Evliya Çelebi Way: Turkey’s 1st long-distance walking and riding route

In Evliya’s hoofprints

“Evliya Çelebi traveled far and wide for over 40 years, and recorded his journeys and his experiences along the way in 10 large volumes, known as the ‘Seyahatname,’ or ‘Book of Travels’,” says Ottoman historian Caroline Finkel, who co-authored the guidebook with trekking guide writer Kate Clow, and equestrian historian Donna Landry. “To our surprise, it’s the first guidebook to any part of his journeys.”

“In Evliya’s time, pilgrims traveling to the Holy Cities from İstanbul went more or less diagonally southeast across Anatolia to Adana, then south to Damascus, and on via Medina to Mecca,” she continues.

“Evliya wasn’t in a hurry. He had time to explore places he hadn’t previously seen, and to revisit others. Like thousands of people over the centuries, he and his companions and servants traveled by horse.”

“Strictly speaking, the Evliya Çelebi Way should begin in İstanbul, at Üsküdar on the Asian shore of the Bosporus, since Evliya began his pilgrimage journey from the capital,” she goes on. “But urban sprawl and traffic leaves no space for sustainable, slow travel, and therefore it begins where Evliya landed after crossing the İzmit Gulf, at the historic village of Hersek; it also skirts some of the cities and towns he visited. From Hersek, Evliya followed an ancient track south, over the Samanlı Dağları, to the walled, lakeside town of İznik, famous for its magnificent ceramics. Continuing south, he crossed the Avdan Dağları to the Yenişehir Plain. There, Evliya went west to Bursa, an early and important seat of the Ottoman dynasty. The route bypasses the city, and again turns east, wandering through picturesque villages in the Uludağ Massif foothills. Evliya headed south again, climbing through bandit-infested forest to cross the Domaniç Dağları to the Çukurca Basin. The Way also omits Evliya’s diversion to Tavşanlı where nowadays there’s a great deal of mining and pollution, and rises again from Çukurca before following streams flowing down to the plain of Kütahya, Evliya’s ancestral city. Continuing south across the Altındağ Plain, the route approaches Afyonkarahisar, famous for the castle situated prominently on a high volcanic outcrop. It then swings west on lesser tracks through rolling, wooded countryside towards the city of Uşak. From Uşak, Evliya went north to Eskigediz, a town that was all but wiped out in an earthquake in 1970, and then west along the slopes of Şaphane Dağ to the plain of Simav where, for the present, the route ends. Evliya himself continued to İzmir on the Aegean coast, and onwards to his goal.”

Chance to discover Ottoman heartlands

The Evliya Çelebi Way and guidebook aim to encourage people to travel in Turkey’s magnificent countryside and discover the vestiges of the Ottoman heartlands in northwest Anatolia.

“Many of the villages along the Way were once staging posts on important routes,” Finkel points out. “Now they’re traditional farming villages, some with ruined or restored old buildings as reminders of past glories. The varied landscapes, trees, wildflowers and wildlife bring enormous pleasure to modern visitors, who are likely to be city dwellers. The route gives people the chance to discover history and to explore a well-established but unfamiliar culture and way of life.”

Meeting the people who live along the route today is one of its main pleasures. “The villagers warmly welcome travelers, and all the more so because they’re following in the steps of one of the greatest of all Ottomans,” she underlines. “Schoolchildren learn about Evliya’s journeys, and adults know if he passed their way and what he wrote. All who travel in Evliya’s tracks are reinforcing this connection, and sharing their link to the Ottoman past.”

But in this little-visited area of Turkey, how have the locals reacted to walkers and riders? “Seeing strangers on horseback traveling across their land prompts nostalgia and reminiscence among the elderly,” Finkel explains, “but many of the kids have never seen a horse close up and they queue to have a turn in the saddle. Trekkers are regarded with more amazement; the idea that anyone might walk with a heavy pack for pleasure is a new one. And bikers are thus far few. However, because travelers along the route are going slowly, the local people know that they’re interested in learning about their lives, and ready to listen to what they have to say.”

The Evliya Çelebi Way also has the potential to contribute to the local rural economy. “We’d like the route to become part of a national plan to promote small-scale, sustainable tourism,” she comments. “Locals are often generously willing to share their resources, whether food, transport or accommodation. But, except for small gifts, such as tea, some fruit or a short lift, it’s a good idea for visitors to pay reasonable prices for hospitality offered; if the man of the house is too proud to accept money, they should give it to the women.” Finkel adds that she hopes the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism appreciates how much visitors to Turkey enjoy going off the beaten track.

* For information on the EÇW and to buy the guidebook, see: http://www.cultureroutesinturkey.com/c/evliya-celebi-way/

http://www.evliyacelebiway.com/ will be working soon

To be continued tomorrow.