Sunset Point to Zemi Valley
Göreme,
Turkey
Overview
Sunset point is a popular spot overlooking Goreme with sweeping views of the town and the perfect vantage point to watch the hot air balloons in the morning or catch the sunset in the evening. To the east of Sunset Point lies Zemi Valley, a popular hiking destination with its picturesque fairy chimneys. Hiking in Zemi Valley typically starts at the northern end, however there are some informal trails near Sunrise Point which descend down into Zemi Valley, allowing one to combine the vistas of Sunrise Point with Zemi Valley.
This hike follows a number of unmarked trails, and it's highly recommended to have a downloaded map on your phone (or reliable internet access). From Sunset Point, hike along the ridge northeast and then descend down into the valley, merging into a dirt road / trail, which you will follow south. Within a half mile you will find your first cluster of fairy chimneys and you can begin your ascent back up to the ridge, south of Sunset Point and then proceed along the road back to Sunset point for a roughly 2 mile loop. If you prefer a longer hike, continue hiking south in Zemi Valley and the road / trail will eventually ascend up to the ridge farther south of Sunset point.
Directions
Parking
Trip Reports
I was looking to get out for a hike with the family, which meant I had to find something relatively short. We were planning to head up to Sunset Point to get a nice panoramic view of Göreme, as it was just above our hotel and I noticed online there were some trails heading down into Zemi Valley, which looked to have some nice rock formations.
Armed with my downloaded map on my phone, after breakfast we walked up to Sunset Point and snapped some photos. After a quick discussion, my dad and son decided to head back to the hotel, while my mom, wife and I would do a quick loop down into Zemi Valley.
We started hiking north down along the ridge and had two dogs following us from Sunset point. One rather large dog, which I later learned was a Kangal Shepherd Dog, which looked well kept after and had a collar and the other dog that looked like it might have been a mix. Both were friendly, and we didn't mind having them follow us, but I wasn't sure why they were following us - did they expect a treat?
We followed a trail down into Zemi Valley, passing by what appeared to be a couple of private residences or businesses. I had to continually check my phone to make sure we were headed in the right direction and on the right trail I had scoped out earlier, as nothing was signed and the trail split apart in a couple of locations.
We eventually got to the bottom and connected with a dirt road which headed south into Zemi Valley. I think this is the "main trail" into Zemi Valley, but we were only on it for a short while and didn't see any signage. After a short bit, we took a right onto another dirt road, which I erroneously thought would link up with a trail which would begin to ascend up to the ridge. At this point we had lost the large dog, but the smaller dog was still following us, and as we made our way up the road we walked past a field with some horses. They began to get a little anxious and three German Shepherds came charging out at us and barking loudly. We had very little time to react, but they went straight after the dog and left us alone. With the owner yelling at them to come back, they chased the dog off and then settled back in. We backtracked to the original road, and then I found the proper spot to leave the road and follow a trail through the fairy chimneys.
Around this point, we got a call from my Dad saying he and my son were lost and couldn't find the hotel. My mom and I couldn't really figure out exactly where he was, but it sounded like he hadn't made it down off the ridge into town yet. We told him to find Sunset point again and head down from there, or wait for us, as we were not that far away...
We ascended the trail up to the ridge, and ended up at the edge of a farmer's field. Lower down the trail had split apart, and apparently the trail I chose wasn't the right one. Consulting the map, the road was a couple hundred feet away, so we walked along the edge of the field and connected back with the road. We started walking towards Sunset point and got a message from my dad that he had found his way down into town. We ended up catching up with my dad and son near the hotel. I mentioned to them that they would have been better off just doing the hike with us!
This was a decent hike - it was pretty short and interspersed with a little stress of my dad getting lost and the dogs running at us. But all in all it was nice to combine Sunset point with Zemi Valley. If I had been on my own, I probably would have walked farther along in Zemi Valley, as there looked to be some other interesting things to see in the valley.
