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Turkish roadtrip pt. 2 - Hopa to Kars 🇹🇷
Part 1 can be found here: www.watchprosite.com
As promised, I wanted to continue with some further mountain / good driving road reports (might give you some additional ideas what to do with all the exciting cars featured here) 😉
This installment will take you from Hopa, next to the Georgian border on the Black Sea coast, to Kars, in the East of the country, not far from the (closed) Armenian border.
For some reason traffic lessens, too, and while there were some trucks along the way, generally these could be dispatched quite easily and did not in any way detract from the driving pleasure.
Soon snow returned onto the scene as well (it was February after all) and while the roads were impeccably cleaned, this was also one of the two places on the entire journey (around 4000 miles of it in Turkey), where a pothole was spotted. One really has to appreciate the investment and quality of road building throughout Turkey, even in the more rural, less traveled areas.
The roads at this point became curvier, allowing a wonderful flow and this section is a pleasure to navigate.
Along the road more traditional means of transportation are occasionally still spotted and they seemed to mind the cold even less than us (where we were in a car and they weren’t) 😉
At some point in between Hopa and Artvin you pass a really lovely accumulation lake, with water of an unexpected green color, providing a stark contrast to the environment.
Throughout the journey there would be plenty of such surprises, of nature simply (in this case supported by mankind but mostly not) taking your breath away.
While those short photo stops were certainly breathtaking, so was the road and the driving. Not taking the most direct route to Kars but adding a little detour through Narman (more on that later) offers some epic driving roads in perfect condition and practically empty to boot.
Along came the highest pass of the journey so far, the 2409m ASL Kirecli Gecidi (to be topped still). So high that even the birds decided to walk 😉
Shortly afterwards came a section that was only partially cleared of snow, adding some extra fun in the rear wheel drive steed used for the journey. These we always preferred downhill, as you at least had gravity helping along. And one of the snow chains took damage in our unsuccessful attempt to navigate the Bayburt Of Yolu the day before, so there was no backup available anymore.
Soon after we reached the small town of Narman, which I dug out from a travel report somewhere online (route planning happening a bit haphazardly on the go).
The reason this location was chosen are the really cool red rock chimney formations, which must be more fun to explore in summer…
But looked just right from our vantage point from the hotel / restaurant placed right next to them. We happened to be the only guests and got impeccable hospitality like everywhere during the journey. Still, having a full staff on hand for the odd person passing by was welcome, even if probably not profit maximizing 😉
With bellies full, the journey continued towards the final destination for the day - Kars.
While the rock formations of Narman were unique, further red rock was spotted along the route - the beauty being a constantly changing landscape, providing a great scenery for the passenger, while the driver enjoyed what was going on under the wheels.
This part of Turkey - at least in winter - also bore an uncanny resemblance to Siberia. Not in terms of lots of wooden buildings but very much resembling the somewhat larger towns. I guess since the climatic conditions are similar, so are the solutions.
As mentioned, the almost non existent traffic added an extra element of driving enjoyment and the vast empty plains and big skies were great.
At some point (and with the dearth of traffic, who can blame them) the roads again started being only partially cleared to add some more buzz to the drive but without other traffic on the roads and good momentum inclines could be managed well, even with only the rear wheels driven.
A final ascent to the 2344m high Bogatepe Gecidi and we were on the home stretch to Kars.
Remember the comments on the road clearing? In spite of low traffic volumes they really did do so reasonably diligently, as witnessed below - now that’s a picture one probably never sees in tourist brochures about Turkey ❄️
For those appreciating large snowy plains, the nature around was breathtaking 🙌🏻
Finally we made it to Kars and as every day (10000 steps were a must after the average ~600 daily miles driven), some sightseeing was in order. Sadly the local dog population did not understand our necessity to carry speed uphill for lack of traction. Still, we somehow made it to the top, where the Kars fortress was located.
The vantage point provided great views in all directions, but don’t ask me what all the sights were 😉🤷🏻♂️
With the cultural program completed and us safely descended to level ground, it was time for dinner. We chose a recommended restaurant and like in most places outside of the beaten tourist trail the communication took place through the means of the restaurant staff finding a guest fluent enough to translate the menu for us (Google Translate being the other option). Where there’s a will, there’s always a way.
While the geographical distance to Hopa wasn’t huge, the food was very different. In Hopa the dishes had much more resemblance to Georgian cuisine, here it was much more similar to what you could expect to find in Chechnya.
Boiled mutton for the win - but as always there was plenty of diversity on offer.
Hope you enjoyed the little detour to roads probably less known to those in Europe or the US but which can certainly be highly recommended, if you’re an avid road tripper 👌🏻👍🏻
Last but not least - just as a little demonstration of it really being cold in Turkey in winter 🥶🇹🇷
Will add some more segments on the weeks to come 🏁
Turkish roadtrip pt. 2 - Hopa to Kars 🇹🇷
Part 1 can be found here: As promised, I wanted to continue with some further mountain / good driving road reports (might give you some additional ideas what to do with all the exciting cars featured here) 😉 This installment will take you from Hopa, next...
I can highly recommend it 👌🏻👍🏻
Lots to see, lots to eat - and lots of good driving to be done (only proviso being that renting a car locally might not give you the most exciting options or that they will cost an arm and a leg due to the high import duties) 😊😋
You may want to consider…
Renting something in Greece or Bulgaria and then crossing over, as you will get a drastically better price / performance ratio 👍🏻
Sure thing - glad if you enjoy the series 😊👍🏻
Also helps me to remember things some years down the line 😂🤷🏻♂️ It’s a large country with lots of things to see and experience and I was really surprised at how well suited to a road trip it has been 👌🏻
Enjoyed the pics!
Thanks for sharing. Surprised to see so much snow at this time of the year considering the summer heat and relatively modest altitude.
The plateau is all above 1000m above sea level and as seen…
Altitudes easily rise to above 2000m. At this end of the trip the temperatures dropped to around -19 degrees Centigrade, so the ingredients were all there 😁❄️ But yes, not what one generally associates with Turkey 😉👍🏻
Up to this point down to -19 🥶
But I understand the desire to go during warmer times 😉 Albeit it can be quite hot in summer, so spring or autumn are probably the most ‘neutral’. At any rate the roads would be superb fun with your Alpine - you should really try it. If you’re determined ...
Not sure 🤷🏻♂️
There used to be quite some overnight car trains but as to whether any are running from Paris to the South I do not know 🤷🏻♂️ Would shorten the journey a bit for sure 👍🏻
Just checked…
There is a car train from Düsseldorf to Villach, which would save you quite a bit of driving. From Villach you can reach Istanbul in a day, Google Maps being pessimistic about the driving time. If not in high season, the only border crossing that takes so...
Overnight train, from Ankara to Kars, would be another option if it were for full moon.
I stayed at Kar's Hotel. I highly recommend it. The dinner option was the same as yours, Kars Kaz Evi. There must be some cheese shops, too.
There certainly were cheese shops…
But with many more days of travel we figured it would not have been a smart choice to carry it with for so long, irrespective of the outside temperatures 🤷🏻♂️
You have to bear with me for the pics taken from a moving car 🤷🏻♂️
Some more static shots and nice landscapes to follow in the later installments 😊🤞🏻