The Lycian Way

This fall we set out on our latest Long Ways hike - this time along the Lycian Way (East), just south of Antalya Turkey.  It was hot, rugged, and a definite challenge - but the scenery of the Turkish coast, combined with the amazing hospitality of the Turkish people, made it all worthwhile.

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Transcript

Hello and welcome to the Longways podcast. I'm Devin Wendellbeck. Hi Mike Wendellbeck. Hey Eric's joining today. Yay.
Love it Love to see it We are a hiking trio out to hike the great long trails of the world. this is an episode where we're actually coming to have to returning from our latest trail. We hike the lysine way in Turkey this year So for the first time, getting outside of…the geographic boundaries of Europe and heading into, Asia and the Middle East for our last trail. it was a tough one This last one. I think this is the first thing to start off with like Slovenia before that.
we've been we've been biting at some harder trails lately they've been really rewarding but they've just been I I felt pretty pretty worn out by this one guys But I wanna just you know I wanna start off by saying like why…why did we pick turkey on this trail So, you know, Mike Eric what what what were your first
experiences in the country And Why do we why do we decide to pick this trail of all trails? Well unless I'm wrong we picked this one because it was gonna be a beach hike yeah for sure. there there were beaches yes they were just stuck in very deep valleys It seems They were beautiful beaches though The beaches are not disappointed. They were not nothing on this trip was disappointing at all. So I'm gonna say that we picked this one because we were looking for something a little bit more challenging.
We didn't have a lot of time again okay which was you know so we're we had to keep keep these down to six and seven days. And we've heard a lot of great things about this And also the for me it was the historical basis of it Yeah Yeah We're gonna be right there with the Romans and the Greeks and you know the all that all that history in that area So…
I don't recall this being a vote…
and, and one of the outcomes of this hike is that we will now have a two thirds vote or This is true This is true For the next selection…
I think how it usually goes is me going oh this seems really cool thumbs up or thumbs down and then we just book it…
So I mean what I chose it was I just I wanted to get, you know stretcher comfort zone a little bit We've been hiking through Europe and every single one of our trails, and…I wanted to go to Turkey I also just wanted to go to Turkey because I'd never been before. and then we found this trail which was I think it was voted one of the best long distance trails in the world by a couple of places. and it's we didn't hike the whole thing we hiked about seven days of it, but it's this long trail that kind of winds this way along the the coast of Turkey down by the city called Entalia, down in the south of the country, right by the AGNC, and then it's dotted with the ruins of all of these ancient like Greek and like proto Greek city states there. there's like byzantine ruins from the Romans there. And this this is what I was really looking forward to.
So I think the first thing to start with is, you know let's just…
let's just talk about top top highlights from the trail top takeaways from the trail. and I'm gonna I'm gonna flag Eric in for that Just like top line takeaways from it. I mean I think you hit them all in your introduction there The ruins were magnificent I I couldn't believe the access that we had to them like being able to literally walk and touch and and feel, the the great you know, monuments and and constructed theaters and just the the the things that were still available to us, our culture to explore was was magnificent beyond my expectations. the the views on the trail were stunning the the water and the the blues and the greens And just the the the the history you could feel in these these old pirate beaches was so capsid and romantic and just just spiked every one of my creative
…
tendencies to want to create art and take pictures And I have so many to go through yet but, the third thing I think would be the culture the of the people I was I had I had no expectations of what Turkey would be like. I had sort of anticipated maybe you know what the cuisine would be like what I was I was pleasantly surprised by how welcoming everyone was And the the access to new and different foods that I had never experienced before and obviously couldn't read any of the writing So I didn't really know what I was eating but I was excited to to enjoy and and try new things So that that would be my top three…
Yeah. What about you dad? very similar I mean I was in Turkey a long time ago very very briefly in the military And then, you know, basically wanted to go back I think, you know my three highlights were really this was a very different trail for us They all seem to have their own flavor of what they're going to be And this one was a little bit different but you know my big takeaway was, you know I made up my mind after the hadrian's wall path that you know I step on the trail I step off the trail you know unless there's some sort of major issue of some sort. but you know I did that And I think that that was my takeaway that you know we we we completed it It was we didn't have a down day in the middle which was interesting we've put that at the beginning Good sport on Talia Super glad we did that That was what an amazing city And I got to go see more of hadrian's. You know I've seen hadrian's now in England and now in Turkey which is kind of interesting…
and I think that that was takeaway number one And number two was definitely the hospitality I mean the people, they were fantastic You know it is definitely a culture which welcomes visitors and hikers and people And you know we stayed in everything from small bed and breakfasts to very nice hotels. And I really I really enjoyed that and the third was you know was the was really the history of the area Like Eric was saying you know being able to walk through Olympus, you know and and hiking Mount chimera You know I mean this is this is history You know this is as close as you can get to history If you wanna, stick your head into the natural gas fires of of chimaera you know you can do that there you could you can do whatever you want So I think that that was a big that was a big thing as well The trail was a challenge I'm sure we'll get we'll get to that but it was a good challenge as I look back at it was it was a very good challenge. So I mean we'll get you the challenges of the trail soon but I think one of the things I wanted to ask you guys was what was your favorite day on the trail So We did about I think it was about seven days of hiking straight This one was a little different because we did one long day followed by one short day
throughout the course of the hike So we do one big thirteen mile day. Then we followed up with like a five, a five mile day or a six mile day that was kind of like staying in the same town and maybe going out and seeing, a cool like lighthouse or going to see Kymera which we just talked about you know the the old, mountain that has like natural gas fires burning from it that they thought the the ancient Greeks stuff the the chimera beast used to live in. And so I was wondering you know, of those seven days, Which was for you guys, you know the best on the trail And I'm gonna actually ask dad first and then we can circle back to me. Believe it or not I think, you know one of the best days for me was was the hike up to chimera and down that was a little that was a short day And all the days all the days had their own highlights and everything but I think that that was one of my favorite days because you are like I just said walking through history you know chimeras where they where the ancient ancient Greeks before this whole get thing is moved to Athens The ancient Greeks for us to wipe the
the Olympic torches, the early Olympic torches and then run them down to Olympus. Right which is this town We got a chance to walk through I'm on a different day but I think that that the the the ability to walk up there, and see that and come back down was was pretty was pretty amazing for me But…We had rough days on the trail but I think that the the the views were just amazing on almost every single day…
Yeah Eric What about you What was your favorite day on the trail…
Gosh It's so hard to pick a favorite day…
when I think back to the to the challenges I I'm I'm a little blinded by saying which day was my favorite because usually the harder days had the most you know stunning views So that that's hard for me…
To pinpoint one one day But I think that the morning that we got to walk through, Olympus. you know that was a the start of a the heart one of the harder days but I think that that morning walk along the beach and you know coming through the ruins sort of right after daybreak was so awe inspiring i think that was the day I felt, the most connected…to that ancient culture being able to experience Olympus first thing in the morning was was just breathtaking to me. Yeah I'm gonna I'm gonna agree with Eric I've the day I think it was day three for us So we had done one long day to start Then we had a short day up to Kymera. And then we have this third day where this was one of the harder days on the trail although every day seemed hard. we had to hike up this mountain called Mount Moses.
And before that you got to just walk through the ruins of Olympus which was you know a lycian state and the lycians you know being this…
Brodo Greek state They were kind of connected to the hittites a bit but had a lot of great culture. And then it became a Greek state And there's a brief period where it's like a pirate haven like kind of like a pirate republic which is kinda cool. And then it becomes Roman and then byzantine…
Then it kind of falls into ruins but you're kind of walking through you know as as Eric was saying the ruins of just this city that has lasted for five thousand years or so throughout its history…
It was really cool because like it was kind of tucked into like this really protected valley right by the rivers You kind of like saw why they why they built it here. But I remember that day also like hiking Mount Moses was probably the toughest…technically physically challenging part of the hike right after that You know it was to that point. To that point Well, yeah I mean it was just it was a high ascent It was it was really steep the entire time…
And the downhill was also tough after that But, I remember there there was amazing views on the top of that too So I would say that that was my favorite day. They all kind of are really good you know the day after was kind of a a low key day I hiked out to this old lighthouse outside of the town We were at that was a really pretty day but I think that was one of my favorites. But you know switching to the challenges…Eric, top challenges of this trail…
Oh gosh I think the…
I I underestimated the heat, that we would be experiencing You know we we did this one late…purposely because we wanted it to be cooler And I think that they'd actually, ask people not to do this trail through July and August because of the extreme heat So the heat was intense and it resulted in us…
I think underestimating the amount of water that we needed to have on us which is a lesson that we should have learned multiple times and we've talked about before is always be prepared with more water So that was the heat in the water was the number one challenge The terrain was more difficult than I thought it was going to be Even the first day we did some mountaineering I would say That was not, not as easy technically as I would thought it was going to be you know scrambling up rocks etcetera That happened a couple times on the trail going up the ascents that I wasn't expecting that and the third thing was never underestimate those downhills The downhill you were just talking about when Moses that was the that was the hardest thing for me My legs were screaming that next day because that first half of the day we went straight up but that means the second half of the day you were going straight down And my legs and knees and ankles in particular were were not trained and prepared for that I was really sore that next day Did not do that lighthouse hike that you talked about because I needed a day of rest…
Yeah And I think you know one of the things we've really discovered on these trails is just the importance of if your body says to rest to rest. Exactly Like, you're gonna if you push yourself too hard you're going to you're gonna hurt yourself and you won't be able to do the rest of the trail So you know I had one day where I said you know I still feel good. This is a short day It's just a five mile day. I'm gonna go out in the morning hike to this lighthouse hike back and then we're gonna get lunch with with Eric and Michael And it was perfect. You know and if when I was got to rest then we had another long hard day afterwards…
yeah I mean dad what what about you for challenges…
I think that…
Once again I'm gonna echo a little bit of Eric's I think one of the challenges was, really the heat and water I mean I remember one day we actually went on to the trail with almost seventeen liters of water and ran out You know this was a very hot time It wasn't supposed to be The week before was actually pretty cool there And we hit a very very it was you know mid nineties very arid. No It's not like you can get water from the stream and purify I mean we are experienced Okay We are not always good at doing things but we are experienced now and, we really you know we we did try the water thing It was a challenge. the heat was a challenge the ascents were especially for me being a little bit older right I had to really pace myself And like Devin said you gotta listen just say I I need to stop here Right There's no reason you know to to create a problem by pushing yourself And I think we did a great job of that. And some of the logistics you know
we work with a great company Max Adventures And I gotta tell you this was what I thought was going to be a challenge end up not being one on our last long day of hiking which was really I believe the hardest day Okay It was up and down up and down then these long, these long hikes back to a pirate cove And when we got to the pirate cove we were supposed to meet this car. In all day I was just the challenge was gonna be how we're gonna do this We don't have it you know the anxiety of it you know and things like that And it was so funny because you're thinking they're literally standing on the mow the woods and you know and there's supposed to be a car paying you up at four thirty And…no kidding at four fifteen that are pulled up, you know And so there was that you know that that type of challenging getting to Turkey was was a logistical game for us, not being able to speak the language at all and not even being able to try
to do that That was a little bit of a challenge but I've said the heat, the trail being definitely more technical than I thought it was going to be and then the water was was really my big three…
Yeah I mean I'm just gonna echo all that I think multiple days I was coming onto the trail with usually I go hit a trail with about three liters of water If it's about ten mile day maybe another liter more, besides that And I was going through five liters a day easy. I just could not keep water in the entire trail. it was just so hot and we were just sweating so much.
so I mean if anyone ever wants to do the trail we did it in September which is you know technically fall but it felt like high summer. and actually if we did this again I would actually recommend people to do it in October maybe at the earliest. Yeah. You know the other challenge I think for me was that…
This was…it was a really well marked trail. I don't think we ever had problems with getting lost so badly. and also the Max adventure app which we used really helped with that. But it was it was a much more rugged trail than I think we were expecting. Eric and I came off of Slovenia and we decided that that was a bit too rugged for us And so one of the things when I was looking at other trails was just do something that was a little challenging but not slovenia level.
And I honestly, you know I think Eric was agreeing with me on this when we were talking on the trail This was up there with slovenia as the toughest trail I've done. just because it was so rugged It was so hot…
and it definitely felt like…the end of every day felt like you had just gone through a massive challenge. not to scare anyone from doing the trail I also wanna just like put out that this was probably It's always hard to say what is the most beautiful trail is but it's this one was up there guys which is how pretty it was It was amazing. They believe it was And the good news about being so beautiful is the fact that our that our photographer friend would always want to stop and take pictures And this was one yeah Welcome to ever but even ask him Would you like to take a picture here Eric? But it was like that kind of like it just I know it's Turkey but you know you're walking through Greek cities and stuff and it just felt like you were in ancient Greece you know which you know for the Greeks way back in the day this was part of Greece you know that it was very much like the agency was the lake in between all the city states.
and we're only like you know a hundred miles south of Troy and that kind of stuff too So, yeah. I think we can't do this podcast without talking about diamond. Eric you wanna tell us a little bit about diamond? it's oh well one thing to know about the culture is the animals are treated as well as people are I think what what the saying was they're they're not anyone's dogs they're everyone's dogs and cats And that was obviously apparent everywhere we went The animals were really well taken care of. but in the regards of their population you know they're they're they're not spayed and neutered So there are a lot of dogs and cats around.
and on on the day we were talking about we we we met several dogs that were escorting us along the beach it seems like they would work in shifts This is my block I'll walk you to the next block and so forth
but one dog in particular is a black dog And, we refer to as him as diamond because he's had sort of like this white diamond shape on his head just a beautiful beautiful animal And he ended up following us through town and sort of escorted us out of town and kept going and we we actually stopped a couple times to try to you know get him to go back to town because it was getting you know further and further away and we were not comfortable that he was gonna be able to find his way back. but this but this animal just could continued to follow us And, me being a softhearted person I don't know if this is the right or wrong thing to do but at one of our breaks I gave this poor thing some water because it was in desperate need of water. but then I think that solidified his decision to continue to follow us but I I I I couldn't just let him suffer. but he ended up following us
for the entire trail, through through lunch, and I'll let you take over from there because he palled up to you at that point. Yeah I mean he was just the best dog I was just thinking like if this dog had, had…if I had lived in Turkey I would have taken this dog home That's that was there's no question about it He was, you know, kind of we come off he brought up ahead and then you think he lost him and he come back and then he would we had lunch and you sat down beside us He always wanted some water a little bit cheese but like he wasn't begging or anything like that He was just he just sat right down beside your feet. and he was just the best dog guys I was just, I really wish we'd be able to bring him home He decided to head back with another group I think I think he mentioned my way back to the town afterwards but yeah I missed him He was a good boy He didn't know the trail very well He knew the trail better than we did. Yes I don't know if we were the first hikers he's brought up to Bernardo I don't think so either I think it's a I think I think it's a different back thing for me He asked for some up there and then they and then they another group or something I've had an afternoon trip maybe himself But yeah I know he was definitely our mascot for the entire trail So just the best boy I have some good photos of him just like staying there with us together just like watching over like the the mountains and stuff and the sea and he just he just hanging out right by your feet you know not begging but like not scared Just…
just he was the best. so I just wanted I wanted to plug Diamond a little bit just because I feel like he was he was he was very much the heart and soul of that trail He was the dog who just wanted to bring you up to the top of the mountains And he knew the way and he's he's our little guide for a day of the trail So It it was a good day for that too because I think we all kind of needed it That that last full day was a…
eleven or twelve mile trail which is you know well within our ability to do but the heat and this one was more up and down You know we had to make an ascent to go above a lighthouse and then come back down to it. the views and everything But I think the first part up you know it sometimes ERC's ascents aren't to…aren't always I don't know They're not easy And hey there's not a lot to do I think having diamond there running around you know he would just like we think he was gone then he'd pop up you know two hundred yards ahead of us on the traveling. Where is this Is there an easier way to get there You know can you show us you? but the I think was just something it was a nice like attention break for us too…
Well you know I'm I'm watching our our time a little bit and I I know we try to keep these around thirty minutes or so So I got two two big questions for you guys about the lysine way. the first one is, it's a question I always like to ask people ask you guys before as people are listening to our podcast and they're thinking about oh I'd be interested in this trail. one reason you should hike the lysine way and one reason that you should maybe reconsider, I think is the way to to think about it…
I'll start off with my first should Okay Okay. I think that the views of the Mediterranean and the and the and the experience of of the Turkish towns we were in makes it worth it You know it was it would definitely the views and the people We never if we needed something we could just ask And and they found a way to overcome the language barrier perfectly every single time. Hospitality was outstanding food was outstanding people were outstanding. the cat dogs were outstanding you know I mean so many cats So many cats. But but it was it was great I mean if you're if you're a cat lover these cats are so well taken care of like Eric said just, you know they're they're not, they're feral but they're not wild You know they're very Right Very good But I'm saying that would be it That you should do it It is a trail that if you're going to do these types of hikes I'm glad we did it So I'll start with my should Let's all do shoulds I guess.
I wanna do a quick should. Mostly because we haven't talked about it a lot I would say food wise This was one of our best trails.
you're getting fresh fish at every stop You Turkish food is just delicious. And so you kind of like ended the day with like, really good meats We had like some fun places we stayed at I remember I forget the town's name but the town outside of Limpo's we had like this favorite restaurant right by the beach You just like saw the sun setting over Mount Moses right behind you. and we had another one where we've stayed like at like It's kind of like a weird thing they did when they like built like all these like floating platforms above like a canal So all the restaurants were on this canal, and we ate there which I mean that restaurant I think is more for the experience than the the service. But hey it's it is what it is and but the food was just incredible at the entire time and for me I like kind of combining you know culture food y stuff with the hikes So that was a big highlight for me…
Yeah I'll echo that I think if you're looking for an immersive experience this is the one for you because you are there's no there's no way you can get around, the culture the history, It's it's everywhere you look It's built into everyone's day to day. it is the most immersive experience that we have had when you think about…food culture trail, history, It's it's it's everything It's everything you would want. I mean just pulling off that If you are a history person if you're interested in ancient Greece if you're interested in ancient Rome, you you can't you can't sleep on this trail. I mean, like I just remember this one moment where we were up by Kyimera and there's an old church, ruined church that was built it's an old byzantine church built on the ruins of an old Greek temple, and I walked in and they're like in this one alcove like still protected from the sun There was still like a mural that had been probably been painted in like, twelve hundred AD or something like that. And…
those are the kind of experience you get on this. And, you know walking through Olympus was another one walking around, you know, this this old pirate cove which was at the end of our one of our hikes And I walked down to it and there's still like the ruins of an old Greek city that used to be there And there's just people like sitting there like having a barbecue and everything like in the ruins of the city. so for history people, it's I mean I think all of Turkey I went up to Istanbul afterwards and there's a lot of this but just second to none. and I think that real quick to to shout out that you've now followed Hadrian from one end of Europe to the other I have And so the history of that is pretty amazing I'll I'll probably be frankless story up on our site about about just about chasing Hadrian too. Yeah.
you know we found like Hadrian's gate and like Hadrian's temples and that kind of stuff too So,
the I think now kind of going to a reason why…you should…you should hold on the trail I think this is another one like Slovenia. I think if this is your first hike this is a tough too tough, personally. I think that the combination of the heat and the ruggedness, we're three experienced hikers, and it it it knocked our socks off. so I would say to hold on it if this is your first trail, if it is a trail where, honestly that you're still kind of getting into physical fitness a bit because I felt like that was really needed on some of the ascents…
And maybe if you're I mean I think just to put this out here, I've been to the Middle East a lot. so you know, Middle Eastern culture isn't so different for me. But if it could be really different for some people Like you have to call it a prayer going out every day which is really beautiful but it could be you know it's different from being like in Western France And the language is really really really tough I mean I usually try to get adopt a few work of language and I just could not In Turkey it's a really tough language. so just kind of know that maybe the culture shock angle of it might actually be a little bit more than than you would get in like France or Spain or Portugal…
Yeah Those those are the reasons I would I would hold on it I think it's a trail I would really recommend but I would not recommend it for a first time hiker for these…
I think that my reason why you should avoid it is if you don't have…
If you don't have somebody helping out with the logistics, okay and we are very fortunate like this is my seventh you know seventh hike with max adventures and not just a you know shameless plug with them. They are amazing at setting these things up and they work with local travel companies. And you know I'm not kidding you We had this one had a lot of you're gonna have to meet a boat here. Right You're gonna have to meet a car here right or you know different hour long transportation so…
the the idea that you could take that part of it away from you and just experience a trail If you're trying to worry about how we're gonna do this or how we're gonna do that logistics you're gonna miss those beautiful views and you you know and that's really what's worth it And you're not gonna be able to focus on the history or the culture or anything because, you need to have you should avoid this trail if you if you don't have somebody who's helping with your logistics on it and also like Devin like you said okay This was challenging Okay And you know I'm I'm sixty It was it was a challenge a a big challenge And I think preparing yourself forward in advance you know I start now over four months in advance usually getting ready and you know making sure that hiking Even then I felt physically…well prepared for this, for this trail. Okay But the real issue was the fact that you know I I didn't…I wasn't ready for it how much it was gonna be still. What the challenge of of of some of those ascents was going to be and the descents…
Yeah I think my sentiments echo the things that you both said I I I think this is the most out of my comfort zone that I've been And if you're if you're really afraid of that this this is not for you And I would also say that I wouldn't try to do this one by yourself Definitely, you're gonna need someone else with you not only to help navigate the trails but the day to day life you know interpreting what's happening around you know, it's not an easy place to get to Right So we we spent a full two weeks getting to Turkey and back home without speaking English to really anyone outside of the very most touristy areas. and that's if if that's a challenge for you and you're not prepared for that this this is not for you because it was that was really tough It was thank goodness We had Google translate We were able to communicate pretty much anywhere we needed and that was familiar with almost everyone we came across. that was a a lifesaver. but I don't don't think I would have been able to navigate this one on my own I I needed to have the support of either one of you just to do the day to day
activities…
Absolutely This is a this is a team trail You I mean not just epicuring water you know just sometimes somebody walking ahead and figure out where we're at you know And then it is also, you know I really relied upon you know the two of you to give me motivation when we're staring at walking up a cliff you know hundred meters up a cliff or something you know and and that was really just, you know that that teamwork that that really makes it worthwhile…
Before we get to the last question I think we we have to give a shout to our man Hoffman…
Who had that beautiful bed and breakfast that we stayed at the second to last night. Most remarkable place we've stayed at it probably, of all the trails the best hospitality we had anywhere I would I would say hands down A hundred percent. Yeah We'll when we write an article about that we'll we'll we'll throw a little a little link to to his place but he would he just husband and wife the guy used to be like the old mayor of the town we stayed in. we built this old ottoman house from, like nineteen hundreds beautiful like three story big wooden beams, and just the most delicious food I've ever had in my life at the end of the day with this view like looking out over the sea from it, when we when we first brought there it took us like forty five minutes by car to get there and be like we're like wow where are we going Like we're going on these like side streets and then it was it was so worth it so big shout out
to him and making the hospitality just wonderful. final thing before we wrap this up, how has this trail changed what we're looking for in the future What are we looking for in the future? Any reflections on how this trail has kind of, shaped the evolution of the long ways as we kind of look towards our next hikes…
Well I think that one of the ways that's kind of shaped me is that you know we've gotta be a little bit more cognizant of the weather, you know And although you know we keep running into that which is actually a great, you know how to how to adapt to crazy weather condition stories But, but I personally okay, have a lot more trails I want to be on I think that this one kinda marks, you know once again a little bit further right on the technical scale Right Okay And…
So for me it just makes me look at trails a little a little bit differently You know what time of year is it What's the temperature gonna be like there Instead of just you know this is the window we have let's go like there, right type of mentality…
For me this one has…it would it was a big personal challenge for me coming off an ankle injury in August, having a lot of anxiety about whether I was gonna be able to you know hit the trail whether I was gonna be able to finish this trail. it it was a a a personal win for me being able to succeed on this trail with that anxiety and nervousness. But on the other side of the coin I think it has opened my eyes You know this culture was something that I would like I mentioned would never probably have experienced on my own opened my eyes to a part of the world I you know, was was nervous about going to and I am so happy that, my views have changed my my outlook on you know just hospitality in general has changed It's it's it's been up you know my expectations for you know hospitality, were exceeded. and I think that that's changed me That's opened my eyes. and then I'll just touch on the the animals thing you know just watching a society take care of things that…
some societies look, you know just ignore. it's it's impressive it it's impressive to see how different parts of the world, care and love for things and you know, you know, despite whatever religion you you you follow or don't follow, the the respect for that is was was it totally inspiring, and one of the things I really look for in trails to begin with…
Yeah I mean for me I think, you know I'm trying to juxtapose this with Slovenia which was very much like a traditional like, you know get up there stay in Mountain Huts be up way up in the Alps and that was really fun. I think for me this one is showing me more and more that the reason I love these hikes yeah is for the views but it's for the culture. It's for spending time in the towns It's for…getting to meet different kinds of people hiking through ancient ruins. And I think that it's been changing is really solidified to me what kind of trail I'd like to do and why I do this. And I think we've always kind of started to realize that we're not the kind of people who are going to spend twelve days up in the mountains with a sleeping bag or even staying in mountain huts No way.
But we are the kind of people who like love this culture and love this So one of the things I've thought about doing in the future and you know our our internal
trail organizers, max ventures offer a few of these is I thought about doing maybe a pilgrimage in the future actually. A pilgrimage walk and…
doing the culture of that You know there's some in Spain and Portugal but there's also some in like Japan and doing that. so I think that's what this did for me I think it really solidified…
the…love of the culture…and that being such a big part of the hike and the walk. and maybe the the the number one part going forward. Well I'm gonna say that the next walks would probably be a brewery winery walk Right So, like you know I'm only here with fifteen miles but fifteen miles. Well I okay We did almost have an epic failure with that in in I was just about to say We realized that having a a wee drum or two for hiking ten miles isn't isn't the best thing Okay So we drums in Scotland are water glasses…
Well, I think this is where we're gonna end today everyone Thank you for listening Once again once again I'm Devin Wendlespect. Hi Michael. I'm Eric. And thank you for listening.