Ikizada Beach, Bafa Lake
The southern Aegean between Bodrum and Kuşadası has mostly mediocre beaches; so much so that the stand-out strand is to be found on the inland, brackish but clear waters of Lake Bafa. Mind you, it’s remote.
The road ends at Kapıkırı where one fine white beach fronts the ruin-strewn village. A long walk north through the marsh flats and fields leads to Ikizada – a conspicuous headland with Byzantine ruins ‘twinned’ by those on the adjacent island – but the better approach is to ask at Kapıkırı for a local fisherman, and hang the cost (about £35) of the return trip. The still shallows at Ikizada fringe the peninsula which runs out to the ruinous headland. There’s nothing here but white sand and a few tamarisk trees for shade, with the unearthly boulder-strewn Beşparmak Mountains for a backdrop.
Be aware that very high temperatures from the summer onwards can sometimes cause deoxygenation in the lake; it can begin to smell, even turn putrid, from July.