Kekova

After leaving Kas one sails past Uluburun and sets a course for Kekova, a spot that is like heaven on earth. One first encounters the Sicak Peninsula at the end of which are two islands: Toprakada and Karaada. Kekova island stretches out from here and it is because of this island that the whole area is called Kekova. Passing among the islands and arriving at Kekova, the safest anchorage is Ucagiz, which is a good, all-round harbor. Other places may be used for short periods during visits. At Kekova, history and nature have merged and become inseparable. Such ancient cities are Aperlai, Kekova, Simena, and Theimussa are to be found in the vicinity.

Aperlai: Aperlai is located on the Sicak Peninsula, near the Sicak jetty. A Lycian city, Aperlai’s history is known from coins bearing its name that have been discovered and goes back to the 4th or 5th centuries BC Aperlai was the head of the Lycian Confederacy, of which Simena and Apollonia were also members. The city walls begin at the seashore and are fortified with towers at intervals. These walls, with their rectangular and polygonal construction, are from Roman times: Other remains at Aperlai are all from the Byzantine and later periods. The western reaches of the wall are of rectangular construction. There are three gates in this wall, two of which have a plain and the third a blind archway. The southern reaches of the walls are of polygonal construction and in a bad state of repair. This side is reinforced with two towers and it is here that the main gate was located. Outside the walls are typical Lycian sarcophagi from Roman times.

From inscriptions that have been found, we know that the history of the ancient city of Simena goes back to the 4th century BC If we go ashore via the jetty next to the sarcophagus on the seashore and climb the hill behind the houses, we reach the castle of Simena.

This castle was used during the Middle Ages. In the medieval walls of the inner keep are a few blocks of all that remains of an ancient temple. Inside the castle is a small natural theater carved into the rock. This is the smallest of the theaters among the cities of Lycia. West of the theater there are rock tombs here and there. Above the rock tombs is a Roman wall built of dressed stone and located on the wall are late period embrasures thus giving one a glimpse of three eras simultaneously. On the shore are the ruins of public baths whose inscription is still legible and reads “A gift to the emperor Titus made by the people and council of Aperlai as well as by the other cities of the confederation.” Looking from the castle towards Ucagiz it becomes clear how beautiful and safe a natural harbor this really is.

Simena (or Kalekoy, its present day name) is only a temporary shelter however. The actual shelter for yachts is Theimussa (Ucagiz), a landlocked bay surrounded by green hills. There is a road overland that leads here. The ruins of the ancient city of Theimussa are located here. Very little is known about the history of the city however. One inscription indicates that its history goes back to the 4’th century BC One sees mostly the ruins of a necropolis here and no city walls or other major structures have been encountered. The oldest sarcophagus is from the 4th century BC and is shaped like a house. Over it is the nude portrait of a young man. The inscription tells us that it belongs to “KIuwanimiye”. The work is Roman and a later addition to the sarcophagus.

One may reach Kekova overland from Demre Cayagzi as well as in boats that you can rent at Kas. After leaving Kekova we pass Kiseli Island and Asirli Island and come to Gokkaya Harbor. Gokkaya is a beautiful bay and a fine harbor. On the way is a big sea cave that was used at one time by pirates. From here one comes to Cayagzi, also called Kokar Bay, alongside of which are the ruins of Andraki. There are restaurants and souvenir shops here. From here, one may take a car to Myra, the city of St. Nicholas, which is quite close. This is also a place from which one may visit other Lycian cities such as Isinda at Belenli, Apollonia at Kilincli, Istlada at Kapakli, Kyaenai at Yavu, and Trysa and Sura at Golbasi. The area is also filled with thousands of Lycian sarcophagi lying everywhere.

After departing Kas, one sails past Uluburun and sets a course for Kekova, a spot that is practia paradise. One first encounters Sicak Peninsula, wh the ancient city of Aperlae is found. At the end of t peninsula are two islands, Toprak and Kara. Kekova Island stretches out from here and it is because of t island that the surrounding region is called Kekova is also called the ‘Sunken City’ as the histori buildings on Kekova Island sank in the water a result of various earthquakes. Passing between islands and arriving at Kekova, the safest plac{ anchor is off the village of Ucagiz, which is a dec all-round harbor.

If you are arriving overland, you exit Finike – Kas Highway where the signpost says ‘Kekova’ whereby after driving 19 kilometers, you arrive in the natural wonder which is the viI1age Ucagiz.

This is an area where history mingles with nature and today’s lifestyle. There are a numbel ancient cities situated very close to each other hi such as Aperlae on the Sicak Quay, Simena, in sunken city of Kalekoy, Theimussa, which is found Ucagiz, and Istlada, which sits above Gokkaya Cove. In addition to these cities along the coast, there also Apollonia in Kilicli, as well as the ancient ciq Tyberissos, in Cevreli on the road two kilomel outside Ucagiz. Tyberissos stands on a hill overlooking the plain of Tirrnisin at 365 meters above sea-level. At the foot of the mountain, and little above the level of the plain, is an attractive gladc in which are a dozen or so Lycian sarcophagi an number of pigeon-hole tombs. By their inscriptions, they are dated to Hellenistic and Roman times.

The main site is on the two summits of the hill. The northern is the higher and was evidently the acropolis, while as for the southern hill, at its southern end, standing up to 1.5 meters in height, is a small church or chapel, little over 6 meters long, which has replaced a Doric temple. As usual, the majority of the tombs in Tyberissos are sarcophagi, but there are two rock -tombs of house-type, both with inscriptions in Lycian. One of these is near the top of the hill, at the head of a gully leading from the south- east, close to the plain of Tirmisin, and carries a relief of two figures, man and woman, the style suggesting a date around 400 B.C.

From Cevreli, if you go towards Kapakli, y arrive at a place called Enisdibi, about four kilometers down the road. If you walk about the eastern part this field, that is, the side facing the sea, you will m the opportunity to see the famous ancient city Istlada. As the cities around here were small, a few them merged to be represented as one entity in the Lycian League.

For instance; Aperlae, Simena, Apollonia a Isinda were a part of this sympolity. Two kilometl down the road from <;evreli, one reaches t unbelievable beauty of Kekova. This road ends Ucagiz, where one can rent a motorboat to take y out to the sunken city of Simena, on Kalekoy.

Giving its name to the whole area, this long island stretches four miles before Kalekoy and is filled with historical ruins. At the southwestern end of the island is Tersane Bay where yachts may approach. On the southern side of. the bay is traces of sunken shops whose rooms are still discernible today. Leaving the jetty I one encounters by the apse of a Byzantine church. Though the place is full of ruins, no excavations have been carried out on this island, little is known about its history.

On the landward side of Kekova Island, j may see the ruins of a sunken city. Following shore, we see that half of the houses are submerged and that the stairways descend into the water. The foundations of buildings and houses can also be seen in the sea.

At Kekova history and nature have merged and become inseparable. Such ancient cities are Aperlai, Kekova, Simena, and Theimiussa are to be found in the Vicinity.