Cappadocia Singletrack and Enduro MTB

This first day is for travel and transfers, as well as setting up bikes and enjoying the tour briefing over a good, sociable dinner! We stay at a wonderful vineyard manor house not far from Kayseri town but set in peaceful gardens amongst tranquil surroundings. If you have bike boxes and extra luggage, we can transport these to our storage depot in Goreme, where you can collect them at the end of the trip. Dinner (an extensive feast prepared almost exclusively of local, organic produce from the farm co-op itself) in the hotel is included.

Overnight Sunolus Hotel, Kayseri (D)

28km / 333m climbing / 330m descent
From Kayseri we drive you 85km to a remote and wild start point in the small, semi-deserted village of Arapli. The ride begins on a well surfaced dirt track that runs alongside a railway line, heading up into a dry, barren valley with impressive cliff outcrops on rising up on both sides. Soon the track becomes too sandy to follow easily, so we take to the goat tracks that run nearby, carefully picking a line through the sand on an entertainingly technical course. Slowly gaining height, we are eventually able to rejoin the main track, and have a short spin across flat, open badlands above, before dropping into a deep canyon of epic proportions above the caves and abandoned stone houses of Soganli old village. The descent is first class singletrack- rocky, tight and challenging in places and fast, open and sandy in others, there are challenges and adrenalin boosting obstacles to wake / warm you up. We eat a good lunch at the authentic Emek Pension, and can shortly get settled into our rooms, as this family pension is where we will stay tonight.After a relaxing circuit of Soganli’s north valley we explore rock cut churches, cave houses and incredible rocky scenery on a network of technical singletrack trails. We also have chance to work on some essential trail skills here before retackling the steep singletrack route out of the canyon on which we entered. The rest of the afternoon is free for exploring the local area, reading or taking in the atmosphere on the pension terrace, or simply unwinding from yesterday’s long day of travel. Dinner in pension with plenty of choice and variety!

Overnight Emek Penison, Soganli (B,L,D)

Total 40km / 950m Climb / 1200m Descent.
After a 30 minute transfer we begin our ride at a fantastic volcanic crater lake, climbing up and over the rim on a rough, sometimes vertiginous tractor track, picking a route through the rock slides with superb views below. We descend on a fast flowing singletrack through the deserted houses of Nar village. After a challenging climb on cow tracks and then dirt tractor tracks we cross a high mountain pasture and two beautiful mountain lakes at around 1980m to arrive at Sivrihisar village. From here we descend on fast, rocky dirt tracks (with freeride sections for experts) into Guzelyurt’s Monastery Valley and head up into the town for a hearty restaurant lunch.

After lunch, we have time to explore the underground cities back down in the valley, before leaving town on yet more rough downhill via High Church and a moonscape of slick rocks with so many great lines to find… Dropping into the Ihlara Canyon at Belisirma we relax on comfortable wooden huts suspended over the water itself! We then ride the sometimes tricky singletrack in the canyon, eventually arriving at Selime village amongst a “Star Wars” landscape. At the end of the ride we shuttle you 15 minutes back up the hill to Guzelyurt, where we stay in a splendid and luxurious Ottoman “Konak” hotel.

Overnight Kapadokya Ihlara Konaklari, Guzelyurt (B,L,D)

Total 27km / 400m Climbing / 500m Descent
After breakfast we drive 80km / 1 hour north to Kavak, a little visited farming village nearby to Goreme but in a different cultural world, relatively unknown to tourists. On route, we stop to visit the fantastic Underground City at Derinkuyu. Here you explore narrow passageways leading deep undergound, where in times gone by whole towns used to shelter from marauding invaders! We begin riding in the remote village of Kavak, and after a warm up on sandy, undulating dirt roads we soon reach an amazing freeride descent through a moonscape of slick. This part is much like a natural BMX track with so many different lines to be ridden and natural carves and bowls like a man-made pump track. After a challenging final descent, we ride along the valley on jungle-like, overgrown singletracks (long sleeves recommended) with numerous technical stream crossings, log bridges and splash-downs to contend with. Heading on into the Uzengi Valley we check out the incredible multi-storey rock-cut pigeon lofts and a “natural wonder” mineral water spring. From here we continue to Urgup for lunch, easing into the afternoon with a gentle valley climb up through the green, fertile Parcarlik and Balkon Valleys to Ibrahimpasa, where we stay in a lovely boutique hotel, still away from the tourist areas around Goreme.

Overnight Three Doors Hotel, Ibrahimpasa (B,L,D)

Total 27km / 650m Climbing / 850m Descent

We begin with a climb on a rough track that brings us fairly painlessly up and over the highest point above Goreme and an unbelievable view over Goreme, Uchisar, Ortahisar, Avanos and Urgup. The descent is via a rough track to the top of Zemi Valley- where a technical and super steep slick rock slab entrance poses nerve-testing entertainment for the better riders. Now in lush, green and overgrown forested terraces, our downhill trail is great fun- passing through natural rock tunnels, handlebar-width mini canyons and hairpin drops and steps. From the valley’s mid-point one final technical climb brings us up and over into a parallel universe- Gorkundere- part of the European XC MTB Cup course. We fly down the rutted rocks, emerging with glowing smiles all round right in the centre of Goreme (restaurant lunch). Afterwards, we set off on a stunningly beautiful climb to Uchisar via the edge of Goreme’s panoramic canyon. We arrive in Uchisar (flying castle in Turkish)- an awesome cave village perched high above the Goreme valley and from then on some of the best singletracks kick in.The next 3 days are solid gold trail riding! We launch into an awesome 5km long singletrack descent through the top half of Pigeon Valley- on a fast, smooth footpath that snakes between well ordered vegetable gardens. Leaving the valley at the mid-point, we climb out on slick rocks and then drop into White Valley. Very steep and technical in places, the scenery is breathtaking, and our trail passes through Cappadocia’s best “fairy chimney” rock towers.

Overnight Cave Hotel, Goreme (B,L,D)

Total 23km / 650m Climb / 650m Descent
This morning you might like to see the dawn in from a Hot Air Balloon flight- respected as a “must do” in Cappadocia, and an awesome way to see the trails you’ve ridden from a completely different perspective! Though the tour is completely optional, this an unmissable experience, and you’ll be back in time for breakfast. After breakfast, setting off from our hotel, we dovetail onto the last portion the Euro XC Cup circuit from a different direction and taking on the rutted rock downhill for a second time. Our route stays close to Goreme initially, enjoying some steep, smooth singletracks and great views as we meander through Swords Valley- Kiliclar. This accessible terrain is a good intro for the more technical and exposed trails to come this afternoon. We climb on an immensely scenic ascent along a ridge above Meskendir Valley, passing Kaya Camping and then dropping into that valley on one of three technical trails. Meskendir Valley is one of the best- with a flowing trail that descends through tunnels, canyons and steeply terraced gardens- with some steps and “north shore” thrown in for good measure! Eventually we run our of downs, and put up our saddles ready for the almost vertical techy climbs of Rose Valley- stopping to draw breath and admire the phenomenal and relatively unknown 8th Century rock-cut “Church of Columns”. Crossing a grassy plateau brings us immediately back into singletrack domain, this time above Red Valley and onto a sheer sided rocky spur that affords a “hot air balloon” view to the valley below. We enjoy a delicious lunch in an off-grid eco-sensitive local restaurant and have time to chill on the sofas there as we digest.

After lunch an easy dirt track climb brings us to the Panoramic Viewpoint for perhaps the hardest but most incredible of all the trails… We call it The Balkon. Though not for the faint hearted everyone is able to tackle the 7km downhill trail at their own speed, and there is no shame in walking some of the steeper sectors. However, the great riding through boulder strewn and deeply eroded gullies is reminiscent of Zion, Utah, and of Red Bull’s legendary Rampage- live your dreams! We return to Goreme and have the option to spend the afternoon in the nearby small town of Avanos, where we can visit an artisanal ceramics workshop and museum! A tougher day than the modest km’s suggest, but world-class trail riding in every respect.

Overnight Boutique Cave Hotel, Goreme (B,L,D)

Total 22km / 550m Climb / 550m Descent
Our last day is less intensely technical than yesterday’s so you should go home feeling refreshed and satisfied. That said, the morning ride is challenging and again, longer than its km’s suggest. From Goreme we begin a 7km circuit of a different part of Rose Valley, passing by Cross Church on a technical, slick rock course. Now, we descend into the historic rock-cut ruins of Cavusin and explore the well-preserved church of St John the Baptist. From Cavusin, we traverse on undulating singletracks through a seemingly impassable landscape of deeply eroded rock, before setting off on a steep 20-minute hike-a-bike trail gets us right to the top of the Boz Dagi table top mountain. The effort is rewarded with some of the best views of the whole trip! We take hugely panoramic goat tracks right around the edge of the table top plateau, with views down to the valleys below and then drop down on a steep, open, enduro-style descent full of sandy switchbacks that plunges into a super-fast dirt road, meeting up with the Urgup to Avanos road, and shortly, still downhill on rough farm tracks, right into the cosmopolitan town of Urgup.

We have the option to finish our ride in a traditional Turkish bath / hammam- the perfect way to relax and let the stresses and strains of the week melt away… After a tasty restaurant lunch, we have time to relax, explore the small boutiques or indulge in a Turkish ice cream and good coffee. There is also time for shopping, and time to relax before the last evening’s entertainment. Optional wine tasting at is also possible. Our evening meal at one of Urgup’s best restaurant sets the scene for a fantastic last evening, and there are bars and night clubs here for those with a party spirit. Our hotel is a boutique, stone-built cave suites and the perfect place to end a perfect tour.

Overnight Boutique Cave Hotel, Urgup (B,L,D)

After a nice breakfast in the hotel, we drive you to either Kayseri or Nevsehir airport as you prefer. In case the group prefer to have transfers to different airports at different times, a shuttle service will be used (with sometimes restrictions on carrying bike boxes- please check with us before booking your flights!)
Tour ends here (B)