Follow the river [still no internet]

Holidays without internet - but who cares in such a setting  

The Akkopru Ottoman bridge 
Photo by https://branding.goturkiye.com/adana

Still on holiday at Pozanti we explore the valley northwards to see the restored Roman / Ottoman bridge at Akköprü. Right by this bridge is the excellent Sekerpinar Restoran. At a table under the trees, with the River Chakit running swiftly by, it's an ideal spot for a leisurely meal [although no siesta here]. 

Belemedik holiday Park
Photo by Samba Turizm

On another day we explore southwards from Pozanti to Belemedik, a well hidden holiday village. To get there we follow the only way into the valley, on a narrow road by the fast flowing Chakit River. There is a single track railway line close to the road. 

You can enjoy lazing in the park, exploring the wild countryside in the valley by the river, or a walk along the single track line to the picturesque old railway station. 

A little further south is the Varda viaduct, built by German engineers at the beginning of the 20th century. That's where they shot the train fight scene from the James Bond film: Skyfall.

Varda Viaduct
Photo  courtesy of Wikipedia

The Taurus Mountains are a formidable barrier across the south-eastern part of Turkey.  With peaks rising to over three thousand metres, the main pass through them since ancient times has been the Cilician Gates. This was a mule track not even wide enough for wheeled vehicles. To cross between north and south, it was the only route; taken by Hittites, Greeks, Alexander the Great, Saint Paul of Tarsus, Hadrian, Byzantines, Crusaders, Mongols, and Ottomans under Selim the Grim.

To improve communications, German engineers dug, blasted tunnels and built viaducts to create a railway line at the beginning of the 20th century. 

In order to improve transport for the modern era a huge programme of road building was carried out. Now a motorway runs along this route, the E90 Tarsus-Adana Highway. The area of the Cilician Gates is called the Gullek Pass. An engineering feat as impressive as the mighty peaks all round. 

In summer

and in winter
photos by Eski Said

And the old road through the Pass

Ramsay, W. M. “Cilicia, Tarsus, and the Great Taurus Pass.” 1903, pp. 395.

 The River Chakit at Belemedik Nature Village [before it is harnessed into a hydro-electric plant further downstream]