...we thought we were getting ripped off by a small Turkish boy

Saklikent Gorge is this awesome, natural maze of marble (or something else...who am I kidding) about an hour by a dodgy mini-van from Fethiye on the south-west coast of Turkey. Phill and I had a few days to kill before a three-night cruise to Olympos, and our trusty Lonely Planet suggested the Gorge as one of those time-killing activities that we get so good at while travelling.

We followed the high walkway, stapled into the stone, above the gushing river - which, lo and behold,  was actually just a creek that decided to sneak into the gorge and take all its credit. We crossed the creek, fully clothed in our modesty, and clothes, and were able to walk for kilometres through Saklikent Gorge itself.

There were some tough bits which involved shimmying up and down rocks and waterfalls, wading through waist-high puddles (at what depth is a puddle a lake?), and avoiding cavernous openings that could break your leg or eventually fossilize you.

Grace and determination: essential
components for looking this good

 

The Turkish families out for activities were very friendly and helpful with tips of how to slide down waterfalls (with no grace), how to get up waterfalls (with a bit of groping) and where in aforementioned puddle were no deathly sharp rocks (they were everywhere). But then, who wouldn't want to help out this guy:

Very exfoliating, but not enough to get
rid of the beard

As we made our way back out of the gorge, a small boy started following us, then ducked just in front of us in order to point to where we should put our feet. I started laughing, but then felt a little offended...I consider myself quite nimble, and even after gaining eight months of travelling fat, I was sure I could walk out of the gorge unaided.

He was very nimble...

Then I figured that he was being a sneaky little bugger and would demand (via hand movements) that we pay him a couple of Lira for his tour guide skills. I was having none of that. But then, distracted by a shiny butterfly or fat American or an ice cream stand, he just ran ahead of us and we lost him in the hordes of people unable to cross the icy creek.

Small Turkish boy realises he won't get a Lira outta us!

Kate and Phill: 1...small Turkish boy: 0. Sucker.

 

When: August, 2010

Where: Saklikent Gorge, Fethiye, Turkey.