Likya Yolu (Lycian Way) Overnight hike: Kabak to Patara

Welcome to the second of three adventures before we leave Turkey!

This one was just for me (Elly) to head off to the hills for the weekend. I organized a group of seven keen hikers to join me on an overnight hike to cover part of Likya Yolu (the Lycian way).

On my Fethiye blog post, I talked about walking the first two stages of this 500km trail, and for the overnight hike, I ambitiously decided I’d check off three stages (Kabak-Patara) over a weekend along with any other crazies who wanted to join me?. Because… Gotta make the most of kid-free time!

Saturday morning: Kabak to Alinca

On Saturday morning, we zoomed off in a Jeep minibus to our starting point at Kabak (where I’d finished off last time).

From here, we walked 6km uphill to Alinca, with 700 meters of elevation gain – what a way to start the morning!

The group did awesomely, walking strong and steady. A boot sole came off suddenly and unexpectedly in the middle of nowhere. Luckily another group member was prepared with cable ties and tape so we could continue onward!

There were a couple of self-service cafes en route. They had a few drinks and snacks as top-up options. No one is around, but there’s a price list and a box to leave your money – love it!

We were surprised to reach Alinca after three hours (I thought it might have taken longer). Making such good time, we stopped on the hilltop for delicious gozleme and an awe-inspiring view that served as a reminder of just how high we’d climbed!

Saturday afternoon: Alinca to Bel

We set off for the afternoon walk in high spirits, pleased with our efforts powering uphill all morning.

Completing this 15km section in one afternoon was a little ambitious – it’s probably best assigned a day of its own.

Honestly though, I thought it would take 4+ hours…5 if we were really slow.

The trail first took us down about half the elevation that we’d spent climbing all morning… And then the second half of it took us back up to 700 meters for the evening!

We seemed to be a lot slower going downhill than the trail map suggested we could go. The downhill pace was pretty slow for me, but the group needs to stick together for these things. One person had trainers with little grip, so struggled in places, and this affected the overall timing.

It’s getting dark!

Before we knew it, it was getting dark, and we were powering up the gentle uphill gradient to reach our accommodation before it became pitch black.

Seven hours after we set off from our lunch spot, we arrived at Fatma’s Pansiyon, elated at what we’d achieved. 21 kilometers over the day and a total of 10 hours of walking! This was certainly not the hardest hike I’ve undertaken, but it’s definitely the longest day of walking I’ve ever done.

We were rewarded with an incredible sunset on our way in and the full moon rising and lighting up the night sky. It seems so huge when it’s still low in the sky; an amazing treat to finish our day.

Fatma had the fire going, and a delicious homemade organic vegetarian dinner was waiting for us. The day finished with a beer in hand and a few stretches for the tired legs before settling in for the night.

Day 2: Bel- Patara

We woke up to a delicious traditional Turkish breakfast, including the yummiest warm, fresh bread.

With families to meet and return to, we headed off straight after breakfast.

Today we walked down the 700 meters we’d climbed yesterday?. So that’s what today’s walk was really… Down, down, down!

We reached the bottom after maybe three hours. Then it’s a couple of hours flat walking to get properly into Patara.

We decided to cut it a bit short and walk another hour to the first part of the beach, which is actually Karadere beach. Doing so would allow us to have a swim and lunch before the driver arrived to pick most of the group up.

Immersing ourselves in the local community

We had a beach restaurant earmarked as our arrival point, but when we got there, we discovered it was one of the illegal ones the government had closed.

There wasn’t anything else around very nearby, but lucky for us, we stumbled upon the village festival at the beach!

The people put money in throughout the year and then come together to give thanks that there were no natural disasters.

They welcomed us and fed us and would not take any money for the food. Overflowing with gratitude, we were thankful to finish our hike in such a unique way!

So that was our weekend hike covering a small snippet of the Likya Yolu hiking trail. Maybe next time I’ll come back and do the full 500km?.

Further reading for hiking enthusiasts

If you’re interested in hiking other parts of Likya Yolu, check out my blog post about things to do in Kas, which includes the morning hike I took up to the sleeping giant.

To find out about hiking adventures in other countries, read out about the hike that pushed me to my limits in New Zealand and this night hike in Malaysia – probably the two hardest hikes I’ve done to date!