The MOST DANGEROUS ROAD in the WORLD?! - TURKIYE 🇹🇷 - Australia to Scotland by road - Episode 86

The beautiful inviting emerald green river we were camped by didn’t make it through the night; washed away by the overnight rain and replaced with dirty muddy brown rapids. Our plans to enjoy the morning in the hot spring and river were dashed. Thankfully we had made the most of the clear starry night before the rain and laid in the hot, some very hot, pools in the dark under a stars. With now no point to hang around we packed up, said goodbye to the dog patrol, and hit the road again to Batumi. Winding down further out of the mountains the landscape turned from alpine to lush coastal forest as we hit sea level and the Black Sea. It has been two and a half years since we’ve been at sea level with the Troopy and it felt like we were now making real progress again and it felt good! The drive south along the Black Sea to Georgia’s second largest city was quite relaxing feeling more like somewhere on the Caribbean coast of Central America, mountains in the distance, lush farmlands, and roads lined with tall leaning palms. Small pockets of fishing villages dotted the coast with simple timber roadside stalls displaying the days catch for purchase. Between the villages ‘Official’ camping areas packed the coastline and we could only imagine this area would be very popular with city-dwellers during holidays.
Batumi is actually the capital of the ‘Autonomous Republic of Adjara’ and is a strategic port not only for Georgia though also for China and their BRI project. We encountered several significant road projects being constructed by the Chinese during our travels across Georgia all of which form part of the BRI. Batumi is also a popular tourist destination and a gambling hotspot, earning the title of ‘Vegas of the Black Sea.’ A huge amount of money has been poured into the southern section of the city with high rise apartments and hotels of varying quality crowding the beachside. Contrastingly the northern port side of the city is a picturesque heritage area with beautiful old restored architecture, cobblestone streets, and trendy cafes and restaurants - very similar to Tbilisi. We had a quick stay over for the night to get some work done, information printed for Turkey, and catching up on some washing.
The following morning we made the push through the peak hour traffic of the city to make the short drive down the coast road to the Turkish border. After the entry into Georgia saga we were uncertain now how this would play out though the only thing we could do here is try. In the time since entering Georgia we had talked to a lot of other people, some Australian, who had had no problems entering Turkey with the same paperwork which was good for a confidence boost. The lines were long and the terminal congested with freight though in general it was a relatively well run border. The Georgians however again tried to flex their knowledge and insisted we wouldn’t get into Turkey without a PCR test though we knew this wasn’t the case and continued on. Between the borders we purchased the compulsory road insurance for 250 Lira for a period of 3 months. The Turks were a friendly bunch and we were stamped through with little question; and just like that we were in Turkey.
From experience, leading up to borders the countries on both sides usually invest a lot in infrastructure (India/Pakistan being the most significant), from huge roads to fancy architecture often trying to outdo each other. This is also usually a good indication of the countries pride vs GDP. This was no exception with the Turkey side being a monster of a building dwarfing the Georgian. We had thought that the quality of the following roads into Turkey were also part of the extravaganza though they didn’t change the further we got from the border. Beautifully smooth 4-6 lane highway bypassing all the towns while hugging the coast. Not ideal for a cultural experience though good for covering ground and taking in the view. We stopped for lunch in one of the seaside towns and had enjoyed an authentic Turkish coffee (or is it just a coffee now?) and our first taste of an authentic pide which did not disappoint.
To read the rest, head over to our Patreon page. www.patreon.com/thewayoverland

[@robertprestwidge7819]

Such incredible places. Great work. 😊

[@mojavedesertsonorandesert9531]

Did something like this back in the 70's Ecuador to Peru. You never forget these kind of trips!👍🥂

[@TheWayOverland]

Definitely not!

[@humascreations9866]

I've been binge watching your episodes for the last few days, they're awesome. You people are a lovely couple. I wish I could travel like that. Best of luck 👍

[@TheWayOverland]

Thanks, appreciate that. 👍🏻

[@genadabuselidzeg.l.a1551]

I saw you in the city of Batumi in Georgia, from where you moved to Turkey. There are many more interesting and good places in Georgia that you have not seen. 👌

[@AtHomeInTurkey]

Welcome to Turkey. I live in this paradise. If you ever explore the westcoast and are in need of a shower, washing machine etc. your welcome. I live rural.

[@TheWayOverland]

Thanks! We’ve actually already passed the West Coast. It was incredible! You’re very lucky to live there.

[@troopydoopydoo5859]

The old 2 pointers. Haha. 🙈

[@TheWayOverland]

🤦🏼‍♂️ no idea how RedBull raced their KAMAZ up there

[@jasonpetersharpe]

Best way to travel. I’m really feeling the experience.

[@ahmedalshargi9687]

Incredible, you are one of the best traveling channels,,,,

[@TheWayOverland]

Cheers!

[@samsevenr]

Love to watch you two again hitting the roads and unknown destination.. A big 👍

[@TheWayOverland]

Cheers 👍🏻

[@rainey06au]

I usually sit on three or four episodes and then have a Mark and Jolie 'movie night' where I binge myself back up to date. Your adventure belongs on... something bigger and better than KZbin. A cinema!! Quality all the way!

[@TheWayOverland]

Hate to think of our mugs on something that big!! Haha Thanks though, we'll see you back here when we're leaving Turkey! Cheers 👍🏻

[@thlim1460]

Great to see you guys made it to Turkey. Based on my limited countries visited, Turkey remained top of the list of the most memorable country I’ve visited especially Capaducia !

[@TheWayOverland]

Ours also, Cappadocia is coming up in the next episode, stay tuned!

[@elturco69]

minute 11. that's my city Bayburt

[@oldandgrumpy6284]

Thank you for another nice video . Love it. Thanks

[@TheWayOverland]

Glad you enjoyed it! Cheers

[@robkeith1776]

Hey Jolie and Mark. Greetings from Oz. Great to see you both enjoying your travels after your unscheduled hiatus. Magic scenery and stunning roads. Thank you both for taking us along. Enjoy !

[@TheWayOverland]

Cheers Rob, Turkey's got some incredible scenery up it's sleeve! Looking forward to showing it off in the coming episodes. Cheers

[@robertallan9601]

Awesome stuff guys, thanks for sharing your travels.

[@TheWayOverland]

No worries. Cheers!

[@fazimhakim5865]

Super

[@stevestott1514]

Wow beautiful scenery and tight mt roads made for a great over landing video . Looks like a area I would definitely visit in Turkey some day . Glad to see you both and your troopy out in the mts again . Cheers from Steve Stott in Sutherlin Oregon U.S.A. .. :):)🍻😁👍🏼

[@TheWayOverland]

Cheers Steve, the landscape in Turkey incredible and very diverse. Great country for overlanding!

[@abo7amad34]

Please, we need an Arabic translation. We love you, your followers, and good luck🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹👍

[@TheWayOverland]

Cheers, we'll have to work on our Arabic.

[@themechanicslab]

Good work. Keep it up

[@TheWayOverland]

Thanks!

[@jtrvlsthewrld]

Hi Jolie and Mark, love your channel and I've been enjoying your epic travels for while now. I want to put in a small request: it would be nice if you can put the city and locations names on screen, simple lower third title. In most cases you mention it, but with the fast OZ accent and pronunciation it makes it for me difficult to understand sometimes. That's it 😊 Thank you so much for all the efforts you guys put in your video's. HPPY TRVLS ✌🏽

[@TheWayOverland]

Hey, We’ll see what we can do though we’re a few episodes behind on YT so it’ll take a while to filter through. In the mean time the episode descriptions provide a fair bit of info which might help out. Cheers 🙂

[@imtananahmer4829]

Good to see you guys hitting the road again. Love from pakistan. ❤️ Are you planning to continue your journey to europe. Would be a good idea if you explore each country more from the inside.

[@TheWayOverland]

Thanks, yes, the UK is the final destination.

[@jb5708]

Really enjoy the channel but a bit more logistical info would be great for people wanting to do the same x

[@MrPurandar]

👌❤👍

[@sanjaygehani1174]

Which tyres do you use and how did the hold up when the vehicle was parked in one place for approx 18 months

[@TheWayOverland]

We use Mickey Thompsons, we were concerned about them potentially being brittle after the storage though they've held up relatively well; we did loose one in Southern Turkey which you'll see a few episodes after this one. It's been over a year now since we picked up the Troopy from Armenia and the tyres have probably still got another 5k kms in them.

[@telhasaeed7448]

Wrongggg. This isn't the world's most dangerous road. The most dangerous is in Pakistan only(Karakoram Highway)