4 June, Nazilli to Pamukkale, 92km
Dort Mevsim Hotel 60TL (breakfast
included)
An
error on our part added 12km to this already long day. When we took the wrong
turn off the 550, which had carried us from Nazilli this morning in overcast,
cool weather, we found we had 25km to go instead of the anticipated 13km. An
extra 12km might not sound like a lot, but it is, of course, relative. We were
already nearing stamina’s end and shortly after our meatball lunch the sun had
come out and was beating down with a vengeance. Worst of all, however... when
we turned toward Pamukkale it was into hilly terrain and into a wind so strong
it blew the saliva in my mouth to ash and disintegrated to dust my enjoyment of the day. We pushed our bikes for 5km, bent at the waist, feet dragging, shirts
flapping a maddening refrain. The next 10km would have been relatively easy,
but we literally had to climb the downhills... Then, hallelujah, the road
turned again, putting the wind behind us on a long decline, which came to an
end just a km or two outside Pamukkale. This section included some roadworks which had been damped down to reduce dust, but which ensured we arrived splattered with mud, looking like an advert for off-road biking. The first thing we did once we had located a
hotel and checked in, was to take a swim in the clear, cool pool.
Between Nazilli and Pamukkale - breakfast stop
Between Nazilli and Pamukkale
Between Nazilli and Pamukkale
Between Nazilli and Pamukkale
Between Nazilli and Pamukkale