We continue our weekly round up of the local news from Fethiye, Muğla and surrounding area.

Missing

As was his daily routine, 76-year-old Ramazan Kırıkdirek set out at 08.00 one morning this week from the house he shared in Gökben village with his 32-year-old daughter Kezban, to take his ten or so goats up into the forest to graze.

But this time Ramazan didn't return as usual in the evening and by 19.00 around 200 villagers and 40 jandarma were out searching for the missing man.

AKUT, the mountain rescue team, joined the search and carried it on through the night, but it wasn't until almost noon the next day when Ramazan's body was found.

Intriguingly there was no sign of his goats, which has led police to declare this a suspicious death.

As Gökben's muhtar told local press

“These are domesticated goats they wouldn't leave Ramazan voluntarily.”

Walk Fethiye Book Published

Fethiye Chamber of Commerce organised a meeting this week to launch the compilation of a new book on walking around Fethiye.

They told the press that if Fethiye is to achieve year round tourism it needs to market activities such as walking which continue through the winter months.

The global recognition of the Lycian Way was a good foundation on which to build the popularity of walking in Fethiye.

Weather Washes Refuse into the Sea

And recent heavy continuous rains have left the Fethiye Bay full of rubbish.

Water enters the Bay through many canals, as well as the large one that passes through the Tuesday Market Place.

In turn the canals are fed by smaller streams and, when we have heavy rain, all the rubbish that has collected in dried up stream beds ends up being washed out into the Bay.

Whilst much of this is biodegradable plant matter and small branches there are also plastic bags and bottles

Local press were out during the week, asking visitors to the town for their reaction to the rubbish along the edges of the Bay.

They were not happy, but a local fisherman put it in context when he said:

“The wind will change shortly and it will all be washed out to sea.”

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Vehicle Tax Due

Don't forget, if you own a Turkish registered vehicle you will need to pay your tax by the 31st January of face a fine.

Eithe pay your tax all in one go or alternatively in two instalments - one at the end of this month and the other at the end of July.

For details of the tax due please see our article here.