A DAY TRIP TO YALOVA

For a long time I'd been wondering which cycling group to join, and on the Fancy Women Bike Ride I met lovely people from the Küçükçekmece Cycling Club. I live in Küçükçekmece, and the 'pub' rides they organise every Thursday on the Küçükçekmece Coast Road, along with their nearby day routes, sounded really nice. After the Bartın Festival, while I was still in shape, the day trip Yalova-Keramet Hot Spring Tour was a great chance to meet the group, whose rides I'd never managed to find the time to join :)

Once it was certain I'd join, I immediately bought my return tickets to Yalova from İDO. Even though I bought them just 2 days before, the return came to 40₺. For those who bought at the start of the week it came to 32₺. If your plan is firm, you can catch promotional tickets by buying early. In the autumn-winter season prices are relatively affordable, but in high seasons the gap will widen even further.

TOUR DETAILS

Our routes to and from Yalova centre were different from each other. I like it more this way; while pedalling we can keep discovering different places. After the Yalova Sea Bus Pier, we closed off the right lane and continued riding two abreast. Along the way we had 4-5 punctures. A good cyclist should definitely take a first aid kit and a spare inner tube when setting out on a tour. Whatever you do, if you don't trust your bike and gear, don't attempt long tours like this ☺

In turn, Tavşanlı, Altınova, Soğuksu, Valideköprü, and in Kızderbent Village in Karamürsel we ate köfte of tremendous flavour at Köfteci Nurettin. Strongly recommended for those whose road passes this way or nearby.

After the köfte place we pedalled without stopping all the way to Keramet Hot Spring. But from the moment Lake İznik comes into view, from the lake level down to İznik/Boyalıca Neighbourhood, you absolutely have to descend with your brakes on. Otherwise an accident is inevitable. The road is very steep, dangerous and just as winding! Saying onwards, we reach the hot spring.

KERAMET HOT SPRING

This hot spring in Keramet Village is said to be valuable for health, and especially good for skin diseases. This hot spring, which looks like a natural pool, has an average temperature of 30 degrees, so it's a place chosen by local and foreign tourists even in the winter months.

Entry to the hot spring is 3₺, a tragicomic price ☺ From my first impressions it's not a very big place; on the contrary, it's very calm and modest. After the hot spring, the ride to Orhangazi on cold asphalt was quite hard on the wrists because of the vibration. When we reached Orhangazi we caught our breath a little. Because we spent a lot of time at the hot spring, spent a lot of time on the road, and I think also because we ate well at Köfteci Nurettin ☺ By the way, when I reached Orhangazi I'd broken my own record by riding exactly 105 km! And there was more to come ☺ Pedal to Yalova!

Between Orhangazi and Yalova there were two climbs, the first long with a gentle gradient and the second short but a bit steeper. Climbs that take serious strength; power to the pedals of those who go. We know that "every climb has a descent", but this descent beat all the others by a mile. It's one of those moments you can't really describe, you have to live it! After this long descent we reached Yalova.

The numbers on our bike computer showed 126 kilometres! Yes, it was a long distance for me in one day, and I can say my battery had run out by the time we reached Yalova. I thank the team who organised the tour and the friends who joined it, each one, for their helpfulness and their smiles. For my other bike route experiences: Bartın Bike Festival I'm leaving the links to my post here, and to my İpsala-Alexandroupoli-Enez bike tour from last year.