Saklıkent National Park & Hidden Canyon Gorge
Located 50 kilometers southeast of Fethiye on the border between Muğla and Antalya provinces, Saklıkent Gorge (meaning 'Hidden City') is one of the deepest and most dramatic canyons in the world. Carved over thousands of years by rushing snowmelt from the Akdağlar range slicing through limestone bedrock, the monumental chasm plunges 300 meters deep and stretches for 18 kilometers, narrowing in places to mere meters wide where direct sunlight never penetrates. Visitors enter the gorge via suspended wooden footbridges anchored directly into sheer vertical cliff faces above rushing whitewater springs. Crossing a vigorous freezing river ford brings adventurers into the inner gorge, where hikers wade through gravel riverbeds, squeeze through narrow polished stone slots, and climb over river-sculpted boulders. Shaded open-air wooden restaurants suspended over the rushing Karaçay river offer a refreshing sanctuary serving river trout and traditional Turkish gözleme.
“One of the deepest canyons in Europe, carving an 18-kilometer chasm through the Taurus Mountains with freezing mountain meltwater and sheer 300-meter cliffs.”
— Tourism Compass Heritage Committee