We had a nice night at anchor.  Then next morning we decided to head to the outer bay and have lunch along with a tour of the castle on top of the small hill.  Lunch was at Hasan Roma, just starting to open the place for the season.  As we pulled up to the small quay the owners assisted with our dingy.  We had the pick of tables – being the only customers.  Menu is limited now but Pat had a very nice sea bass (breem) and I had shrimp ( not local but still good).  After lunch we weaved our way up through the tiny town, along the path (goat path) to the entrance to the small castle.  Fending off the local women trying to sell beads and parasols.  Nice people just trying to make a living and they are polite when you say no thanks.

As we entered the castle the staff realized we came up the “back way” and called to us to pay the 8 New Turkish Lira fee per person.  Really high price for very little to see but it’s a tourist place after all.  The view from the top is great however so no complaints.

Back down to the restaurant and into the dingy for a run into the “town” in the inner bay to get some supplies.  We squeezed our way between two small fishing boats and tied to the quay.  Once in the small town we were amazed at the huge number of tour busses in the small square.  It seems the Lycian Way tours stop here and transfer people onto small tour boats to take a hour tour of the ruins.  Most of these are sarcophagi (tombs above ground).  The sunken city is really just an old waterfront along the island that had its stones taken by later inhabitants to build their houses further inland.  Typical of old times.   

In town there is not much except a few restaurants, small chandler/hardware store but a fairly well stocked market store for food and other supplies.  It is about the only place that will take a credit card.  None of the restaurants will, cash is King – Lira, Euros, Dollars.  Didn’t try Swiss Francs.  No cash machines in the town.

The next day on our way back over to have lunch we spotted “Pipe Dream” coming into the inner bay.  We met Wayne in Amalfi Italy last year and his daughter Katie in Mykonos Greece.  They kept their boat this past winter in Kemer Turkey and had just left the marina heading west.  We by chance were heading east and we both thought this was a good safe harbor to stay a few days.  We motored over in our dingy and they of course thought we were locals trying to sell something at first.  The same thought we would have!

They anchored near us and we continued to our lunch of a local big fat lobster.  Again the only clients in the place.  Lobster was fantastic.

Wayne and Katie came over for a drink or two that evening and the next day we dingied over to another restaurant for lunch.  Very nice people (She is a British expat and he is a local) and they could wash our laundry for a reasonable fee, had free internet, book exchange, and a lounge with TV.  Didn’t use it all but she handled two loads of bath towels for us.  Very nice.

Now the winds started so back to the boats as it built close to 30 knots.  My philosophy is anchor chain is no good in the locker so I let out more till 60 meters was out.  I was going to sleep very well that night.

Howling winds, not the worse by any means, but still something to watch.  Next day started out dead calm, so the kayak came out and I paddled around the inner bay.  Met a nice British couple on their boat and chatted about anchoring, various harbors, kayaks and other boater stuff.  We all agreed that this was a great place to anchor and that the weather will be very windy for the next few days.

However we a getting ready to move again and will check out the weather again and again to find a window to get going back west and out of this area that can remain windy for days.

Castle between the inner and outer bays.

View from the castle south over the outer bay.  Restaurant quays jut out from the shore.  Very shallow but  they add additional floating docks later in the season, but still not much depth.  Also one of the many tour boats heading to the left full of Germans, French, Turkish or whoever.  They must get 400-600 people per day on tour busses.  Every few minutes another tour boat passes by.

Just like the Sirens in the Odyssey the locals women hail and call to the boats to come to their quay and have lunch.  She is actually very expert in mooring boats having done it for many years.  I have no idea of the meaning of the hands signals but she has a very good, almost dance like wave.  That’s our dingy to the left in less than a meter of water.

Here is the place to ourselves.  Inside is full of people caps, flags, pictures, lobsters, scorpions and small animal pelts.  All tastefully tacked to the walls and ceiling.  Yes there are scorpions but I have not seen one alive in Turkey.  Probably because Göcek has many chickens that view them as a good meal.

Goats along the path up to the castle.  Nice goats.

Part of the sunken city