We found that it was impossible to get a firm idea of a good price as the boatman come round as soon as you are anchored to try to organise a full trip and quote whatever price they think you'll bear. Different prices to different people in the same trip-boat. Instead we went to the tiny office and did our own deal of 110Euros for an all day trip for ourselves and two Americans (Kent, Carol & their dog Jolie) who we roped in.
We were picked up promptly at 0900 by a nice young man called Mehmet. It took about 1/2 hour of open sea to the river mouth and then over a very shallow sand bar 1M). The delta is a salt marsh with a maze of reed islands interwoven by channels - some deep, some shallow and many dead-ends. Heikel suggests that it is possible to take a shallow draft boat up the river. I wouldn't advise it. Apart from the rumoured hostility of the local boat skippers, we would have been hopelessly lost in no time. Coming out, the afternoon swell sets up breakers on the bar with the troughs almost drying. The hire boat was a good choice!
We stopped for 10 minutes to watch the locals feeding the turtles. They do this to earn a few Lira from the tourists when they're not fishing for blue crab which are abundant in the river.
After an hour of maze of reed islands, the main channel came together. First we went through the fish trap (the gate was opened for us) and then we steamed up to our first stop - ancient Caunos.
Shortly above Caunos are the famous rock tombs of the kings. What a sight! They're huge and very impressive. Unfortunately, you can't get close to them.
We had an excellent lunch in Dalyan with river traffic flying up and down all the time. Mehmet disappeared but then magically popped up again the moment we got on the boat.
He took us up to the hot springs and mud baths. We expected to be taken to the large commercial springs and mud baths. It turned out that before you come to them, there is a smaller, but completely natural and un-comercialised spring which Mehmet took us to instead. It's not at all obvious that it's there - local knowledge is a wonderful thing. Swimming in the hot water was lovely and it was an interesting experience getting covered in mud. Lindsay was chicken though. I wish I had dared really to throw it!
That was the end of the trip and we motored gently back down the river taking about 2 hours to get back to Rosa. The final leg over the bar and then across open sea was distinctly hairy.
Altogether an excellent and memorable day made even better by good company.
A very memorable day made all the better by good company.
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