Kekova

After leaving Kas one sails past Uluburun and sets a course for Kekova, a spot that is like heaven on earth. One first encounters the Sicak peninsula at the end of which are two islands: Toprakada and Karaada. Kekova island stretches out from here and it is because of this island that the whole area is called Kekova. Passing among the islands and arriving at Kekova, the safest anchorage is Üçagiz, which is a good, all-round harbour

Kekova Island and the town of Kale nearby Antalya make an idyllic daytrip for the traveler looking for a combination of sunshine, swimming and fascinating historic ruins. Many operators run trips from Kas but the journey is much shorter from Çayagzi, the harbor of Demre. Along the stony coastline the boatman may stop at a cave, or point out the occasional goat or the smoldering pyramids of wood used by peasants to make charcoal, the product may sit in plastic sacks at the water's edge, waiting to be taken away.

Along the edge of the island facing the mainland lie the fascinating half- submerged remains of a Lycian sunken city, and probably from Byzantine times later on. Signs warn against skin- diving, so you can not swim here because many foreigners in the past took a piece of ancient relics with them as a souvenir. The boatman will allow the passengers on board off for a swim further to the west, where the remains of a Byzantine chapel stand on the beach and where further sunken remains can be explored at ease by the swimmer with mask and snorkel.

A fascinating Lycian necropolis, with chest-type tombs spread out along the coastline, lies at Teimiussa, near the present-day Üçagiz on the mainland across from Kekova. This can also be reached by track from the main road between Kas and Demre, where it is signposted. The boat-tripper may be content with a sea-born view and pass to Kale, the ancient Simena, which sits nearby below the crenellated ramparts of an earlier hilltop Roman castle.

The castle houses a small theater, cut into the rock, for just about 300 people, a sign that this was a minor settlement in Roman times. Down in the harbor the turquoise sea laps at waterside restaurants offering good Turkish food including locally caught fish. A lone Lycian sarcophagus standing in a few centimeters of water at the western side lures visitors to pose beside it for photographs.

Today Kekova is a very popular ancorage for sailors who enjoy the history together with the nature.

Antik şehirleri Simena ve Teimiussa ile uzun ve dar olan Kekova adası; antik olmasına rağmen, hala gemiler için iyi korunmuş bir liman olan bir koyun önünde uzanır. İçinde Teimiussa'nın antik kalıntılarını barındıran, balıkçı köyü Üçağız, koyun iç tarafındadır. Teimiussa ismini, Yunanca "üç ağız" anlamına gelen "eristomo" sözcüğünden almıştır. Bu isim coğrafi konumundan kaynaklanmaktadır. Bu üç ağızı, adanın doğusunda ve batısında bulunan kanal şelindeki iki giriş oluşturur. Simena'nın antik yerleşmesi doğu girişine hakim bir manzara ile Kale Köyü'nün civarında uzanır. Koyda, deniz seviyesine kadar yuvarlanan taşlar, bir takım küçük adalar oluşturmuştur. Eski çağlarda, kayalardan yontulan büyük taş bloklar inşaat amacıyla kullanılmıştır.


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