Lake Bafa

By YUSUF TUVI

Where the past is bathed in blue Lake Bafa The allure of Lake Bafa lies not only in its clear blue waters but in the ancient city of Herakleia on its shores and the misty Besparmak Mountains that rise alongside it.

Lake Bafa will appear suddenly before you in all its tranquil beauty at the end of the plain of Soke on the road from Izmir to Bodrum. Its deep blue color, stretching as far as the eye can see, will refresh you on your travels, and you won't be able to take your eyes off the landscape that follows the curve of the road around its shores. This part of the Aegean, which preserves its traditional character even during the peak touristic season, long ago became a haven for people eager to avoid the madding crowd and live here in seclusion like monks. Known today as Lake Bafa, it was formed in antiquity when the Bay of Latmos, which emptied into the Aegean, filled up with alluvia carried by the Meander River.Although a few outlets to the sea remained open, with time the two sides of the bay were joined, creating Lake Bafa, an inland lake fed by mountain streams and the floodwaters of the Meander.

At 25 km from Soke, Lake Bafa, which is 25 meters deep at its deepest point, has beaches as well. Although fish are no longer plentiful owing to the disruption over time of the lake's ecological balance and increasing saltiness due to excessive evaporation, species such as eel, bass, grey mullet and sheatfish are still encountered. As one of the world's leading bird sanctuaries, the Bafa area is also a popular destination for bird watchers.

THE LONELY DAUGHTER OF CARIA: HERAKLEIA

If you've fallen under Lake Bafa's blue spell,
then by all means get acquainted with ancient
Latmos, which encircles the lake. For concealed
here, on the slopes of today's Besparmak
Mountains, is a history whose mysteries still lie
shrouded in the mists of time. To discover that
history, you need to hike for hours in the
mountains, to camp under the stars at night and
stroll amidst the ruins buried in solitude on the
islands that dot the lake. After you pass the
lake, you will see a sign on the main road for the
village of Kapikiri (Herakleia).

Turning off here, you will drive for 10 km through
the most beautiful lakeside scenery sprinkled with
tiny rustic coffeehouses. Just 5 km from the
village of Kapikiri is the turnoff to another
village, Golkaya, a charming spot and the point of
departure for long treks into the mountains. At
the end of the 1st century B.C., the famous
historian Strabo speaks of the wealth and beauty
of the Carian city of Herakleia, then a port on
the Bay of Latmos. In time, when its outlet to the
sea was cut off, the city became impoverished and
was eventually abandoned. In the 7th century A.D.
monks and priests from Yemen and the Sinai
Peninsula settled here to take advantage of the
seclusion afforded by the Latmos Mountains. By the
13th century several monasteries had been built on
the mountain known today as 'Besparmak' (Five
Fingers), which the Christians called the 'holy
mountain'. Seeing the walls and ceilings of these
monasteries, which are covered with gorgeous
frescoes, will necessitate an
arduous climb.

Besides the monasteries on the mountain, you can
also see several more monasteries, as well as the
cells where the monks underwent their solitary
ordeals on the islands, which are accessible from
shore by renting a boat.

THE LOVE OF THE MOON GODDESS AND A SHEPHERD

Two of the most fascinating places to see at the
ruins of Herakleia are the necropolis and the
sanctuary of Endymion. Some of the close to 2500
Carian-type tombs in the area are submerged under
the waters of the lake; others lie on its surface.
The sanctuary meanwhile was built for the
legendary hero Endymion. According to the legend,
Endymion is a handsome young shepherd in the
mountains of Latmos who plays haunting melodies on
his flute. One night while he is asleep under the
stars on the shores of Lake Bafa, the moon goddess
Selene sees him and falls in love, kissing and
embracing him with her body sculpted of light.
>From now on Endymion waits for Selene every night
in his sleep. Nights when there is no moon in the
sky are torture for him. Observing their love from
afar, Zeus takes pity on Endymion and bids him
make a wish.

And Endymion, on a dark moonless night, wishes for
endless, immortal sleep, and he and Selene are
united forever. When the moon is full, it reflects
so magically off the waters of Lake Bafa that a
person can't help but believe in the old legends.
Most of the ruins of Herakleia lie intermingled
inseparably with the village of Kapikiri, among
them the land walls from the Hellenistic period
(3rd century B.C.), only a portion of which are
visible today, the Temple of Athena on a rocky
promontory above the city, the agora in the garden
of the village's primary school, which is no
longer used today, and the city's Assembly
Building (Bouleuterion) from the 2nd century B.C.,
where roosters strut today among columns in the
garden of a house directly opposite the school. Of
the Roman period theater only the topmost steps
and a portion of the stage still above ground are
visible today.

MYSTERIES OF THE 'HOLY MOUNTAIN'

Day ends. We head down to the shore. Opposite us
the island of Herakleia. The sunset is out of this
world. In the morning we awake early to the
crowing of roosters.

Everything is shrouded in mist. When mist settles
over the Besparmak Mountains, Lake Bafa changes
color. We go to the village of Golyaka and set out
to climb the mountain with our guide. Easy in
places, difficult in others, the slopes of the
Besparmak Mountains are chock full of enjoyable
trekking routes. Since there are no signs along
the trails, it is best to go in the company of a
guide, a service offered by almost all the local
bed and breakfasts. As we climb higher and higher,
we can't take our eyes off the changing views of
the lake. And the volcanic rock formations strain
our power of imagination: it is if rocks have
rained down from the sky and covered the entire
area. After a strenuous hour and a half climb we
scale a few large moss-covered rocks and enter a
cave. In the explorations under way here since the
1980s, German archaeologists have discovered wall
paintings which they have determined date back to
pre-historic periods. We slither through an
opening in the
cave.These paintings, the earliest examples of
pre-historic rock paintings in western Anatolia,

thought to date to around 9000 B.C., were
discovered with the help of the local villagers.
We gaze with admiration on the floral motifs and
male and female figures. The Byzantine
monasteries, royal roads, funerary temples and
defense walls in the Besparmak Mountains lie
scattered in a wild and virginal setting. How
enigmatic appears the 'Yediler', the 'Monastery of
the Seven', one of the largest of the Latmos
retreats, in the early morning light. Girded by
defense walls, it consists of two churches, a
chapel and a cistern. The novices' cell, hollowed
out of a round rock, is covered with frescoes. The
view of the lake from the top of the monastery is
breathtaking. A person cannot help but consider
the sense of solitude and purification that must
have permeated the monks who underwent their
ordeal in this pristine setting. There are more
caves and more monasteries on the mountain that
can be reached by a five-hour climb. After scaling
the mountains and wandering among the ruins,

I sit down on the shores of Lake Bafa and ponder
whether or not I have succeeded in penetrating the
mystery of this place. The lake turns silver in
the radiant light of the full moon and the strains
of Endymion's flute seem to be audible in the
distance.