Tuesday 5 March 2013

Walking with friends.



I don't usually do group walks as I prefer to wander around at  my own pace, but when H3A announced that they were walking to the ancient Lelegian town of Termera, accompanied by two archaeologists who had been involved in a recent rescue excavation on the site, I was keen to join in.  It's always a joy to visit a site with an up-to-date source of information, rather than second-hand knowledge trawled from the internet. It would also be a novelty to walk cross-country to a Lelegian or Carian site without getting lost en-route. 
The walk, initially planned for the end of January, was postponed twice because of heavy rain so it was the end of February by the time we all convened in the village of Akçaalan above Turgutreis to start  the ascent.  The head count was an impressive 50, which is an amazing number for a Sunday in February, unfortunately this figure did not include the two archaeologists, who couldn't attend so we were without our experts. 




After a brief pep-talk by team leader Ali Bey, with a reminder to not disturb any relics, we were off at a brisk pace.  I'd arrived with a friend I've known for 30 plus years, and we happily strode forth, chatting all the way. With several other old friends and a sprinkling of new ones in the group, I realised that walking en masse is actually a very enjoyable activity. Especially in beautiful spring sunshine, surrounded by blossom and wild flowers. I was without my walking boots as I'd left them in the village so was attempting the walk in wellies,  but had good reason to appreciate my forgetfulness when the path turned into a stream. 



After about 40 minutes, our merry group came to a halt as our path petered out. We'd obviously missed a turning.  I'm so glad that it's not only me that gets lost on the way to these sites.  An adventurous group of four, plus Jake the dog, set off cross-country uphill, while the rest of us turned around, retraced our steps, stopped for a group photo, picked some wild thyme, took pictures of the anemones, discussed the current political state of Turkey, found the correct path and eventually met the intrepid foursome plus dog on their way down. 


The dog lead was handed over and Jake made his second climb of the day.  If any animal deserves an honorary doctorate in archaeological studies, this dog does. 

View from Temera. 


Next time I'll post a few details of the site, (after a bit of internet trawling) . 










18 comments:

  1. Sounds as if it was a great success, despite lack of the experts, and regardless of what you eventually saw. I am sure you enjoyed it as much as Jake.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I saw these lovely photos on Facebook - and remember thinking Jake's legs look like Darwin's these past few wet and soggy days, (only longer.) I don't think he will have minded the double climb will he? Walking and chatting are two of my favourite pastimes...I'm sure you had fun. Axxx

    ReplyDelete
  3. This is something I would enjoy immensely...sounded like it was great success. Jake once again proved he's a real lil' winner of 'an honorary doctorate in archaeological studies'....:-) Too bad about the experts not being there but I'm sure it was just as good with your group, which I'm sure were knowledgeable....and plus had a wonderful time.
    Great pics.....Exx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We didn't get any info on the site, so I'll have to do some research.

      Delete
  4. You must be ultra fit by now with all the walking and gym activity. It's a great time of year for walking xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm quite pleased with the results of my fitness campaign.

      Delete
  5. Looking forward to your next post! Jake looked as though he was going to need a bath when he got home.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. By the end of the day, all the mud dried and dropped off in the car!

      Delete
  6. You're so adventurous. I'd need two strong lads and a wheel barrow to get me up that hill!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm with you that having an 'expert' on hand when walking with an agenda - otherwise I'm selfish enough to find 'my pace/agenda' being upset by others is all the reason I need to 'wander lonely as a cloud'!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Once all the gossip is exhausted I'll go back to lonely cloud wandering.

      Delete
  8. What a lovely adventure you all had - nice to see spring in the air, beautiful photos. I am with you, as much as I love the company, the solo walking I think is my favorite - looked like you had good company though, and what a site to walk around : )

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think I'll alternate walking in company with walking alone. When there isn't a group, Jake can run free.

      Delete
  9. That sounds like a lovely day and it's a shame your experts couldn't come after all. Your top photo reminds me of my teenage years when my sister and I joined the Ramblers Association and went on a few of their walks. It was fun walking in a group, but would have been even better with your sunshine and blue skies. :-) I look forward to your post on your destination.

    ReplyDelete
  10. That must have been an amazing experience.Lucky you.

    ReplyDelete