Ok. The Lycian Way is not in Istanbul.
But having written a blog recently about longer walks outside Istanbul; and another about my favourite shorter walk, I thought I should record the fact that, amongst the many wonders of Turkey we should include the splendid Lycian Way.
I walked the first 40 km of the Lycian Way in April. The stages were divided, roughly, into: Fethiye (Kayaköy) to Ölüdeniz; Ovacık to Faralya; Faralya to Kabak; and Kabak to Sidyma. It was wonderful. The scenery is spectacular; the walking enjoyable; the overnight stays sublime.
If you fancy the Lycian Way, I recommend it. You needn’t be a hiking demon, although some degree of fitness helps. Nor do you need masses of equipment: a good pair of boots; sun protection; and a rucksack to carry water, food and emergency bits and pieces (lighter, warm clothes, torch, whistle etc) is about it.
The main decision you have to take is whether to walk without help, or to employ a company which will organise overnight accommodation; carry luggage from one overnight stay to the next; provide you with a GPS with the route marked on it, and so on. I did the latter and found it brilliant, especially the GPS which made it harder to get lost. But I saw other walkers on the route loaded with gear including tents and cooking stoves. The choice is yours.
I could give more tips; but would instead encourage you to have a look at the fine book by Kate Clow. Kate Clow is a British writer who came up with the idea of the Lycian Way as a long-distance walking footpath. Brilliant initiative, if you ask me.
Final tip: don’t rush it. I enjoyed stopping e.g. Faralya, Kayaköy or Kabak to enjoy local hospitality; or at Ölüdeniz or the remote Aktaş beach to take a dip in the sea before continuing the day’s walk. Magnificent.
That’s it. Enjoy.
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