The Pre-Start
After two and a half hours of physical exercise in the late morning sun with 24 degree centigrade heat I struggle to my destination, gather up some basic provisions, and collapse in the shade to recover. This doesn't bode well.
It is the 3rd of September in London and I fly out to Turkey to explore the ancient region of Lycia in Turkey on the 11th of September. Having done lots of early planning and preparation for the Lycian Way I have spent the last 14 weeks focussing on training for the half marathon I have just finished. As a relatively new runner - and as a naturally slow runner - my first three half marathons were all consistently close to two hours and fifteen minutes. My plan was to knock one minute off that time but in the event dehydration meant I added a full sixteen minutes; the torrid conditions led to a torrid last four miles. Frankly, I was lucky not to end up in the medical tent.
This isn't a good start for my unsupported tramp along old paths and mule trails with rucksack and tent especially as I haven't even done a test pack or weighed my planned load. On the bright side, I will be walking the Lycian Way in a relaxed pace and what I hope will turn out to be manageable daily distances though the expected 30 degree centigrade temperatures which looked reshreshingly warm on paper in mid-winter now look intimidatingly hot. Apparently I don't respond well to the heat. My guidebook provides the walking segment descriptions and assigns time rather than distance as the route is rocky and hilly making time a more suitable measure of progress.
I know that at times I will be spoilt for choice with the many restaurants in coastal tourist resorts and that at other points on the trail I will be wild camping with whatever food and water I have carried. There is certainly a level of uncertainty in the availability of food and water that I am uncomfortable with. Two of my fall-back options are to knock on a door and ask for food and/or water and I will take a water filtration and sterilisation kit so I can use the water from the springs and cisterns along the way though as it is the end of summer some of these will be dry. Based on today's half marathon experience I will need to learn very quickly how much water to carry.
The route is reasonably well known, is quite popular with walkers, and is up there in the top 10 walks to do globally. There is a guide book, a Lycian Way app for iPhone only and GPX tracks are available to use with your chosen navigation app (such as Komoot, MAPS.ME or Mapy.cz) to help with navigation, and the actual route also has the traditional European red and white way markers. Despite all this the route still feels very fluid to me. Indeed there are a number of alternative routes and spurs to let you see the many ancient monuments that are scattered across the landscape and that provided the rational for an amateur historian to create the route in 1999. Although I say I am walking 540km I am guessing and using a commonly used figure.
I usually go overboard in describing the planning process and kit lists but as I have done all that before I will limit myself to the following.
For planning purposes, the Culture Routes of Turkey is the NGO that manages walking routes in Turkey and includes specific advice for independent walkers at https://cultureroutesinturkey.com/independent-trekkers/ and Wikipedia provides an excellent snapshot at https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lycian_Way
The only new kit I needed was a larger rucksack from lightwave who do lightweight rucksacks and more importantly provide different sizing options so I could get something to fit my long frame. It was a birthday present from last November and I have yet to test it out which neatly sums up my approach to preparation. A late question from a friend about my vaccination status led to a hasty visit to the chemist for a Hepatitis A jab and assorted survival products. Prepared but not prepared is how I feel.
