Lake Bafa Nature Park

Bafa Gölü ( Lake Bafa, even Çamiçi Gölü ) is incurred from an earlier lake estuary on the west coast of Turkey. It has a size of about 60 square kilometers, or about 15 % the size of Lake Constance.

History

In ancient times, the later Lake Bafa still had a direct connection to the Mediterranean and was Latmikos kolpos ( Bay of Latmos, Latmischer Gulf ), after the mountain range of the Latmos ( Beşparmak ), which begins on the northeastern shore and moves on to the east. A Latmos also called the city there was later called Heraclea on Latmos. From the 4th century AD, the basis of human-induced deforestation deposited by the Great Meander in the basin sediments constricted from the lake of the Aegean. The water is still slightly salty.

The Lake Bafa is a suitable area for hiking and nature watching. There are more than 100 different species of birds and over 120 species of orchids.

If you drive from the main road to the south end of the lake in the direction of Heraclea, some interesting rock formations along the lake opens up to Latmos Mountains. On its eastern side it is possible to ascend with local guides to high in the rear Latmos to visit the prehistoric caves with up to 80 cm high rock paintings there.

Around the lake there are only small pensions, because this hotel construction were banned in order to obtain landscape, flora and fauna.