was quite remarkable.
The Alahan Monastery is situated at an elevation 300 metres above the road and is built on a rocky outcrop. It is approached via a twisting track, its location is breathtaking. Architectural historian, George Forsyth Jr. visited the site in 1952 and wrote “One of the unforgettable moments of my trip was that which I experienced when, after clambering up pine clad slopes, I first saw this famous church glowing with tawny warmth in the morning sun and beckoning me. Its situation, high on the shoulder of a mountain, is magnificent, and the monastic group clings to the rocky contours, giving the impression of a Christian Delphi”
It was such a beautiful and peaceful location, and after exploring, I sat and lingered a while looking out across the beauty of the fertile plains below and my thoughts turned to the birth of Christianity and to Paul the Apostle who did so much to spread the words of love, words which no doubt were instrumental in bringing Christianity and this monastery to Alahan.
Back on the road and continuing the descent I passed the Alahan Cami and came to a small roadside tea house where I was able to take refreshments and chat with the village elders. There is no doubt I will miss the tea houses of Turkey, I feel so comfortable now when I enter and the tea and company are always refreshing. I passed by a large spacious timber yard where the guard dogs, sleeping in the heat of the midday sun, seemed oblivious of my presence. By the time I reached the village of Burunkoy I had been walking downhill for almost 14 kilometres and my legs were beginning to feel distinctly rubbery, I wasn’t sure I would make the whole distance to Mut – I was struggling.
Fortunately, after walking another 5 kilometres and 8 kilometres from Mut, I came to the village of Yapinti, and it was there that I surprisingly found a roadside service area including the Neslihan Hotel where I found a bed for the night.
The hotel was another comfortable clean low-cost hotel. There was a restaurant close by and for supper. The restaurant and hotel were run by the same family and although I was the only guest, the mother was happy to prepare an evening meal for me, a delicious potato soup followed by a chicken casserole which I enjoyed on the terrace as the sun began to set. It had been a gloriously beautiful and moving day in the Taurus Mountains with spectacular views across the Göksu River, added to which was the highlight of the day, the Alahan Christian complex.
