After Konya and surroundings we travel further through Turkey via Sultanhani, Tuz Gölü, Karapinar and Hasan Daği to Cappadocia. We are here on a plateau with an average height of about 1,000 meters. The plain is immense and is widely used for agriculture. For us this is a transit area, towards the east of Turkey, but we do get some nice impressions of landmarks in this grand landscape.
This is the route we drove from Konya to Cappadocia (click on the map)
Sultanhani
With a repaired steering system we drive east on the two-lane road from Konya. Great to be able to drive well above 80 km / h without worrying about vibrations.
Along the main road from Konya to Cappadocia lies the town of Sultanhani with its old caravanserai. Here the caravans on the Silk Road to and from the east could catch their breath after a long stage through the arid steppe that this plateau undoubtedly was.
When we visit the caravanserai, we can imagine that groups of camels and their guides spent the night here and exchanged stories about the grueling journeys they had made or had ahead of them. The caravanserai has separate sleeping quarters and hammams for men and women and the animals can be stabled in the large space. On the other side of the courtyard there is a gallery where items can be traded. The mosque has a central place in the middle of the courtyard.
The information board includes:
“Sultanhani Caravanserai
The Sultanhani Seljuk Caravanserai, located on the Konya Aksaray road is the largest and most beautiful Sejuk Cravanserai. It was built in 1229 CE by architect Muhammed bin Havlan El Dimashki from Damascus under the order of Seljuk Sultan Alaeddin Keyk bad I- His reign 1221-1237 CE.
During the reign of Seljuk sultan Giyaseddin Keykhusrev II, the caravanseray was expanded by the local governor, Sirajettin el Hasan, in the year 1278, making it the largest caravanserayin Turkey.
…
Caravanserais provided accommodation, food and drinks free of charge for up to three days for both locals and foreigners of different ethnic groups and religions without discrimination“
Tuz Gölü
Because the Park4Night parking lot in Sultanhani is right next to the main road in the village, we decide to continue to Tuz Gölü. There we arrive with the sunset at the edge of the salt / water plain, a beautiful place and super quiet.
The sunrise the next morning is also exceptionally beautiful.
On the horizon, the contours of the volcano Hasan Daği are clearly visible, which is the direction we eventually take, towards Cappadocia. The salt lake is currently filled with water and the salt flat that is accessible in summer now consists of a layer of mud with a layer of water on top. So for us it is not an option to go for a walk here.
We therefore drive further along the lake, to the north. There is a salt production visible on the map, which seems interesting to us.
Unfortunately, our drive north is almost for nothing, the salt extraction is not open to visitors, despite our kind request to the security man.
Along the way we do see this flight of storks who make a stop here on their way to their breeding grounds in Europe.
Karapinar
After the fruitless drive to the north of Tuz Gölü we decide to drive towards Karapinar, there is a beautiful crater lake where we can camp tonight.
It’s a long drive, back to the south and onwards, about 50 km. The wind is strong and Milady can keep the speed of 80 km/h in 4th gear, she won’t go any faster and certainly not in 5th gear.
The photos on Google promise a crater lake around an extinct volcano, Meke Tuzlazi Krater Gölü. We find a dried up lake around that volcano. We can drive all the way around the volcano and meanwhile look for a place out of the stormy wind.
Hasan Daği
Unfortunately, a place out of the wind on the edge of this dry crater lake cannot be found. That is why we continue our way to the east, we see the Hasan Daği volcano more and more clearly on the horizon and we have found a Park4Night spot in the lee of the mountain.
There is some snow on top of the mountain and as we get higher there is also snow along the road and on the slopes.
The parking space at Hotel Karbeyaz is completely free, but it is still quite windy. We ask the owner of the hotel if we can stay here and he offers to stand in the lee of the hotel building. He speaks excellent German and reports that the hotel is closed for the Ramazan, but will open again later, at the end of April, the beginning of May.
I wheel Milady into the designated sheltered spot and we get ready for the night. Like every evening, we prepare a meal, this evening nasi with freshly cut vegetables and halloumi and a bag of nasi herbs that we brought with us from the Netherlands.
There is a strong wind at night and it is cold, but thanks to our woolen duvet we keep ourselves nice and warm.
The next morning Sonja looks out the window and sees that it has snowed, and not just a little. We have breakfast and I clear the snow from the car, accompanied by the enthusiastic wagging of the dogs present. It is not too bad how easily we can maneuver out of our sheltered spot.
The way down is also snowy, but with careful driving we get to better passable roads and we can continue our way towards Cappadocia.