Simbalu Cove

Ölüdeniz is possibly the most picturesque location along the whole turquoise coast. Widely advertised for its long stretch of white sand and the deep blue lagoon directly behind. It's surrounded by high mountains that have a constant stream of paragliders launching from the peaks and landing on the beach.

Being a 30-minute drive from Fethiye, we were surprised to find it very much closed for the season. The last remaining beach bar setups were in the middle of their end-of-season pack-down. Even in this state we could tell that in the high season this place would be crazy.

Jessie had heard about a place called Butterfly Valley. Despite being reported as “boat-access” only Jessie had read that there was a way to hike down into it. (Not without its warnings that it was pretty difficult). We drove further along the coast to where the road came the closest to it and found a small place along the cliff edge that had a view down into the valley. The hike down would definitely be a challenge! There were massive signs erected saying it was “dangerous, and forbidden” to climb down to the valley. Perhaps fortunately for us, at this time of year, the sun didn’t quite make it into the valley and beach below so we were less inclined to try our luck at the climb down.

We found a spot along the road for a simple Gozleme lunch and continued on our way along the coast in search of a beach to hang out. The end of the road brought us down to Kabak Beach. In what appeared to be a hippie commune Kabak Beach was at the base of a gully with a dozen or so camps and lodge setups. The beach itself was simple enough and was the perfect spot to have a swim and soak up some sun. The water was incredibly bright blue living up to the name of the turquoise coast.Read more