Exploring Turkey’s Black Sea coast by boat

While the focus of most sailing holidays in Turkey tends to be on the country’s Mediterranean coast this overlooks another potentially great adventure. The Black Sea may not be as glamorous, or as calm, as the Med, but for the inquisitive and intrepid sailor it has a great deal to recommend it.

The inland sea covers over 436,000 km2 and is bordered by Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Russia, Georgia, and Ukraine with only one point of entry – via the Strait of Bosphorus. It’s generally agreed that the best sailing conditions occur towards the end of the summer months when the winds are lighter, and the swell is less pronounced – but at any time of year it has plenty to recommend it.

One of the most usual places to pick up your yacht charter from Turkey is Istanbul and from there it is through the Strait of Bosphorus that the voyage of discovery begins.

Sinop

As we head west to east, the first notable stop-off point we reach is Sinop. Located on a peninsula, this holds the title of being Turkey’s northernmost city and has more than enough to merit a stay of at least a day.

Originally built in by Greek colonists in 700 BCE, Sinop was the birthplace of the philosopher Diogenes and you’ll find him celebrated by his statue, accompanied by his trusty dog, that was erected in 2006.

As you’d expect, the city is rich in history created by the many civilisations that have occupied it over the centuries and you can discover much about this in both the Ethnography Museum and the Arslan Torun Mansion.

There are also plenty of natural wonders to explore including the breath-taking Ertefelek Falls and the nearby Inalti Caves. 

Time your visit carefully and perhaps it will also coincide with one of the many festivals that have also made the city famous. In May there’s a wrestling event, in July the Ertefelek Falls celebration and in September the theme is happiness.

Samsun

Further along the coast is Samsun. This has always been a very important port geographically and strategically for the country and lays claim to have played an important part in creating the Republic of Turkey. 

Its first ever president, Ataturk, used the city as his base to recruit an army of followers to fight in what became the Turkish War of Independence.  As a result, he rose to power in 1923.

Visit Samsun’s Gazi Museum and you’ll be able to discover all you need to know about the founding of modern Turkey, as well as many fascinating artefacts from the war that created it.

For a fantastic view of the city and the surrounding area, take a trip up Amisos Hill. The wooden walkways make it easy to reach and you’ll be rewarded for your climb with the panorama that awaits you at the top.

Near to the city but a little inland in the increasingly mountainous landscape, you’ll find the stunning Sahinkaya Canyon and it’s also well worth visiting the Bafra Kizilirmak River Delta, a protected nature reserve with up to 300 different species of migratory birds.

Trabzon

Trabzon is the biggest of all of the ports along Turkey’s Black Sea coast and, arguably, the most cosmopolitan. Much of its historical wealth was driven by its strategic position on the Silk Route from Asia to Europe.

Just as Samsun had Ataturk as its own, Trabzon was the birthplace of one of the most important and powerful sultans that Turkey ever had, Suleiman the Magnificent who ruled the country between 1520 and 1566 when the Ottoman Empire was at its most powerful and influential.

The undoubted architectural highlight of the city is the Hagia Sophia which you’ll find around 3km outside the city centre. It was built in the 13th century and was intended to be the most imposing Christian church in the region. Over the centuries it has also been a museum and a mosque, and it is as the latter that it operates today. Fortunately, its conversion which took place in 2013, was less controversial than its Istanbul namesake’s.

Although many of the Christian murals and other decorations have been partially obscured, it’s still possible to see quite how magnificent the interior must have been in its heyday.

With all the perfect connections to the Black Sea, Trabzon not only offers their historical places to visit, as it can present you with the beautiful landscapes that Turkey and the Black Sea its to offer, could be by visiting one of the biggest ports in Turkey, or through a yacht charter Fethiye, that could possibly offer a better view of all the immense landscape.

To get a great view of the city, a climb up to Boztepe is a must. On the way you’ll be able to explore a labyrinth of winding streets and be rewarded at the top with a coffee and a view of the whole city spread out around you.

Rize

Our final suggestion, and the eastern-most of our stop-off points, is the port of Rize. Once a relatively undeveloped and economically challenged town, this has been transformed by agriculture. Not only is it at the heart of Turkey’s tea-growing region, it is also very important for growing kiwi fruits. Almost wherever you go in Rize, you will see the latter ripening on trees.

There are several castles to explore with undoubtedly the most impressive being the one that shares the town’s name. 

 

Feature Photo by Engin Yapici on Unsplash