The "Calchas Trail"
Number two on the Top 5 Stages of the Efes-Mimas Trail stretches from the ancient city of Colophon to the coastal ruin of Notion, passing the oracular site of Claros
One element that made my hike along the Efes-Mimas Trail in 2022-23 so meaningful was the stories I encountered on the way.
The ancient gods and goddesses of the Aegean are household names throughout western culture. But the mythical heroes and bad guys are also prevalent here. Remember Tantalos? He ruled just east of Smyrna and earned his gruelling reputation here before his eternal punishment in Hades. Niobe weeps for the children murdered by Apollo and Artemis from a rock nearby. And Narcissus’ spring gugles about 60 km from Izmir (my full tale of Narcissus and Echo is for subscribers only).
A trail that holds more than its fair share of myths is the “Calchas Trail,” which stretches about 22 km from Değirmendere through hills down into the Ales Valley and on to the ruined city of Notion, on the shore overlooking the village of Ahmetbeyli. It is a less-traveled option for those fascinated by ancient Greece — those willing to invest some shoe leather on both adventure and enlightenment.
The prophet, Calchas
The Calchas Trail gets its name from a famous prophet in the myths around the Trojan War. Calchas was a seer to Agamemnon, commander-in-chief of the invading Achean/ Mycenean armies.
Calchas makes his name in mythology at several key points.
Prior to departure for Troy, the Achaeans’ ships were held in place by a landward breeze at Aulis that went on for weeks. Calchas interpreted the flight of an eagle to mean that Artemis was upset about the planned invasion, and she wanted a human sacrifice for it to go forward. Agamemnon lured his eldest daughter, Iphigineia to Aulis with a promise that she would marry the Achaean hero, Achilles. Instead she was sacrificed. Soon thereafter the winds shifted, and the fleet sailed.
As the ships approached Troy, Calchas warned that the first man to set foot on Asian soil would be killed. Sure enough, Protesilaus — the first invader to leap from the ships — was soon dispatched by Hector. The war was on.
In the first book of The Iliad, Calchas reveals that the plague striking the Achaean troops comes from Apollo as punishment. Agamemnon, who has earned the god’s disfavor by refusing to ransome the kidnapped daughter of Apollo’s priest, Chryses, instigates a feud with his top fighter, Achilles, upon whose wrath the whole epic is based.
That’s all well and good, but Troy is quite far from Izmir. Why have I named this the “Calchas Trail”? Because of events from the prophet’s final weeks that I happened along the way.
The Basics:
Name: “The Calchas Trail”
Distance: 22 km
Challenges: Moderate. A relatively well-marked trail. There are two challenges: the first is new constrution that has blocked the trail in a couple of places. Hikers will need to bypass these fenced-in sites. There are a couple tricky turns where it is easy to get lost. Still, the trail is shady and goes by a mountain reservoir. Good for any season, including summer.
What would a prophet foresee for an adventure on the Calchas Trail? A long hike — plan 5 to 7 hours. And you will want to spend time at the three sites on the route — particularly Claros, which has an amazing Temple of Apollo and the remains of other temples and council houses.
Leg 1: Değirmendere to Ataköy Pond
The path begins about 300m from the center of the village of Değirmendere at the site of ancient Colophon. On first look, this is a pile of rubble strewn across the top of a hill about 150m from the end of the road. The trail winds along a fence to the ancient acropolis which offers great view northward across the Colophonian Plain towards Izmir.
Despite its sense of disrepair, the area has been studied extensively by archaeologists. A thriving city existed here from the Ionian settlements of Greek colonists in the 8th Century BCE until Roman Times. It minted its own coins. And it was known for its cavalry.
During the early years of the Helenistic Era (circa 323-32 BCE), as Lysimachus fought to establish Ephesus as a regional capital, he came into conflict with Colophon. He defeated them in battle, forcing the residents to abandon the city and move en masse to Ephesus or the coastal settlement of Notion, long known as “Colophon by the Sea” since it was the hilltop town’s port. The town recovered somewhat in Roman times, but it was abandoned and left to ruin.
What fascinates me about Colophon is its rich connection to myth. Accounts of the Trojan War claim that a raiding party led by Achilles attacked Colophon.
Another Colophonian, a weaver named Arachne, was celebrated in myth for losing a contest to the goddes Athena, who turned her opponent into a spider.
I have been to Colophon three times, each time exploring a different part of the city. There are exposed walls and foundations of a temple. Be careful. There are also pits left open by archaeologists (or treasure hunters). It is an amazing place to let one’s imagination run wild, especially in the morning hours.
There is no mythical record of Calchas in Colophon, although tradition says that he stayed on the Asian side of the Aegean after the end of the Trojan War. He certainly would have passed through Colophon on the coastal road from Smyrna, journeying to the temple of Apollo in Claros or further on to Ephesus where Artemis had been worshiped since ancient times.
The trail leads southward from Colophon and follows lumber roads around the edge of the coastal hills before dropping down to a reservoir called Ataköy Göleti
Leg 2: towards Çile and Claros
There is a steep climb from the dam over a saddle to another, shaded trail that leads on to the village of Çile, a walk of about 5 km. Çile lies on the highway to Menderes. Here, the Ales Valley opens up, stuffed with tangerin and pomegranate trees. The trail follows the western edge of the valley southward and crosses the highway and goes to the ancient site of Claros (admission is required to get into the site, which is well worth an hour’s visit).
Claros was the site of an oracle to Apollo, and it drew visitors from around the region who wished to know the future. It was not a town — that was a few kilometers away — it was a temple complex, with side temples for Apollo’s twin sister, Artemis, and for their mother, Leda.
The excavated area is amazing for the size of the columns of Apollo’s temple (still fallen but impressive in their diameter). The temple site itself is populated by a family or two of turtles. Near the Apollo Temple are huge, 3-meter statues that once stood on the site. The pieces are all that remain, placed in ordered rows just up the hill from the temple.
One interesting statue that was found here was a statue of Homer. A copy is on the site, and the original is in the historical museum in Izmir. The residents of nearby Notion erected it, partly because they claimed that Homer was from Notion. There are several places in the area that claim him: the Greek Island of Chios has a strong claim (there was a school of epic performers there that claimed to date from his sons), but tradition has held that Smyrna was his home.
Calchas met his end in Claros, according to tradition. Here he met a local prophet named Mospus, who challenged him to a competition. After failing to predict the number of piglets a pregnang sow would deliver, Calchas left in disgrace and died soon thereafter.
Leg 3: Claros to Notion
The final leg is a short 1.5 km hike due south from Claros to the coast. Follow farm roads for about 500m then cross the coastal highway. Climb the hill on the other side of the road to reach the site of Notion.
The site is mostly rubble now, with a few remnants of walls and the foundation of a temple on view. But there have been extensive archaeological surveys here, as in Colophon. It is a large site, and the hill reaches out 300 meters to the sea. Every time I visit, I see something new.
To the east of the hill is the beach at Ahmetbeyli with some nice restaurants and a campground. One can catch the 776 bus from Ahmetbeyli back to the Cumaovasi Izban Station in Menderes.
The Calchas Trail is a journey of the mind, connecting legendary characters from the Trojan War (Achilles and Calchas) with figures from Greek mythology like Arachne.
Other articles in this series: