A good few years ago we went to Ören to a trout restaurant and we’ve heard there are more trout farms around now (you can see them on the satellite images in Google maps) so we thought we’d just drive around that area to see what’s changed.
As my dad is here at the moment, we followed tradition and hired a car for the day.
He’s been to Fethiye a few times now and has seen all the usual places people like to visit so this time we decided just to go for a drive.
It’s possible to drive a circular route around the valley of Ören from Kemer, driving up one side of the river and down the other.
We turned left out of Kemer and arrived back to the village from the opposite direction. The scenery around there is lush and green and you are continually surrounded by rugged mountains.
Irrigation channels and trout farms cover the valley floor along with olive groves and pomegranate groves.
The area around Lake Köyceğiz seems to be a mass producer of all things citrus and the Ören valley must be the mass producer of pomegranates (nar).
Yesterday, tractors and trailers lined the roadside as thousands of pomegranates were being harvested and loaded into the trailers.
Can’t wait to get to the market in Fethiye this week!
And no drive through rural Southwest Turkey would be complete without getting stuck behind a goat herder guiding his goats at leisurely pace along the road for half a mile or so.
He was a smiley chap but we kept our distance. Well, we didn’t want to scare the goats but the main reason was that the herdsman’s assistant was the famous Turkish Kangal dog.
A huge, beautiful breed of worker dog, fiercely loyal to their owners and err, fierce with strangers if interrupted in their work.
None of us much fancied having a big dog bounding along the side of the car showing us his fine set of gnashers.
On arrival back to Fethiye, we set off up to Kayaköy and went to Cin Bal for my dad’s favourite tea; lamb tandır and chips.
It’s what he looks forward to most when he comes to Fethiye. And he even tried (and appeared to enjoy) some of the süzme yoghurt we ordered this time, too.
Ören – Useful Info
- Ören is reached by driving along the D400 in the direction of Antalya.
- Go straight across the big junction (where there is a right turn towards Kaş) and after 100 metres or so, it’s signposted to your left.
- At this time of year, it’s a pleasant drive. In the summer months, the restaurants attached to the trout farms are open and provide an alternative to the places like YakaPark above Tlos if you fancy a change.
- Kemer or Ören can be reached by the same dolmuş from the dolmuş station in Fethiye.