23 August, Gϋmϋşhane to Maçka, 40km + 38km lift
Vazelon Pansiyon 100TL
Sometimes what you can accomplish in a day
is a head thing rather than a physical thing. Quite often, of course, it is a
combination. Knowing Maçka lies a lot lower
than Gϋmϋşhane, and having studied our map and found no pass lay in our path, I
really believed we would have a predominantly downhill run today. So we made a leisurely,
stress-free start... The 12 or so tunnels we encountered in the first 40km, varying
in length from 84m to just under 1km, added fuel to the fire of my imagination.
I became convinced that the clever Turks had literally cut a path for me
through the mountains by which we were engulfed. I believed the only aerobic
exercise I would get was racing as fast as possible through the narrow tunnels,
legs pumping, heart racing, trying to out-distance the cars and trucks
approaching from behind in the semi-darkness. Then there it was ... a small
incline. Just a blip, I thought, that will lift us over a small spur... But as
we climbed, I glanced up at the mountains above and saw trucks and buses high
above me... Not my road, I thought, some other road leading to some other
place... But soon it became clear our map was wrong and that indeed a pass lay
in our path; a pass steep enough to force us from our bikes. Ten km from the
top, a truck stopped and offered us a ride, which we gratefully accepted. At
the top of the pass lies the 1,700m long Zigana tunnel. We entered the tunnel
on a clear day, and exited into clouds which reduced visibility to less than
20m, so our driver took on us down to Maçka...
Gϋmϋşhane
Between Gϋmϋşhane and Maçka
Between Gϋmϋşhane and Maçka - Torul
Between Gϋmϋşhane and Maçka - Torul
Between Gϋmϋşhane and Maçka