I’ve been in love with Seven Lakes and autumn photos for many years. I am on my way to Yedigöller, whose photos I fell in love with.. They say that the place where autumn suits best is Yedigöller National Park. I have some places, right under my nose, but there is always a setback, where plans are made for weeks and cannot be visited at the last minute.. One of them is Yedigöller.. I’m very curious about Yedigöller. I always go to look at the magnificent landscapes I see from your photos, smell and touch them.
For an alternate fall route, also read my post here.
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One evening, my teacher Nihat said, “Spring, there is room for one person.. A few hours between saying “Get ready, we’re going to Yedigöller” and finding myself in the photo group of 25 people at 4 in the morning.. We arrive at Yedigöller around 6 am on dark roads.. We want to photograph the sunrise, but it’s dark yet. We also sleep in the car. First time almost. If you are on the road with my teacher Nihat, you must be punctual.. He always uses the time to the maximum. With daybreak we throw ourselves out.
With a few tents set up, we quietly descend to the lakeside without waking the campers.. Here’s a dream that never came true. I think it was easier to go to Africa. With the arrival of autumn, the seven lakes that start to take on amazing colors are Büyükgöl, Küçükgöl, İncegöl, Sazlıgöl, Deringöl strong>, Kurugöl and Seringöl, that is, there are indeed seven lakes, like its name.
I seem to be in one of the famous painter Bob Ross paintings that our generation will know very well.. He must have formed the sentences that started with “Let’s draw a tree here”.. We’re busy taking all kinds of pictures regardless of the light drizzle.. Because we acted early, no one else has come yet.. I start climbing towards the waterfall as I walk up the lake below in front of the camping tents.
Smiling Rocks
I dive in when I see an article called Laughing Rocks near the waterfall.. I’m here, wait, it’s almost time, should I come back? I’ve come so far, when I say let’s continue, I find the rocks. Although I don’t understand why the rocks are called Laughing Rocks, the visuals are beautiful. More precisely, the road to Gülen Kayalar is beautiful.
The landscapes I pass are so beautiful that I don’t even feel the climbing. This tiny waterfall, which consists of water seeping from the bottom of Nazlı Lake, is very productive for photography.. I’m not someone who can stop and take long pictures in the same place, I’m not a photographer anyway.. Let me go to the waterfall while the others take their pictures, I lose the group when I say hither and thither.
There is no one but me in the big forest.. Did I lie on leaves, roll over, hug trees, talk to them?. I did it all. I walked alone and found other lakes and people at last.. So I’m not lost. I took pictures in all the lakes, I breathed the fresh air. I also found my friends returning while going up the normal way. I continued alone again.
This time I got stuck with another group and reached Smiling Rocks by another way.. I don’t mind boiling in between. When you enter the National Park, you can reach other lakes by walking up the asphalt road from Büyükgöl and from here; If your guide loves nature and you like to walk, he can take you through the forest to Smiling Rocks. Many vehicles had gone all the way up, so they didn’t have to climb the slope.. During the whole day, I visited 3 waterfalls, twice Smiling Rocks and lakes many times.. I went to the Atmaca observation terrace. I don’t know where I sleep on nights like these.
Dilek Fountain (Yedisular)
One of the most photographed places here is Dilek Fountain (Yedisu)
strong>. On your way to the waterfall. I don’t know if water is drinkable, but as you can imagine, I drank it.. As I learned later, the prayers said after taking a sip from each of the waters flowing from this fountain are accepted.. Of course I drank and prayed. At around 3 am when I came back from a night walk…
There is also a deer hatchery here. The first trout production in Turkey was made here in Büyükgöl in 1969. There are remains from the Byzantine period in the Koyyeri region within the national park.. This means that this place used to be a residential area.
The park, which is very rich in wild animals, is a true nature paradise.. Flowing waters, lakes, over 100 birds, countless tree species, whatever you look for.. The fact that it offers a visual feast for each season is already worth everything.
Yedigöller and Camping
The best seasons for camping are from April to November. Caravan and tent camping can be done in a part of it.. We should definitely come with a caravan on a weekend.. You can bring something with you for lunch, even if you come here for a picnic, let’s say you didn’t buy anything.. There are foods such as toast, sausage bread, meatballs that you can eat in a small buffet.. We used the last option.
We got wet during the day, we laughed a lot, I got lost from time to time, then I found myself again, climbed, got my fill of the lake, green and all the red colors of autumn.. One never comes back from here. We get in our vehicle, close to dark, and drive on with songs, conversations, and conversations about the photos we took.
My Seven Lakes tale that could not be realized for many years. It ends with me making very good friends, taking great photos and returning with great memories.. If Bob Ross had seen these places, he would have drawn another painting…
Update: When I went back 3 years later, I camped with an apocalyptic crowd in Yedigöller, which I admired.. In addition to the campers, there were those who came for a day trip.. They jumped over my hammock, over my tent. Special places are reserved for campers, but not enough for that many people.. Tents were set up everywhere else.. Even the bottom of the prohibition signs were full.. Officers go and collect money one by one. No one said remove. There are meters of queues in front of the toilets.
There have been mountains of garbage in a few days.. Yedigöller, which I fell in love with the previous time, made me suffer. I hardly ever left the campsite. Those who listen to loud music every night, campers who can’t keep the dose of alcohol, gendarmerie announcements every morning and all day long… Bezdum.
It gets pretty cold at night.. Make sure to bring something thick with you.. If your camping equipment is summer, you will be cold. It is forbidden to light a fire on the ground. There are iron stoves for you to light a fire.. If you can get one in that crowd you can burn it. We took wood with us, but we were able to find logs in the forest.. The wood we took was not enough.
That little buffet made the business bigger.. It sells meatballs, sausage bread and natural products.. There is one restaurant on the hill, but if you are still going to camp, you should do your shopping from the city.. There are fountains in campsites. Water is drinkable. You don’t have a water problem. There are people who bring it when the alcohol is gone. Everyone has found their way.
Yedigöller National Park Entrance Fees:
Discount of 6 TL Per Person 3 Per Person TL Bicycle 6 TL Motorcycle and ATV 9 TL Car 18 TL Minibus 54 TL Midibus 90 TL Bus 162 TL
How Much Are Accommodation Prices in Yedigöller?
People usually come to Yedigöller for camping, but they will not be able to camp. They also built bungalows for people with plenty of money.. I can tell they are so cute. People don’t care. If you come with a large crowd, I don’t think the price will shake anyone…. They say make a reservation in advance, but on the way to Nazlı Göl, which I visited, almost all of the log houses were empty.
Tent (daily) 34 TL Caravan (daily) 40 TL Log house with 3 beds (daily) 335 TL Log house with 4 beds ( per day) 405 TL Log house with 5 beds (daily) 470 TL Log house with 6 beds (daily) 525 TL Guesthouse (daily) 100 TL
Tent accommodation was discounted for us because I went with Istanbul Doğa Treking group. Take advantage of group discounts. Otherwise, a 3-day stay would cost a lot.. Three days is too much for Yedigoller. Especially if it coincides with holidays like October 29, it is not possible to breathe in that crowd.. Try to go on a weekday. Where is the untouched Yedigöller without a road? Where is the current invasion? It hurts, but I think it will still have that untouched air during the week… Let’s not give up hope…
Where is Yedigöller National Park, How to Go?
Yedigöller National Park is 310 km from Istanbul and 310 km from Ankara. It is located 225 km away. You can reach the National Park, which is 40 km away from Bolu, by taking Yeniçağ from the Istanbul-Ankara highway.. Takes you when you type in navigation. Parking lots are not enough when it is very crowded.. Everyone parks on the roads. The gendarme blocks the road and allows you to proceed in one direction.. Despite everything, Yedigöller maintains its splendor. I hope it doesn’t get ruined any more.
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