The Lycians

Mystic of Holyhead (successor to Lynn Rival)
Rachel and Paul Chandler
Wed 26 Sep 2007 18:53
We've had a busy 10 days. Luckily the
weather has been glorious, with
warm days and cool nights.

Bob arrived at midnight on the Sunday
before last. After a bit of a lie-in
the next day he started work on the
insurance survey, not quite turning
the inside of the boat upside down while
he checked for problems. On the Tuesday
Lynn Rival was
lifted out for a few hours and Bob
took his hammer and moisture meter to
the bottom of the hull. The
worried owners looked on.

After finishing we spent the
evening with Peggie and Michael
Manton, who run the Mediterranean
Section of the Cruising Association.
At 11pm Paul left to drive to Antalya to
collect Lynda, getting back
about 3.30am, just before the Ramadan
gun (which signals the start of the
daily fast and wakes everyone up!).

Part of the deal with Bob was that he
would have a couple of days sail
with us before returning home so on
Wednesday we set off for Kekova.
We were lucky with the weather and had
sufficient wind to beat all the
way there but not too much.
We anchored in the inland sea there
and had swims before going ashore in the
dinghy for supper. Both Bob
and Lynda were very impressed with what
an idyllic place it is,
especially out of high season. We had a
really good meal and the
restaurant delivered us complimentary
bread in the morning.

The next day we had to motor most of the
way back to Finike and, after
drinks and supper with some others from
the marina, Bob left for the
airport.

We had saved our sight-seeing for
Lynda's arrival and for the last few
days have been touring the sights of
ancient Lycia and seeing some of
the countryside. We took a bus to
Arykanda, one of the less touristy
but more enchanting ancient sites, and
had the place almost to
ourselves. Another day we hired a car
and drove in
search of the castle at
Dereagzi, strategically positioned on a
hill at the confluence of two
rivers and at the entrance to a long gorge
leading to the sea. The guide
book said it was a 20 minute walk up a
path to the castle but the path was not
to be found. Paul and Lynda
did a bit of
mountaineering, almost getting lost and
exhausting themselves in the
process. Rachel took a more cautious
approach working her way around
the hillside and ended up being rounded
up by a couple of (not very
mean) sheep dogs. In the end we
contented ourselves with a drive down
the gorge, passing through a number of
marble quarries in wonderful scenery.

Another day we went to the Olympos
valley, which is very touristy but
perhaps a "must do" with not a lot of
ruins to see but a lovely walk
through the overgrown ancient site and
ending up at the sea. In the
afternoon (!) we went to the Chimaera,
which involved a 20 minute climb
uphill, but was well worth the effort.
The surrounding area is peaceful and
undeveloped, and the flames coming out of
the ground are fascinating to see.

Yesterday we got up early and drove to
Xanthos, stopping for breakfast
at Kas. We beat the tourist buses and
had a pleasant hour traipsing
around the ruins, which include some
interesting rock tombs and
sarchophagi, before the hoards arrived.
We then drove through the mountains,
enjoying the beautiful scenery and
stopping at a couple of towns for
refreshment and shopping before heading
back to Finike, exhausted.

Lynda left today and we are now getting
ready for the start of the Vasco da Gama
Rally on Saturday.