A Change of Pace on the Poop Deck

When planning our trip prior to leaving Ontario, our goal was to make it to Turkey before our 90 Schengen days were over, which would be by July 3rd. However, the date we chose as our goal was June 27th so that we had a few extra EU days in case of emergency or unforeseen circumstances. More than two months later when in Kos, Greece, we were making final arrangements with our “agent”, who would help to check the boat and us into Turkey, and he told us he had our appointment scheduled for June 27th. We could not believe that after over 1500 nautical miles traveled, with 3 countries visited, we actually were entering Turkey on the exact day we had planned!

Turkey has definitely provided us the opportunity to experience a change of pace from our trip beginning in France to Corsica, Sardinia, Italy, and Greece. We are no longer working towards moving the boat along while we enjoy some touring, but seem to be meandering along, choosing areas to visit as we go. Although we have some high level goals, we tend to pick our route only a day or two before pulling anchor. 

As far as requirements go, Turkey is different again from Italy and Greece. Thankfully, there is no requirement to complete a port check-in or transit log, but there is something called a “blue card” which we must have updated every 15 days. This is basically a poop-out log that documents when we have the boat’s holding tanks pumped out and is, in reality, a QR code on a piece of paper. Turkey has mandated this so that boats are not emptying their tanks into the sea. Of course, we are totally supportive of this, however lately we are finding out that things are not always as they seem.

Yesterday, we met a couple from Australia named Chris and Sonia who are travelling on a catamaran. They have been in Turkey for about two and a half months so far and will be leaving to go to Greece by the end of June. It was nice to socialize with new people on the boat and make friends from a different part of the world. We hit it off immediately! Chris and Sonia told us that they have been “boarded” by the Turkish Coast Guard a couple of times and had their blue card information verified. There is a substantial fine if you cannot prove you have pumped out in the required time frame. Since they were in compliance with the rules, no further action was taken and the agents, whom they described as very friendly, went on their way. But, we also learned that in some places, including Datca where we are currently anchored, you can take your blue card and have it scanned to show a pump out (for a fee) without actually having the pump out done. In fact, Datca does not even have the machine to pump out boats. Clearly this is a money grab! This does not mean that people are necessarily dumping into the sea, it’s that they have enough holding tank capacity with only two people on board to last more than 15 days.

Chris and Sonia, having already sailed around the Datca peninsula and as far east as Fethiye, were very helpful in offering us suggestions of great anchorages and places to visit. Over the next 5 or 6 days, we will travel around the area before heading back to Bodrum, which was our first stop in Turkey, to pick up Julia on July 24th for her three week visit. Yeah!!!

Bodrum is a bustling port and city, complete with a covered bazaar full of shops and restaurants. The call to prayer can be heard over the speakers several times a day, but the music at the many beach clubs and nightclubs can be heard as well. In fact, the music plays until 4 a.m. every night. Funny though, we were anchored not far from the area and could hear the music quite clearly, but we had some of our best sleeps on the boat so far! Many Gulets can be found in this area (Turkish sailing vessels) with their crew and guests who have chartered the boats (usually for a week). The marina is just loaded with these beautiful sailing vessels (although we have yet to see one actually sailing).

There is definitely a different “vibe” in Turkey, but I cannot quite put my finger on what I feel is so different. Perhaps it is just that it is much more difficult to communicate with people in English, especially as compared to Greece. There are physical differences in the landscape, with the beaches being very stony. Shallow water up close to shore quickly deepens so that anchoring is done differently here. The practice tends to be to drop an anchor in the deeper water (up to about 17 m for us) and then reverse towards the rocks on shore to tie a line from the stern to the rocks to hold the boat in place. This can prove a bit challenging with just the two of us on board, but we are learning the tricks as we did when we had to learn to do the Med style of mooring in the EU. We much prefer to anchor and “free swing” so that the boat can move with the wind. It keeps the air flowing through the boat on the hot days, and they are all hot days! 

One other noticeable difference is the pollution on the beaches, unlike in any other area we have traveled. There is so much plastic and other junk everywhere. With such a huge focus on boating and swimming in this area, I am completely surprised there isn’t more of a focus on keeping the beaches cleaner. Having said this, it is surprising to me how few people actually go to the beach in an anchorage. We go regularly to take Finnegan ashore, but we rarely see anyone else there when we do so. Where there are beach clubs they tend to be cleaner, but it is the public beaches that really are disappointing.

After leaving Bodrum we traveled through the Gulf of Gokova which felt a great deal more “remote” than other areas we have been. There are very few towns or villages in the anchorages where we stopped. Instead, there is usually a small stoney beach or two, some frequented by wild boars in the evenings, and not much else. The water has been gorgeous, clear and warm. However, the areas are not so remote that the ice cream boat was not able to find us! Needless to say, we were very pleasantly surprised when the ice cream or Magnum boat pulled up beside us, producing the sign board of available options and prices. For 300 Turkish lira (about $12) we were able to buy two magnum bars with almonds. Well worth it on a hot day! And yes, I shared some of the ice cream part of mine with Finnegan who enjoyed it immensely! Other items that have been purchased boat-side include Turkish bread and pine honey from “Ali Baba” and 4 fresh grouper (still moving and then cleaned by the fisherman). We enjoyed those over the course of a couple of days. So delicious! 

Marinas in Turkey are ridiculously expensive to moor in, so we have tended to avoid them. One exception was in a place called Oren. It was just a small town with a beautiful modern marina. We were there to provision (which was not super easy to do when at anchor in Bodrum), obtain the required pump-out and enjoy a dinner onshore in a restaurant. The day there felt like the hottest one we have had so far and I think Finnegan agreed, so we were happy to start up the AC for a short time to cool the boat down.

Some of the areas in the Gulf of Gokova have ruins from the Roman times, including a place called Sedir Island (known as Kedreae in ancient times). The story of this island is that the sand on the beach (which cannot be found anywhere else in the Eastern Mediterranean) was brought by ship from Egypt to the island by Mark Anthony for Cleopatra. Because of this it is called “Kleopatra’s Beach”. The sand is believed to have special healing properties. Gulets and other boats ferry tourists in and out all day to spend time exploring the ruins and enjoying the water, but the sand is actually completely off limits and is under heavy protection. After study, it has been found that the source of the sand is not quite so romantic, but can be explained more scientifically. The story, however, is a better way to bring in the tourists!

The ruins at Sedir Island are estimated to date from the sixth century BC with evidence that it was originally settled by the Hittites. After that, it fell under Roman rule and this is the era from which the structures on the island exist. There are ruins of a temple, which was converted to a church by the Byzantines, and ancient city walls and towers. There existed a temple of Apollo on site here, but the most inspiring today is the large theatre that overlooks the sea. 

We were also able to see ruins at a place called Knidos on the tip of the Datca Peninsula. It was at one point in time a rich, cosmopolitan city where famous mathematicians studied. Apparently an archeologist named Sir Charles Newton had many of the site’s statues shipped off to the British Museum where they are housed today. Being perched up on a hillside, the views of the Mediterranean and Aegean seas (it is a place that is said to be the geological division between the two seas) and surrounding mountains are dramatic. We are saving an actual tour of the ruins themselves for when Julia arrives. For now we enjoyed a beautiful day in the anchorage with many dips in the crystal turquoise water. Other days have brought large turtles to visit and leisurely motoring since the sailing winds left with Al and MP.

Datca, itself, is a quaint town (or small city) which has a completely different feel from Bodrum. There are some beach clubs, but they seem to be geared more towards families and do not have the same loud music into the early morning hours. Restaurants line the shore and the walkways are covered with large trees. Tables and chairs are set up on the sand (surely trucked in as the beaches are actually stone) and there are multi-coloured lanterns of all types hanging over the walkways and seating areas. It is quite magical. Turkish music plays in the background. The waiters are super friendly and do their best to communicate with us in their limited English. We make it work! We will return for a second visit with Julia along.