Alanya – Paragliding over the Peninsula

Alanya Paragliding – Upon our return from Aspendos, our friend Devrim from Ankara arranged to join us for Sunday breakfast.

He wanted to use his weekend in Alanya to attempt a few flights from the local paragliders' home mountain not least as preparation for the long-distance flights in this year's XCTurkey competitions taking place in June in Karaman and Mut.

Consequently, we had already made plans for early Sunday morning and prepared a European-Turkish breakfast; Georg Koenig, bandleader of *Backdoor Connection*, also contributed his share by bringing along Leerdammer cheese and smoked ham.

Our conversation quickly turned to the subject of music not least because Devrim is also an excellent guitar player.

As a result, we immediately scheduled a date for the coming weekend to combine our shared interests and put on a little jam session.

It was, in its own way, a form of communication despite our linguistic differences.

By around 10:00 AM, we had already arranged to meet with Tulgay Özden, who runs a small office at Cleopatra Beach and handles the jeep transfers for paragliders up the mountain.

With a level of pilot training that is likely unique in Alanya, he offers tandem flights to anyone interested in combining a day trip to the mountains with the exhilarating experience of a magnificent flight down to Cleopatra Beach.

We were all surprised when Georg suddenly announced that he would be joining the flight.

Having - just moments earlier - emphatically dismissed the idea of ​​ever attempting to paraglide, this marked a complete 180-degree turn.

During his conversation with Devrim, he had been convinced of just how magnificent and relatively safe flying can be.

Once the gear was loaded into the Jeep, we headed straight up to an altitude of approximately 700 meters directly to the paragliding launch site in Alanya.

Breathtaking vistas accompanied us on our drive into the mountains, where snow-capped peaks still glistened in the sunlight.

Add to that the view of the azure-blue sea that alone makes the tour worthwhile. Once we reached the top, a short hike to the take-off point was required, where the equipment was then laid out and prepared.

Now there was no turning back for Georg; his harness straps were fastened and connected to the pilot Tulgay’s tandem system.

A brief moment of reflection, a final glance at his somewhat sceptical expression and then came the command to start running.

Since the wind was blowing very favourably and steadily, a successful launch followed by a rapid ascent to about 1,000 meters posed no major challenge.

Later, Georg told us about the scepticisms that had indeed begun to creep in as they spiralled upward in tight loops, riding the thermal currents.

We were able to follow the pair’s flight for a while longer, watching as the bandleader now waving enthusiastically visibly revelled in the experience. He even managed to snap a few photos during his maiden flight.

We had to take the Jeep back down to Cleopatra Beach a pleasant journey in itself, as the weather was simply glorious. About half an hour later, we were back.

Tulgay and his tandem passenger had just landed as well, allowing Georg to immediately share his impressions.

A short while later, Devrim also came gliding down to the beach, executing a perfect landing. Highly recommended whether for a repeat visit or for those looking to try it out themselves!

Please also read:

Tahtali – The Final Leg of the 2010 Paragliding Tour

Exploration - Paragliding at Struga Lake Ohrid