From the Archives

Hiking the Lycian Trail – Day 24

Alakılıse – Zeytin – Belören – Demre

  • 9.2KM, mainly on rocky mountain trail, short stretch on asphalt road
  • 210m elevation gain ↗, 893m elevation loss ↘
  • altitudes from 271 to 958 meters above sea level

Our Day on the Trail

We resumed our Lycian Trail adventure today, returning to Alakilise to pick up where we left off earlier this month.

Our first stop were the ruins of Alakilise (reddish-brown church), which we saw, but didn't visit on our previous hike because it was getting too dark. The site is lovely and peaceful, and the church has many secrets to reveal to anyone who has the time to explore.

After a wander around the ruins and some breakfast, we headed down the valley leading to Demre. Black rain clouds surrounded us, but we only felt a few drops of rain. Demre and the surrounding hills were drenched, so we felt pretty lucky.

We passed through the villages of Zeytin (Olive) and Belören, and made our way past a few angry dogs, as we searched for Gavur Yolu, a "road" built during Lycian times and still in use today. It was described to us as "flat and wide" and "not like the goat paths you've been trekking so far". Truth be told, it was neither flat nor wide, and not much different from the other trails we've explored. But it got us to where we wanted to be!

We did not make the final descent to Myra due to safety concerns, but consider the day a complete success. It was great to be back on the trail again!

Photos of Today's Hike


Highlights Video