On The Road

I head North from Kars, riding along the Eastern shore of Lake Cildir.

I have to brake for the odd horse on the road.

I only look at Seytan Kalesi (Satan castle) from a distance. I see some rainclouds moving in and the dirt road leading to the castle looks doubtful even when dry.

I make my way over a pass and all of the sudden it looks very different. The houses are different and the landscape is different too. There are a lot of pine trees suddenly.

This chap doesn’t seem to have a care in the world.

Coming down the pass I spot a nice clearing and stop for a little snack and a quick nap under a tree. Very peaceful until some rifle shots in the distance wake me up.

I’m headed for the Tibet church and after Savsat I turn right just past another castle. The narrow road takes me along the edge of Waragol Sahara National Park. My map isn’t very detailed and I can’t find the old Georgian church. I just keep going though. This is a very nice place to get lost. When the road runs out I turn around and I spot a few people I can ask for directions. They all agree that I have to take a right. That much I know from my map. The question is where. Eventually I see a sign, which I couldn’t have seen coming the other way.

There is not much left of the Tibet church but the Georgian style is distinctively different from the Armenian, which I have been seeing so far.

As I pack my camera away a minibus with Georgian license plates rolls in. I’m very close to the border and they are day trippers. I guess this makes an obvious destination for them. One of the guys comes over and talks to me. He is a biker and offers some help in case I want to go to Georgia. I was playing with the idea but found that there is no unleaded fuel in Georgia and you can’t take the catalytic converter out of the Tenere. The whole exhaust has to be changed for more than EUR 1000. Too expensive for a little side trip. I ask the guy about unleaded fuel but he doesn’t understand the question, neither do any of the other Georgians. I guess this is my answer and I bury my Georgia/Armenia plans for good.

The villages in the area are very picturesque with very interesting wooden houses.

The road near Artvin is along a river in a very narrow canyon. It does remind me of some of the roads in Colorado.

There are a number of self made suspension bridges and cargo is hauled across the river with this kind of contraption.

It is very hot down in the canyon but it’s a dream road. It just won’t be around much longer. The whole canyon will be flooded in a few years time. They are building a new road higher up at the moment. Twice I have to stop for blasts and the cleanup that follows. Not much fun in the heat.

I do make it to Yusufeli before it gets dark and after a few trials I find the Greenpeace camp in a quiet location, next to the river, just outside town. The room is cheap enough that I don’t even have to pitch my tent.

There are rivers in the mountains all around Yusufeli and it is a bit of a whitewater Mecca in Turkey.

Supposedly the town will go under with a new dam being built in a few years. Opinions about this differ and there is a bit of new construction going on while the majority of structures slowly crumble away.

Be that as it may, I came for a bit of rafting. Based on my previous “experience” I found myself in the front right position, usually the wettest in a raft. I knew what I was getting myself into, it was a hot day and they river wasn’t as cold as I thought. My major challenge was figuring out the commands in Turkish but I got the hang of it quickly. A fun day and the drive to the put in was almost as exciting as the rafting.

Near Yusufeli is the 8th century Georgian church of the Mother of God. A 7 km dirt road forks from the main road and leads to village of Ishan in which the church is located.

As I ride the dirt road back down I realize I left my phone in Yusufeli. So I ride back and the owner of the place hands me the phone when I pull in. It’s pretty late and hot by now and I know I won’t make it as far as planned.

Near lake Tortum it starts to rain. I pull over and have some tea while I wait for the rain to stop. A few kilometers on I make a very brief stop at the Tortum waterfall.

It’s Sunday and people are out having fun.

Not far away is the 10th century Georgian Oskvank cathedral.

One last stop at Haho monastery and I’m all churched out for the day.

I make a quick dash to Erzurum

and initially I have a hard time locating a hotel with secure parking until I find the holy Kral hotel. They lower the drawbridge (metaphorically) and let me ride straight into the huge unused lobby.

I take a room on the Seljuk floor, decorated with Seljuk eagles all over the place.

Next I have look at the local sights from the Seljuk era. First up is the Yakutiye Medrese.

followed by the Cifte Minareli Medrese

I watch people washing before prayers

and I peek into Lala Mustafa Pasha Camii

In the park next to it is this industrial strength tea maker, which can barely keep up with demand.

The price for the funkiest restaurant on this trip goes to Erzurum Evleri. They have managed to cram an amazing amount of antiques into this place. The food is great and it’s not expensive.

It’s a balmy night, perfect for sitting outside,

having some corn on the cob,

watching this grumpy vegetable vendor or

these happy fruit vendors