Bolu

Black Sea, Turkey 2 tours visit here

Bolu is a province in Turkey's Western Black Sea region, set in the Koroglu Mountains roughly midway between Istanbul and Ankara. It is inland rather than coastal, and its character comes from dense pine and beech forest, high pastures, lakes and thermal springs. The main motorway between the two cities crosses the Bolu pass, so the area is both an easy stop on the road and a destination in its own right. Most visits centre on the lakes and forests rather than the town itself. Abant, a lake ringed by woodland, and Golcuk, closer to the centre, are the usual short stops, while Yedigoller, the Seven Lakes national park to the north, takes the better part of a day, largely because of the slow forest road. Autumn is the season Yedigoller is best known for, when the beech and oak turn colour; winter brings snow and the ski runs at Kartalkaya, and the highlands stay noticeably cooler than lowland Turkey in summer. Bolu also carries a long culinary reputation: the district of Mengen has supplied professional cooks to kitchens across the country for generations, and the local table leans towards hearty mountain food. It is usually visited as a day trip or a short break from Istanbul or Ankara.