Trip Report #2-2002: In The Yard

Filed from Ayvalik, Turkey

39 18.76 N   026 31.24 E

May 25, 2002

Photo: Marmaris Bay from hills above Marmaris Yacht Marine  

    Having returned to Marmaris in March, Tom had been working very hard on the boat for nearly six weeks; and when he picked me up at the airport in Izmir in April, he was ready for a break.  We took our time driving back to Marmaris and, on the way, stopped to see Ephesus.  Ephesus is the largest and oldest archeological site in Asia Minor. The ruins date to early Greek and Roman times, but the history of the site goes back to Ionian settlers here in the eleventh century B.C.   Walking through the streets of this ancient Greco-Roman city and down the broad Marble Road toward the impressive Celsius Library, one can get a sense of how people lived here. The layout of the city and the sense of its' grandness is remarkably preserved.

Photo:  Tom in the theatre at Ephesus

Photo: Peg checks out columns along the Marble Road, Ephesus

Photo: Celsius Library at Ephesus

    We also visited Heiropolis and the calcium springs at Pamukkale.  The ruins of the city and cemetery at Heiropolis date to the first century B.C. When we got out of our car to explore the ruins, a group of school children swarmed around us wanting to know where we were from and eager to practice their English.  They were so friendly and spontaneous and we enjoyed being with them very much.

Photo: Turkish schoolchildren at Heiropolis

Photo: The 3-arched gate of the main street at Heiropolis

    Formed by the cascading of calcium springs which build up in pools that run over, Pamukkale looks like a mountain covered with snow or cotton.  In fact, it is referred to here as the cotton castle. Visitors to the site can wade and relax in the warm pools, which take on the color of the sky and are very beautiful, particularly at sunset.  When we were there, the weather was cool and cloudy.  We met the children again, who had removed socks and shoes and were frolicking in the warm water.

Photo: Peg & Tom at Pamukkale

Photo: Hot Springs and pools at Pamukkale

    After this brief respite of sightseeing, we went to the yard in Marmaris to continue with the work required to get the boat ready to launch and begin cruising again. Believe it or not, cruising is hard work. Our friend, Mac, says that since he retired and starting cruising with his wife, Rosie, he's never worked so hard in his life.  There are times, when we are preparing to cruise, that we think he is absolutely right. Even on a very well-maintained boat like ours, the list of jobs that need to be done every year is extensive. Click here to view list of pre-launch work that we did this year. 

    The yard is very large, clean, mostly cement and has a great deal of room for very large and interesting boats.  The Turkish gulets, which are numerous and are seen everywhere here in Turkey, are large wooden, usually pine, boats.  They usually have more than one mast, two or three being the rule, with a variety of rigging arrangements, large comfortable afterdecks and long bowsprits.  These boats are often used to take tourists out for day trips, but can also be chartered privately.  Some are privately owned and cruised.  They are beautiful boats that require a lot of work because of the soft wood they are made from.  A typical gulet for charter has 4 large staterooms with bath ensuite and can accommodate 8 adults.  The cost to charter for one week is about $5000 USD, with crew, not including the cost of food; but, like most things in Turkey, it may be negotiable.

Photo: Gulets in the yard at Marmaris Yacht Marine

     The other interesting crafts in this yard are large motor yachts, 60 to 100 ft, that are also made of wood, faired with epoxy to look like fiberglass.  The owner of a boat parked next to us told us that he had admired and coveted an Italian-designed 80 ft. motor yacht made from fiberglass.  When he investigated having one built in Italy, he found that it would have cost 2.5 million USD.  He purchased the boat plans and had the same design, with all of the best equipment, built in Turkey, using the wood and epoxy construction technique; and it only cost him 1.5 million USD. We saw quite a few of these boats, however, that required major work in the yard to reconstruct some of the wooden parts of the boat.

Photo:  Work being done on the wood bow of a motor yacht

    We found that the work that we had done in Turkey, from woodwork to painting to stainless steel fabrication, was all very well done, completed in a timely fashion, and done fairly inexpensively.  Most parts and supplies needed could be found in Marmaris or made by the talented workmen in the Industrial Area (Sinai in Turkish) of the town.  The Sinai is a collection of small shops, each specializing in a specific trade and with all the tools, large machinery, equipment, supplies and skilled workers needed for practically any job. Tom came to really enjoy the whole area.  He could source anything and get anything done - his kind of place.

Photos:  Tom chats with his friends in the shops in the Sinai

    The Marmaris Yacht Marine was a very good place to keep and work on the boat.  It was a 20-minute dolmus (minivan bus) ride into Marmaris, which cost 900,000 (about $.70) Turkish Lira each way; and the bus stop was at the entrance to the marina.  The fee for a six-month stay on the hard (or in the water or any combination) in the marina, with water and electricity, including one haul-out and splash, was about $960.  The marina had a very nice restaurant, pool, small grocery store and clean restrooms and showers.  There was also a cantina which served a very good hot meal, cafeteria-style, at lunch and dinner for about $1.50, for all workers, including cruisers.

Photo:  Tom waits for the dolmus to Marmaris

    There was a nice group of cruising people in the yard and the social life here was just what was needed after a long day of working. The cruisers would often meet for a get-together in the bar and restaurant, for weekly barbecues around the pool, or for expeditions into Marmaris to the cinema or other activities.

Photo: Sunday barbecue in the marina

Photos:  Social times at the marina

     The hills around the marina were a great place to hike.  Friend, Rosie, and I would walk everyday, passing a farmhouse on our way.  We came to look forward to a daily brief visit with a very friendly, hard-working Turkish woman, who was always out in the farmyard at that early hour (7am), milking the cow, feeding the chickens or dipping water from a well.

Photo:  Turkish farm woman

Photo:  On the hiking path with Rosie and Tilka

    Our original plans called for cruising in the Adriatic Sea this summer, but our plans have changed.  Instead, we will be joining a flotilla of cruising boats and sailing in the Black Sea.  One of the great things about cruising is being able to change direction and take advantage of opportunities.  And we will probably not be in this part of the world again.  So, when we leave Marmaris, we will head up the Turkish coast to meet the rest of the flotilla in Istanbul.

                         Allaha ismarladik -

                         Peg & Tom aboard s/v Starboard Home                       

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