Small fishing boats chugged across the bay in search of bluefish,
and Kane braved the water in lieu of a shower - but not for long.
It’s pretty chilly here at nights now, but we’re snug in the roof tent with our 4 season down sleeping bags (even Anne, who has a tendency to get freakishly cold when stationary - she’s been known to wear jackets in non-air conditioned offices in the middle of summer and suchlike).
We drove up the peninsula, first to Anzac Cove (SPOT) where the ill-fated Allied landings were made on 25 April 1915,
stopping at evocatively named cemeteries such as Hell Spit Cemetery and Shrapnel Valley Cemetery.
We carried on along the coast to New Zealand No.2 Outpost Cemetery, which was a particularly poignant spot for the Kiwis. Each cemetery lists the dead by country, along with the number of unidentified soldiers buried there, a stark reminder of the sacrifices made.
It was quite emotional reading the epitaphs on the gravestones, and the Commonwealth Grave Commission should be commended maintaining the sites to such a high standard.
There are also many Turkish cemeteries and memorials, and the peninsular is meant to get over 2 million domestic visitors annually.
The words of peace and reconciliation spoken by Atatürk in 1934 are displayed at the Ariburnu Coastal Memorial.
Today it is hard to image the fighting that took place on this pine covered piece of coastline, but over 130,000 men died, a third of these from Allied forces. At times the trenches were only eight meters apart.
After nine months of fighting, the remaining Allied troops withdrew.
A thick Turkish coffee at the small harbour of Kabatepe perked us up for the drive over to Eceabat on the east side of the peninsula in search of a late lunch.
We almost ran down the restaurant owner who leaped out in front of our convoy, flagging us down to eat in his restaurant on the harbour front. Our first Turkish kebab was delicious and on our way out of town we spied a fishing shop for Kane, who had commented last night that he wished he had a hand line as he fancied his chances of catching something off the pier. A helpful local with excellent English translated and Kane walked away with a rod, line and hooks for the equivalent of £12, and an invite to be shown where to catch bluefish at Kilitbahir. Mark and Briar bought beanies for 8 TL (about £3.30). Looks like Turkey may be our first cheaper country, with the exception of fuel.
The Cape Hellas British Memorial at the southern end of the peninsula was our last call of the day before we looked for a secluded place to stop for the night.
A suitable site on the cliff top again had magnificent sunset views across the Aegean Sea,
and the BBQ provided both food and warmth (we’re going to have try to find a small collapsible one for the Land Rover).
Briar even whipped up a cheesecake for desert; who says you have to rough it when you wild camp. SPOT
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