Adrian and Alys Travels: Snow To Sun In 6 Hours!

As we left the hotel at 8:30am it was raining and the skies ahead looked a little threatening. We climbed out of Pamukkale on a decent road. The early morning dominated by the weather conditions. As we climbed higher and higher the rain turned to snow. The worst time was after we regrouped at a petrol station with heavy snow on the ground it was hazard lights on and 10 km/h stuff. After the regroup stop, the road conditions were horrendous. There was slush/snow on the ground and the road itself was in horrific shape, so it was very hard to tell if you had it a bump i the road or ice and were about to fall off! The worst conditions we have ever ridden in (even taking a few Brass Monkeys in to account. We were certain someone in the group would be falling off (no-one did) and a couple of pillions evacuated the bikes for the comfort of the van. After this the weather and roads clear, and perhaps prompted by the relief we were all OK, the speeds may have crept up a little. This lead to our first encounter with Radar Kontrol. The tour leader was moving ahead of the group to monitor conditions and was caught in the radar trap. We were all signalled to stop (by the tour leader) and a few riders were a little worried they may have acquired some "paperwork". The Radar Kontrol is quite well marked as they normally have have little triangular signs warning of their presence. he you come across a (marked or unmarked) police car parked on your side of the road, who radios another chap further on to stop you. The tour leader was booked at 119km/h (speed limit is 90 km/h on divided main roads which by Google calculations would have cost her 350 Turkish Lira (around $175 NZ). The interesting thing here is fines are requited to be paid in cash on the side of the road! After a short stop it was lovely mountain roads/passes until the lunch stop. The plan was changed to avoid the high mountain pass were we're scheduled to travel due to the conditions (good call). After a quick stop for lunch we were relied to ride the last 100 m to the hotel in Kas. The magnificent site when we rounded the corner to see the beautiful blue Mediterranean sea is hard to describe. A few drinks were consumed at the hotel to celebrate our safe arrival. A day of real contrasts.