Heading East To Kas, Kekova Island And Finike. 10 - 14 September 2017.

Sailing Eastwards From Cold Water Harbour To Kas, Then Kekova And On To Finike.  10 - 15 September 2018.

The Route From Cold Water Harbour (1) To Kas (4) Via Olu Deniz (2) And Butterfly Valley (3) On 10 September.
Sailing From Kas To Kekova (5) On 12 September and Then On To Finike 14 September.

1.   Cold Water Harbour To Kas  10 - 12 September 2017.   An early rise saw us slip our lines at 0730 hrs on 10 September and we quietly depart Cold Water harbour under power. We first ventured in to look at  Olu Deniz, an inland lake that we are prohibited from anchoring in.  Just as well as the whole beach area was covered with at least a 1000 sun umbrellas. We then motored on to Butterfly Valley. An amazing inlet surrounded by incredible tall mountainous cliffs and a lovely beach packed with tents. The tripper boats were arriving so we pressed on under motor all day due to a lack of wind. We passed an amazing deserted long sandy beach behind which the ancient city of Patara had been partially covered over by sand. Continuing eastwards, we eventually came to the Marina of Kas where we tied up at 1500 hrs. We decided to stay for a few nights, refuel, water up, stock up and have the holding tank emptied. It was a very pleasant marina and we were well looked after enjoying a lovely meal in the restaurant the first night. We went into Kas town on the 11th which had a wonderful lay back almost hippy feel about it. Guy felt he was in Kathmandu with the type of small houses with balconies and hippy shops scattered about with the various sarcophagi in the lanes or just lying about the place. We had an excellent meal of 'Chiilied Garlic Prawns' for lunch at Smileys, the Restaurant where the owner also manages the harbour. We met up with  our German friends Michael and Uschi and walked round to the impressive theatre at sunset followed by another excellent meal in Smileys, which still has a Lycian cistern in the basement. 

Departing Cold Water Harbour.

Gemiler Adasi.

Olu Deniz.

Guy On Watch As We Motor Down The Coast.

The Amazing Butterfly Valley.

Butterfly Valley.

Ginny Beside A Sarcophagi.

The Very Nepalese Village Feel Of Kas, Once A Greek Town.

Kas Main Square.

The Cistern Under Smileys Restaurant.

Sarcophagi Scattered About Add Charm To Kas.

The Humorous Waiter At Smileys.

Hot Spicy Garlic Prawns For Lunch. Delicious.

Beer And Prawns At Smileys, So Good We Had Seconds!!

Kas Marina.

Kas Amphitheatre.

Ginny And Uschi At The Theatre.

The Impressive Theatre Of Kas.

What A Glorious Setting To Watch The Sunset.

Michael And Uschi.

Dinner At Smileys, Ginny And Uschi.

2.    Kas To Kekova 12 - 14 September 2017.    We set off at 0800 from Kas Marina and after a short delay waiting to get pumped out and refuelled, we motored off and were soon joined by 'Le Canard Gris' with Michael and Ushi on board. We got ahead and tried to sail but gave up as we headed east threading our way through the islands and keeping the Greek Island of Kastellorizon to starboard, a rather lonely Greek island a full days sail east of Rhodes with an ancient crusader castle. Chased by several gullets, we went into the Kekova Roads to anchor in the inner lagoon at 1420 and what an amazing place this inlet is to any visitor. We explored the whole area first before dropping the hook and were fascinated by its history. It was wonderful to motor around over the sunken city and view the ruins on Kekova Island and then view the ancient town of Aperlae with the Genoese castle ramparts of Kale Kos and scattered sarcophagi along the ridge line. The views from the ramparts are amazing and we thoroughly enjoyed exploring the area on foot and dingy on the 13th. We were captivated by this gorgeous romantic location. 

Departing Kas Marina.

Le Canard Gris.

Uschi And Michael On 'Le canard Gris' With New Sails Whizzing Along.

The Gullets Start To Chase Us Down.

The Greek Island Of Kastellorizon.

The Crusader Castle And Town On Kastellorizon.

Sunken City Ruins On Kekova Island.

The Ruins On Kekova.

The Ruins Of Kekova Island Which Were Also Underwater.

The Genoese Castle Of Kale Koy.

The Romantic View Of Kale Koy.

Kale Koy Castle And Sarcophagi Along The Ridge To The Right Of The Castle.

Ucagiz Marina In The Inner Lagoon.

Kale Koy And Castle.

Sarcophagus Ridge From The Castle.

Looking Towards Kekova Island And The Sunken City Ruins.

Looking South To Kale Koy, Kekova Island And The Entrance To The Lagoon.

Looking North West To Ucagiz Where We Anchored In The Inner Lagoon.

Simply Stunning. Wonderful Restaurants Down Below.

Ready, Aim, Fire!!

What A Posting To Have Had?

An Attempt At A Panoramic View Of Kekova. Bay.

The Theatre In The Castle - 'O' Group Time!

A Lycian Tomb.

Tomb Ridge!

This Tomb Is Mine.

Ginny's Tomb With A View.

Not More Sarcophagus!! 

Lycian Tomb In A Garden Of A House.

The Restaurants Of Kale Koy Below The Castle.

Kale Koy Restaurants Ready For The Gullet Loads.

The Gullets At Rest In Ucagiz.

3.   Kekova To Finike 14 - 15 September 2018.      We left Kekova after a wonderful stay on 14 September meandering our way out the eastern exit and the motored the 20 NM to Finike where we tied up in the Marina at 1400. This gave us time to explore the Marina as a possible live aboard location for the future, test the facilities and look at the immediate town shops. It all looked a little tired but certainly has potential although the new visa requirements make it difficult. It was once a thriving community but most have now left.

The Route From Kekova (1) To Finike (2).

Meandering Out Of Kekova.