Mysterious canyon yet undiscovered
KASTAMONU
A canyon with city walls, caves and tunnel entrances is yet undiscovered in the western Black Sea province of Kastamonu's Taşköprü district. Stating that there may even be an underground city under the canyon, Kastamonu University lecturer Hikmet Haberal said that the region should be explored and brought into tourism.
Under the leadership of Taşköprü Local Action Group Association and in partnership with Kastamonu University and Taşköprü Municipality, works to discover “adventure routes” continue. A team was assembled to examine the Bük Karşı Canyon located in the Bük and Karşı villages of the district.
The team found there were ruins of 1.5-kilometer-long walls in the canyon, entering a cave in the area and seeing that it was possible to descend approximately 100 meters down through a ladder.
A waterfall was encountered while passing through the canyon and another cave was discovered at the entrance to the canyon. The team reached the cave by swimming and saw that the entrance of the cave was closed by mud and tree roots. They also found that there were remains of life in the canyon caves and that there may be an ancient underground city there.
Speaking about their work, Haberal said, “We visited the area. People told us that no one entered the canyon and that it was like a closed box. We were curious and explored the surroundings of the canyon first. Because the canyon resembles a mountain with slopes on its right and left. The canyon is located in a deep valley between two mountains and a stream flows through the middle. We walked around the canyon for about 4 kilometers and saw a cave. When I entered one of these caves, I saw that there was a ladder going down. I also screamed as I was going down. My friends were waiting for me outside and heard my voice echoing. I went back without getting too far. Also, we went out to investigate the plant diversity and flora in the canyon. While wandering over the canyon, we saw the city wall. A 1.5-kilometer-long city wall was built from one end of the canyon to the other. We also human traces; it was destroyed by treasure hunters.”
‘The area needs to be protected’
Stating that they saw different types of caves in the canyon, Haberal said, “The inside of one cave is very long, the other one looks like a house. In another, we saw caves where only humans could enter and take shelter. We also came across a rock tomb at the end of the city wall that extends from one end of the canyon to the other. The rock tomb looks directly over the village. This place was also destroyed. The area must be protected and registered. There is a 1-kilometer-long water flow here, and there are residential areas and authentic villages around it. When all of these are combined, a very beautiful region emerges for nature tourism.”
Haberal stated that the citizens living in the region informed them that there was an underground city in the canyon.
“During our exploration trip, we saw a cave entrance in the form of a hole in the rocks on the right side of the entrance of the canyon. The water level was high when we entered the canyon. I swam to the cave and saw wolf and marten traces. How did these animals pass through that water and go to the cave? It is impossible. It means they came to the canyon via a different route. We couldn't go too far because the cave gets narrower. I think it is true that there is an underground city here. We think there is an ancient city there. But this is not our area of expertise. Cavers should examine it,” he said.