Uyku Vadisi

20 km after Milas towards Bodrum (30 km from Bodrum), your road turns left to Gökçeler village. About 1 km after Gökçeler village, you reach the entrance of Uyku Vadisi (Değirmenderesi). Uyku Vadisi and Gökçeler cave are considered an important route by agencies organizing daily tours departing from Bodrum and Milas. There are two entrances to the valley. One starts walking from the trout farm and follows the streamside, and after about 1 hour turns upward for the cave. This route, which requires crossing the stream frequently, can be enjoyable in summer. Another route requires following a 2 kilometer vehicle road and a 300 meter descent. For this, you do not turn off to the trout farm, but leave the village on the existing stabilized road, and after approximately 1.5 km enter the forest road on the right towards the slope of Manastır Dağı facing the valley; 500 m after the highest point where the road rises, you park and descend 300 meters towards the valley. The mouth of the cave is here. Those who wish can follow the road by vehicle as far as the shore of Değirmendere. Afterwards, this time by following the path along the stream with clearly visible traces, after an estimated half-hour walk, just before reaching the point where the water is dammed and swollen, the cave mouth is reached immediately to the left with a 50 m ascent. The mouth of the cave is quite wide. At first the cave opens into a large hall. To the left there is a large gallery. It is called the bat gallery because of the abundance of bats. Be careful not to shine a light, when they all take off at once it can be frightening. Going up a slight slope to the right and then through a narrow passage, another gallery is reached with stalactites and stalagmites and small pools. Everyone can go up to this point. After that, it is for professional cavers. Accompanied by a guide, you descend 7 m by rope, encounter a wider gallery, and afterwards proceed to the end of the cave sometimes crawling, sometimes bending over. The return is by the same route, because there is no other exit. In summer, do not forget your swimsuit. At the stream crossing, you will want to let yourself into the cool water. Address: MİLAS