Samsun: A modern city,
ancient Amisos and gateway to the Kisilirmak Delta
Water buffalo enjoying the marshes of the Kisilirmak Delta
near Samsun.
Black Sea Logbook Entry
Dates: 6/21-6/25/2010
Distance: 61 nm
Sailed from: Yakakent
Lat: 41° 19.2'N
Long: 36° 20.1'E
Samsun is home to one of the few harbors built primarily for
yachts on the Turkish Black Sea coast. We steered through of a small fleet
of Optimist dinghies practicing outside the harbor and tied alongside the quay at the Samsun
Yelken Kulubu (Sailing Club). David went ashore to the office to
register and to reserve a rental car for inland exploration. After three
weeks on the Black Sea, it is a complete novelty to find a "real"
marina with staff, water and electricity at the dock, and a nice bar and
restaurant on the premises! He also met the president of the club along
with some of the members who were gathered in his office on the premises, one of
whom produced an electrical adaptor so we could plug-in to the two-prong 220V
system.
The following day, we set-out by rental car to visit the Kisilirmak
Delta, an area we passed by boat when rounding the Bafra peninsula.
The delta is designated as a "Wetland of International Importance" by
the Ramsar Convention and is a key part of an Ecoregion identified by the World
Wildlife Fund on its Global 200 list. We spent an enjoyable day meandering
along the small roads through farmlands, rice paddies, marshes and dunes to the
mouth of the river and then back through the town of Bafra. The
list of animal and wildlife sightings was long, including water buffalo, wild
horses, storks, eagles, herons, terns and numerous water birds. In our
second day with the car, we drove up into the mountains for a visit to the
famous city of Amasya, tucked into a steep gorge of the Yesilirmak
River -- we will be rounding the cape formed by the delta of this major
river by boat after we leave Samsun.
Back in Samsun, we managed to locate a newly opened site with
archeological finds from the ancient Greek city of Amisos. The local
officials seem to have discovered that ancient ruins attract tourists and built
a fancy new tram to shuttle people from the waterfront park to the site atop the
hill. It turns out that the modern yacht harbor is also very close to the
site of the ancient harbor.
We were the only foreign yacht at the club during our stay, so
we were surprised one evening when Robert and Susanne, German and Swiss friends
of Cherokee, appeared on the quay alongside Gyatso. They had
left their yacht in Yakakent and were exploring the eastern Black Sea region by
land. We had last seen them in Sinop, so they came aboard for a glass of
wine and to catch-up.
Samsun itself is a large, modern city situated around a
commercial harbor. Its claim to fame in Turkish history is that it is the
place that Atatürk started to organize the military campaign for independence
on 19 May 1919. Streets, parks and even the local university are named
after this historic date On the road leading west from the city, we found
a modern shopping mall with a big Migros supermarket which was packed with
shoppers. We stocked up on needed provisions and got our inland travel and
big city fix in Samsun before moving on again to the east.
Our Black Sea voyage continues in Unye,
Turkey...
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