Day 13 - Kaş
It was tough going from Butterfly Valley to get to Kaş, there were a couple more mountains to climb and, according to locals, very unusually strong winds, unfortunately they were not blowing in my direction. Every time I tried to stand up and push, I was knocked back into my seat. We were delayed leaving Butterfly Valley for the same reason; we couldn't risk climbing the cliffs with such high winds, even the shuttle boats to Ölüdeniz weren't running. A perfect place for an Agatha Christie mystery.
Consequently, I wasn't able to do the 120 km ride to Kaş in one go, we stopped in Eşen for the night, a very rural village on the way to Kaş, we figured we could stay in a hotel there. Nope, no hotels.
We asked the restaurant owner and we couldn't understand a word he said - he had a mousey voice and spoke exceedingly fast. He brought us to the roof of his house motioned for us to set up the tent. It wasn't too bad until about 4 in the morning when I heard a loud clap of thunder and several flashes of lightning. This would have been okay except for all of the metal wires sticking out of the roof, and the fact that the tent was about a foot away from the house's power line connection.
We abandoned the tent and slept in the car (lucky to have had it).
The next day, the ride to Kaş was almost entirely on a pure blue coast.
One of the blue beaches along the road. And one of the most famous in Turkey: Kaputas.
Kaş is the center of diving in Turkey with about 60 diving schools. Of course the campgrounds we stayed at had a diving attaché and we agreed to go with the instructor, Adna. Although he prefers free diving (without an air tank) he is an instructor for both forms.
Although I was intrigued by
free diving due to the breathing exercises that one must do to dive, they reminded me of many of the exercises I use for the clarinet.
Free diving breathing guide.
But we opted for the more popular route, regular scuba diving, which neither of us have done before.
There's certainly a learning curve and a reason why you need to have a license to do out unassisted. But we practiced removing and replacing the breathing apparatus (although Mylène held onto her's vehemently the entire time) and changing levels. The water was very clear and we saw a lot of small-medium sized fish. But the experience of diving itself was quite different and overwhelming at first.
Playing around while diving.
I relaxed quite a bit and managed to nap both days. There is a mountain to cross directly out of Kaş, my legs need to be ready!
Consequently, I wasn't able to do the 120 km ride to Kaş in one go, we stopped in Eşen for the night, a very rural village on the way to Kaş, we figured we could stay in a hotel there. Nope, no hotels.
We asked the restaurant owner and we couldn't understand a word he said - he had a mousey voice and spoke exceedingly fast. He brought us to the roof of his house motioned for us to set up the tent. It wasn't too bad until about 4 in the morning when I heard a loud clap of thunder and several flashes of lightning. This would have been okay except for all of the metal wires sticking out of the roof, and the fact that the tent was about a foot away from the house's power line connection.
We abandoned the tent and slept in the car (lucky to have had it).
The next day, the ride to Kaş was almost entirely on a pure blue coast.
One of the blue beaches along the road. And one of the most famous in Turkey: Kaputas.
Kaş is the center of diving in Turkey with about 60 diving schools. Of course the campgrounds we stayed at had a diving attaché and we agreed to go with the instructor, Adna. Although he prefers free diving (without an air tank) he is an instructor for both forms.
Although I was intrigued by
free diving due to the breathing exercises that one must do to dive, they reminded me of many of the exercises I use for the clarinet.
Free diving breathing guide.
But we opted for the more popular route, regular scuba diving, which neither of us have done before.
There's certainly a learning curve and a reason why you need to have a license to do out unassisted. But we practiced removing and replacing the breathing apparatus (although Mylène held onto her's vehemently the entire time) and changing levels. The water was very clear and we saw a lot of small-medium sized fish. But the experience of diving itself was quite different and overwhelming at first.
Playing around while diving.
I relaxed quite a bit and managed to nap both days. There is a mountain to cross directly out of Kaş, my legs need to be ready!
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