The ancient city of Kaunos, Çandır and a short country walk.

The trail starts from the parking lot at the museum of the ancient city of Kaunos. To get there you first have to cross the river from Dalyan with the ferry. For those who prefer so, it is possible to arrive by car.
The route includes an extensive visit to all parts of the museum of Ancient Kaunos and to the suggestive village of Çandır, followed by a walk through a beautiful area of nature. There are also plenty panoramas

Kaunos
Kaunos was an important sea port, the history of which is supposed to date back to the 10th century BC. Because of the formation of İztuzu Beach and the silting of the former Bay of Dalyan (from approx. 200 BC onwards), Kaunos is now located about 8 km from the coast. The city had two ports, the southern port at the southeast of Küçük Kale and the inner port at its northwest (the present Sülüklü Göl, Lake of the Leeches). The southern port was used from the foundation of the city till roughly the end of the Hellenistic era, after which it became inaccessible due to its drying out. The inner or trade port could be closed by chains. The latter was used till the late days of Kaunos, but due to the silting of the delta and the ports, Kaunos had by then long lost its important function as a trade port. After the capture of Caria by Turkish tribes, and the serious malaria epidemic of the 15th century AD (in our era), Kaunos was completely abandoned.

We enter the museum at the ticket office, after which we follow the entire route through the museum. Many people seem to get stuck in the first part, without visiting the rest. But then you only see the domed church and the theatre, and you actually miss most of the museum.

If you follow this route you will among others see:

The Domed Church.
The domed church is one of the earliest and best preserved examples of this type in Anatolia. The date of the original construction of this church must be placed at the 6th century AD. It is an approximately square plan (14 x 14,5 m) and has three naves. The central nave was covered by a dome, while the side naves were vaulted. The apse has a round inner and three-faceted outer face. The entrance to this church is through the three doors at the west Through the north and south oriented gates in the side naves, access was provided to the dome chapels joined to the eastern part of the church at a later date.

Just past the church (on our right) is a beautiful mosaic, which we should not miss.

The Theatre.
The theatre on the slope of the acropolis features both Hellenistic and Roman characteristics. The theatre has a diameter of 75 m and was built at a 27-degree angle. It had a capacity for 5000 spectators and is in a fairly good state. It is still occasionally used for performances.

The Temple terrace and the round structure.
Of the six temples that have been excavated, two of Hellenistic and four of Roman origin, probably the terrace temple of the 3rd century BC facing a circle of columns has the greatest appeal. Inside the circle an obelisk has been found, which is also depicted on old Kaunian coins. The obelisk was the symbol of king Kaunos, who according to mythology established the ancient city bearing his name.

The Basilica.
This apsidal monumental building (99 x 22m) with three naves built parallel to the shoreline of the commercial harbour basin is the forerunner of today's Cathedral structures along with other basilica buildings of the ancient era. Due to its function, while it is connected to the plain of the harbour Agora, it is also connected to the harbour to the south and to the Agora to the north. The apsidal-shaped main space crowns the west end of the building, which is accessed by a magnificent three-arched propylon. From the postament placed on the stylobate that separates the central nave from the side naves and the numerous superstructure elements, it is obvious that the building is designed as a two-storeyed structure on the sides. It was built in the 2nd century according to the datable architectural elements, which is also supported by written documents. Approximately half of this monumental building in the east was transformed into a Church during the succeeding period.

After the Basilica we leave the museum at the back, according to the signs at the beginning there should be an exit. In practice is not so easy to find the way out, probably because in this way more people will pass at the ticket office. So make sure you follow this gpx track as precise as possible to find the exit without any problems.

From here we go through narrow rural paved roads to Çandır, where we arrive at the mosque.

The mosque of Çandır
The website of Roam the Earth describes the mosque as follows:
The outside of the mosque appears reasonably plain from first site. It has a beautiful silver roof and the walls are white with grey facades and decor. But once you step inside, it is quite a different story. The walls are ornately decorated with tiny ceramic tiles, giving a mosaic effect to the lower section of the interior walls. Up above are beautiful stained glass windows and the ceiling and chandelier are gilded. The carpet is of course plush and in keeping with the blue and red colour scheme of the tiles, the saf lines are marked well in red against the light blue mass.
Make sure to enter the mosque to have a look yourself!
And if you're going to look around in the area of Kaunos and Çandır, check out the Roam the Earth web page beforehand. This page is full of interesting descriptions and suggestions. The link to the page can be found at the bottom of this text under "view more"

In Çandır there is also a market and a tap with drinking water for those who need it.
After Çandır we will walk through a part of the surrounding hills on a nature trail. The trail we follow is marked with red and white stripes and is indicated as "The ECO Trails: C4 - Ekincik-Çandır-Dalyan" This way we pass through a beautiful rural part of the area. There are open spaces and also some areas of forest, so there is still a lot of variation. Because we also go up a bit, there are sometimes nice views. The path also takes us past the ancient walls of Kaunos, which are located outside the museum.

The Kaunos city walls
The spectacular Kaunos city walls were erected during the reign of Mausolos in the 4th century BC. They are extraproportional in relation to the size of Kaunos and its population, presumably because the satrap had high expectations of the city's future as a marine and commercial port. The city walls start west of the inner port and run along the hills N and NW of the city, to the top of the steep cliff opposite Dalyan centre. There is a walking track along the wall, starting at the Çandır water station. The regularly-shaped rectangular blocks and the way the blocks have been positioned give a fine impression of Hellenistic building techniques. Parts of the wall are well-kept, other parts have been taken down and rebuilt.
(source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaunos )

From there we descend again and return to our starting point in a short while.

Some additional information:
The route is designed in a clockwise direction.
Time spent: total = 5 hours 42 minutes of which moving = 3 hours and 53 minuts
There are picnic tables after: absent
There is drinking water after: 2,8 km from the beginning.
The track is moderate from a technical point of view.
Presence of white-red signs:
From Çandır to the end we will follow the "The ECO Trails: C4 - Ekincik-Çandır-Dalyan"

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