Turkey Dogubayazit N 39.52947° E 44.10824°
We parked in the street in Dogubayazit and took a walk around just to see what things were available. We got some money - yeh - ATMs work. There seems to be a lot of internet cafes and will try one tomorrow. Found a baker selling something we recognize as bread. After shopping we headed approximately south along the main street towards Ishak Pacha (Isaac's Palace) and found a spot at a local camping ground called Lalezar Camping
Turkey Lake Van N 38.91328° E 43.58849°
Not long after the road started running beside Lake Van we came upon a picnic area and decided this would do for the night. Just after we stopped a German couple and their 2 children in a converted UPS van stopped to say hello. They are on their way to Iran, Pakistan and India.
Turkey Goreme N 38.63727° E 34.85390°
Late in the afternoon we found our way to Goreme, one of the towns in the Cappadocia area of Turkey, and to Kaya Camping a camping and caravaning park (caravaning is what it seems Europeans call RVing). Seems like a nice place, electricity, hot showers, wifi and washing machines. There is only one other vehicle/couple staying here, interestingly they were one of the vehicles in that Seabridge tour group we encountered in Iran.
Turkey Ibradi N 37.00665° E 31.58083°
By late afternoon we were looking for any flat spot off the roadway as an overnight camp when we spotted a rough side road that would give us protection for the traffic on the narrow mountain road.
Turkey Tasagil N 36.89258° E 31.23738°
Around 3:30pm the rain came back in force so rather than drive through a torrential downpour we stopped on a side road near a gas station for the night. Not a very attractive position but safe enough.
Turkey Antalya N 36.86390° E 30.64213°
Just west or is it south of Antalya where the road runs right beside the sea we stopped in one of the many parking places. There were a few other vans, motorhomes and trucks also spending the night parked beside the Mediterranean.
Turkey Kas N 36.19641° E 29.63257°
Eventually we arrived at the seaside town of Kaş (pronounced Kash) where we planned to spend a few days at a camping ground. We had heard from Peter and Barbara (the Swiss couple we met on the road in Tajikistan) that the place was pleasant. We did a little, accidental, tour of town/village as the road through the town that our GPS picked was closed and so we had to back track. Getting into a spot at the campground was also a bit of a trick as it is a very tight place. But we finished up parked about 20 meters from the water.
Turkey Kas N 36.20481° E 29.63679°
After lunch and a lot of talk about travel and a few beers it was getting a bit late in the day to start moving so we simply stayed in the street in front of the apartment for the night.
Turkey Pamukkale N 37.91449° E 29.12135°
Late in the afternoon we arrived in the township of Pamukkale. At the town entrance we saw signs to two local camp grounds and started heading for the closest (which the sign said was just a little farther up the main street). Along the way a guy waved us over by making a "tent" with his hands and we proceeded to negotiate price and services for us to park in his "campground". It looked more like the grass yard of a delapidated motel and restaurant. But it had electricity and toilets. It also had showers supposedly but a little trial indicated that the water flow was cold and slow.
Turkey Somewhere along the road N 37.85275° E 28.65691°
Late in the afternoon we found a big parking lot beside the road and pulled in for the night. When we got there the lot was empty but during the night it turned into a major truck convention with vehicles packing the place so tightly that someone was there during the night helping the truckies manouver in and out.
Turkey Ozdere N 37.98586° E 27.14284°
With our visit to the ruins complete we bundled back into the truck and followed along the coast road for some distance until we found a rough parking lot on a spectacular headland overlooking a large tourist hotel which at this time of year seemed all but abandoned. Later in the evening I was roused from bed by a police patrol wanting to know who and what we were, but a brief conversation plus a display of passports and visas and they left us to a peaceful night.
Turkey Bergama N 39.10040° E 27.15558°
Our destination for the day was the town of Bergama (the ruins of Pergamum) where we had read were some (more!) interesting ruins and a camping/caravan ground. We planned on maybe spending a couple of nights at this camping ground in order to take care of a bunch of business and organizational things
As promised it had toilets, electricity, wifi but only a trickle of hot water.
Turkey Burhaniye N 39.52295° E 26.99899°
Once done with our sightseeing at Pergamum we headed back towards the coast and followed the road through many communities until late in the afternoon we found an abandoned gas station with a nice flat concrete driveway for us to park on for the night.
Turkey Burhaniye N 39.52295° E 26.99899°
Aproaching the town of Troy we saw a large, clear blue sign announcing "Homeric camping/caravan" so we turned into the towns main street as indicated by the sign but alas the camp could not be found. At the other end of the main street we found another sign for the same place pointing back the way we had just come. Very strange. Nina asked one of the locals having tea at a small cafe and he enthusiatically jumped into his car signalling us to follow. Back at that second sign he pointed at the sign but indicate that other than the sign he had no idea where the caravan/camp was. But he did take us to the ticket booth at the entrance to the Troy archealogical park. They pointed us 300m back down the main road (not the towns main street) to a different but entirely suitable caravan camp.
Turkey Burhaniye N 39.95649° E 26.24889°
We spent another cold night in the same caravan camp
Turkey Eceabat N 40.18231° E 26.36033°
We spent the afternoon soaking up the towns "atmosphere" and camped for the night in the waterfront car park. No one seemed to care that we were there. Dinner was döner at a local cafe.
Turkey Kilitbahir N 40.14605° E 26.37981°
After all the sightseeing we headed back to the east coast with a plan to spend the night in the same parking lot and tomorrow visit the old fort and artillery battery at the town of Kilitbahir, a little south of Eceabat. But - at Kilitbahir we were confronted by an old stone arch across the road with very convincing signs informaing us that it was only 3.8M tall in the middle and considerably lower on the edges. So we simply parked in front of the artillery battery for the night.
Turkey Selımpaşa N 41.08491° E 28.40668°
As the day wore on the traffic got a little thicker but nothing serious as the roads continued to be good and mostly 4 lane. Just as the sun was going down we arrived at Istanbul Mocamp near the town of Selımpaşa. To our relief the caretaker was present. It did not take long to get hooked up and settle in for the night. That was after showers under hot but trickling water in a well ventilated shower room.
Turkey Istanbul N 40.98572° E 28.83617°
After a long roadside discussion using the iPhone to translate he offered that he knew a good place to park for the night near the airport. Exhausted and having no other good options as it was now late in the day we agreed. So another half an hour of follow the leader through heavy traffic brought us to a very large concreted area with dozens of cars, mini buses and large buses parked. After saying goodbye and thank you to the taxi driver we settled in for the night. Thoughout the evening vehicles came and went in a steady stream. We eventually deduced that this was where some rent-a-car companies stored their vehices and where buses and hire cars waited for their clients to arrive at the nearby airport.
Turkey Istanbul N 41.00137° E 28.97738°
The parking lot, a small lot right next to the water, is well known among the European Caravan/RV/Motorhome fraternity, it is even in some of the caravan guides such as CamperContact.com Advice to other travelers; if you are aiming for this parking lot make sure you get onto Kennedy a long way our from your destination. Our problems yesterday arose because our GPS chose a route that tried to cut across the city. This is clearly a well know and well used overnight place in Istanbul for Caravans as the sign with prices even has a category for caravans. However the facilities are limited, one grubby asian style toilet, a small dock for some decrepit looking small boats, and a constant stream of locals coming to park and buy tea/coffe from a kiosk made from an abandoned van. But still one can forgive or live with much of that as it is literally a 1 km walk to the Blue Mosque.