Along the Troad Coast
旅遊行程
Along the Troad Coast is an itinerary between Çanakkale and Assos, following the western (Aegean) coast of the Troad Peninsula (Turkish: Biga Yarımadası) in northwestern Turkey.
Understand
Quite popular as a day trip among travellers to this part of the world, this itinerary offers a slower and more pleasant alternative to speeding down the inland highway D550/E87. History lovers will especially enjoy the route. Stores offering drinks and basic snacks can be found in most villages along the route. Restaurants and guesthouses (pansiyon) are located in and near the well-travelled villages of Troy, Geyikli, Dalyan, Tavaklıiskelesi, Gülpınar, Babakale, and Assos in reasonable numbers. Gas stations, while present, are less frequent, though, especially in the section between Tavaklıiskelesi and Assos, but starting with a full tank in Çanakkale will go a long way. In total, the route is about 150 km (93 mi) of driving.
Prepare
While not an absolute necessity, having a detailed map of the area would be good, and will help especially in a number of junctions that lead to a maze of local roads between the villages. However, carefully following the signposts is often enough, and for most of the route, the itinerary follows the only road in the region—you cannot get lost even if you want to.
Get in
Çanakkale, which has extensive bus and highway connections, as well as ferry links crossing the Dardanelles, is the obvious entry point to the itinerary.
Go
While most of the itinerary can be covered by using public transport (with a few modifications to the main route described below), some of the backcountry roads along the route have 2-hour intervals of buses at best, so self driving should obviously be the preferred way to get around, although it is not strictly essential. Wherever there is an infrequent bus service, hitchhiking also helps, and it is not very hard to attract a lift in the area. Ardent hitchhikers are also known to do the whole route by nothing else but their thumbs. The route can also be reasonably taken by a bicycle, especially by those experienced at cycling on hilly terrain. There are roadside fountains with drinkable water between the villages. The Troy Culture Route is a hiking trail loosely following this itinerary, touching most sites of interest. Start early if you are to do the route in a day. After leaving 1 Çanakkale behind on the highway (D550/E87) towards Izmir, and passing through some scenic pine-covered hills south of the city, you'll arrive in an open plateau where the road leading to the ruins of the legendary city of 2 Troy branches off. Troy is 5 km (3.1 mi) off the main highway and is one of the highlights of the itinerary. Touring around the ruins (at places so scant that you will need a lot of imagination to figure out what the city was like in its heyday) and climbing up the Trojan Horse can be done in as little as an hour, although history lovers will probably like to spend more time. When you are done in Troy, head back to the highway you came in. Down the highway 5 km (3.1 mi) south, turn off into the westbound road, signposted to Geyikli-Bozcaada. After driving across an agricultural flatland for 11 km (6.8 mi), near Mahmudiye you can turn off north for the 3 Cezayirli Hasan Paşa Mansion (6 km/3.7 mi sideways), which should be a majestic hunting lodge when it was built by its eponymous pasha in the 18th century, but all that remains now is a derelict, albeit picturesque shell. Past Üvecik, the road will bring you back to the coast in the village of 4 Geyikli. Those without a car at their disposal should take the buses to Ezine on the highway and switch there to the we
Stay safe
Safety is not really an issue on this route, crime is practically nil and there are no especially dangerous animals in the area to speak of. As long as you are careful when driving in the winding and narrow sections of the road and are drinking enough water especially in the height of summer, you will be more than OK.
Go next
Most of those travelling this route usually do so on their way to the towns and resorts further south along the Aegean, so you may do the same and take the eastbound road from Assos to Küçükkuyu which will bring you back to the highway D550/E87, which leads to Izmir.
本指南改寫自 Wikivoyage （CC BY-SA）