While the ash cloud from the Iceland volcano is paralysing airports all over Europe, Achmet is calmly driving his horse-drawn cart along a bumpy little road through central Anatolia. He smokes his cigarette; he has no idea about the global chaos, nor does he care. Achmet is a farmer in Cappadocia, one of the poorest regions in Turkey, and we got lost in his field on our tour. Volcanoes were also the origin of this spectacular region, he tells us.
Millions of years ago, two volcanoes spewed fire and ash over the then still swampy land, forming a gigantic high plateau: today's Cappadocia. Wind and water eventually modelled these fabulous cones and towers out of the crumbly tuff rock. Today, when it rains in this area, the water flows vigorously around these rock sculptures. This creates a system of channels that is perfect for flow biking. The light-coloured tuff itself feels rough and the tyres stick to it. Sometimes a trail washes us through cave-like formations, constantly up and down, but always in sweeping curves. Just as the water intended.
But when we come across Achmet's field, we seem to have come to a dead end. We are looking for the "sunset point", we explain to the farmer. The sunsets are said to be particularly beautiful from this higher hill. Achmet points us in the right direction, but says we can forget it with the bikes. When we reach the point, the sun is already low and colours the surroundings in an orange light. The air is clear and the snow-capped almost four-thousand metre peaks tower in the distance. The view is truly breathtaking, but nothing compared to what lies ahead. According to Achmet, there is a trail from here through the Red Valley, as the valley at our feet is called, all the way to Göreme, the centre of Cappadocia. Of course, you don't stand a chance here on a bike either, I hear Achmet say.
We roll into the trail and it is one of the most flowing I have ever experienced. It first winds its way over a canyon ridge in many long bends and later shoots through a kind of hollow in the valley floor. At some point it starts to climb again and we come across a sign saying "Kiosk". Below it is a hole in the rock face. We duck inside and find ourselves in a room. It's cool and a man is sitting in the corner in front of a juicer and a crate of oranges. We pay one Turkish lira for a glass of juice - that's about 50 cents. We continue along the trail and are spat out in Göreme. Almost the entire village has been carved out of the rock. There are small holes with windows in the mushroom-shaped stones everywhere. Even the restaurant where we have dinner is inside the rock.
After seven days of freeriding through the most diverse valleys in Cappadocia, our guide Ayhan has a special spot in his pocket for us: the Love Valley. An overgrown path leads us through dense greenery, through caves and canyons, along a small stream bed and releases us into an open area with countless rock towers that rise into the sky like phallic symbols. Almost cheeky. Here in Cappadocia, nature has really lived out its play instinct.
You can find the entire article about Cappadocia as a PDF download below.
