Travel writers pick 15 places for ‘Nordic walking’ in Türkiye

İsmail Sarı – ISTANBUL

Travel writers have picked 15 places in Türkiye, suitable for “Nordic walking,” a fitness trend recommended by a U.S. cardiologist who defends “trekking with poles” engages 80 percent of muscles in the body.

“When you walk without poles, you activate muscles below the waist,” Aaron Baggish from Massachusetts General Hospital, has said and advised: “When you add Nordic poles, you activate all of the muscles of the upper body as well.”

Starting from this point of view, Turkish travel writers have picked 15 places where one can perform Nordic walking, also called “trekking with poles.”

Bahar Gündoğdu believes Maçka Democracy Park and Kemerburgaz City Park are two main green lands where one can enjoy a Nordic walking style. “Maçka is perfect for those above middle age. There is a 10-kilometer track in Kemerburgaz.”

Gündoğdu also advised Doğançay Waterfall in Sakarya, a neighboring province of Istanbul, and Nüzhetiye Waterfall in the northwestern province of Kocaeli. “Bewitching views and not crowded,” she said.

‘Olive route’ in İzmir consists of 19 laps

Korsan Koyu (Pirate Bay) in the northwestern province of Kırklareli is another destination she recommended. “The Genovese pirates used to hide their ships in this bay,” she said while depicting the rough lands surrounding the bay.

For Nordic walkers-to-be residing in the capital Ankara, Erdoğan Gümüş advised the Çamlıdere Plateau with a 15-kilometer walking track.

The residents of the western province of İzmir may prefer the “Olive route,” a walking track consisting of 19 laps, starting from Güzelbahçe to Selçuk, said Nurgül Büyükkalay.

The northern province of Kastamonu has two main points for Nordic walking, the canyons of Horma and Valla, according to Didem Mutçalıoğlu.

Lake Kovada National Park in the southern province of Isparta and Sığla Forest in the Aegean province of Muğla’s Köyceğiz district are two other options the travel writers put on the table.

Kurşunlu Waterfall in the southern province of Antalya is another pick from Mutçalıoğlu for Nordic walkers.

The travel writers finally advised the three major trekking sites, the Lycian Way and the Carian Trail in Muğla and St Paul Way in Antalya, for professionals.