A more detailed version of my article published in Hürriyet Seyahat
Uşak is home to many beauties worth seeing with its deep-rooted culture, natural beauties and friendly people and attracts people.. Especially in Uşak, there is Ulubey Canyon, the second largest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon in the USA, and even Turkey’s first hydroelectric power plant is here… Maybe in the happiest times of my life, I found myself at the bus station when I was with my friends in Izmir. and I hit the road for Uşak.
Don’t forget to follow me on my instagram account. I tell a lot in stories and highlights
Instagram: Nerdesinbahar
A Little Butler’s Story
One more month I’m going to see my friends in Uşak, whom I met while diving in Egypt first.. My friend is coming to pick me up from the Uşak bus station, where I arrived in the evening.. I will stay in the lodgings of the sugar factory. The hill right behind the security at the entrance is actually the beet. I am greeted with a generous table. My first encounter with the famous Uşak tarhana. We continue the conversations left unfinished in Egypt in Uşak. I had come to see my friends, but when he started to tell me about Uşak, my desire to see and touch immediately kicks in.. I don’t have a car, it’s weekdays, my friends are working and I can’t go everywhere by public transport. When my teacher Erol tells me that he can arrange a friend, I am very happy.. I am so happy that I am climbing the wooden stairs of the two-storey house of the sugar factory.. I open my eyes in the morning, it’s snowed. Everywhere is white. I get dressed tight and throw myself into the garden.
- Click if you want to read my Egyptian adventure too.
Ulubey Canyon
Two-storey lodging houses are like dollhouses scattered in the garden. While waiting for Mr. Abdullah, I take lots of pictures of the beet hills and the garden.. Abdullah Bey, advisor to the Uşak deputy. First, he says, “Let’s go to the Ulubey Canyon”. Has anyone heard of the name before? This canyon is the second largest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon in America.
It consists of a grand canyon that continues along Ulubey Stream and Banaz Stream and many smaller canyons connected to this canyon.. The second largest canyon in the world with a length of 45 kilometers and a depth of up to 170 meters. It was opened to tourism in 2015, but it cannot be fully utilized due to factory waste and pollution flowing into Dokuzsele Stream.. Can you imagine? Everyone knows the Grand Canyon in America, no one knows this place. Instead of polishing it, we pollute it with chemical wastes and make it impenetrable.
You can go to Uşak Dörtyol by minibuses that leave throughout the day.. We are at the canyon in 15 minutes with our own vehicle.. Entry 3 lira. You’re walking on a glass terrace. It’s cold and windy but I don’t think it matters. I am confused how to take photos and videos. I’m flying in the wind too. The view is incredible. There’s a cafe by the glass terrace. You can drink your tea against the canyon and engrave this natural wonder in your memory.
Clayanas Bridge
Next is Clayanas Bridge. I couldn’t keep this name in my mind and kept asking, “What was his name?” I keep saying. You pass through Karahallı district and you reach it in 45 minutes. Normally, this is a recreation area and it would be very crowded.. I’m happy with this abandoned state. There is no one but us. The weather is freezing.
There is Turkey’s first hydro power plant here and it is still working.. The water discharged from the power plant is poured into the Banaz stream like a waterfall behind the bridge with a channel.. I read the explanations that the bridge was built in the time of the Phrygians and it is unknown for what purpose it was built.. I think that bridges are for crossing.
Even though it has been repaired with concrete and its originality has deteriorated in recent years due to the play in the keystone, it is still standing upright and is very beautiful.. My trekker friends have walked through the Ulubey canyon to the place where the Clenenas bridge is, but the season I am in is not very suitable for this. I must walk this place in the first spring or autumn.. It’s getting cold and evening.
Kuladokya
I’m meeting with my friends. They are taking me to dinner in one of the famous mansions of Uşak.. The food and ambiance of Konağım Restaurant is amazing. I’m on the next day. My friends are at the bus station to see me off, but they think there are places I still need to see.. They ask why I bought my ticket so early, show me photos and say “go in the evening”. I, who is always ready to get off the road, buy my ticket for the night five minutes before the bus leaves.. Of course, we couldn’t have done it without Mr. Abdullah. This time we are on the road with four people playing bye. I said I miss Cappadocia two days ago and I see Kuladokya in front of me and turn my head to the sky. There are people who hear me and it makes me happy even if it is not Cappadocia.. Kuladokya on the way to Manisa. If you have traveled from Ankara to Izmir by land, you have already passed it.. Difficult to get here by public transport. You must have a special vehicle.
The formations in the fairy chimneys here still continue. In centuries, this will be a Cappadocia too.. I saw the same formations in Erzurum when I was going to Kars by train last year.. We do not know that fairies have surrounded the country. This is Turkey’s only, 58th place in the world.. geopark. It was approved by Unesco a few years ago.. The feeling of being on another planet in Cappadocia is here too. like a movie set. Because it is a volcanic region and black stones, it is called a burnt country.. There was a crater and ancient ruins at the top of this 720-meter volcano.. I’ve already started to organize someone to go here.
Tasyaran Vadisi
What I’m really curious about is Tasyaran Valley, whose photos I fell in love with.. You can go to the place, which is a natural wonder, according to the signs.. We preferred to park the car and walk on the first flat.. As we walk, the sights we pass are not like telling.. As you look down from the hills, you can see the inside of the canyon.. I can’t guess how many meters of hollow between the two mountains, but I think it is at least as much as a 25-storey building.
It can be dangerous to go without someone who knows the area.. We did not pass through the canyon due to the season.. We walked by the edge. It is impossible to forget the scenery, the formation of rocks, the power of water at the place we finally reached.. Another world, another planet. Maybe it’s a topic for an article on its own.
In full black winter, this water was freezing, it was like glass, and you could get on top of it and watch the water flowing from the bottom.. I am quite confused about which season and how many times I should come to Uşak.. According to this situation, I should come every season.. I came late for Ulubey Canyon and early for Taşyaran Valley, but I couldn’t see it in this situation then.
Actually, you can get closer by car without walking as much as we do. but go for it, you won’t regret it. Picnic tables are placed at the lower entrance.. I hope it doesn’t get ruined like other discovered places. It is used for sporting purposes, it does not suffocate in barbecue smoke.. If something like that happens to you, I feel responsible.. A small butler story full of surprises emerged, which started with just a friend’s visit but resulted in new discoveries for me, overcoming my fear of heights and ignoring it.. See you again with my Uşak tarhana and my memories, Uşak…