Water curtain
In season.
Begüm Filiz Öz — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pbru — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ebrarstascii — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ebrarstascii — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jaba1977 — CC BY-SA 4.0
Tortum Waterfall is the tallest waterfall in Turkey, in the Tortum area of eastern Anatolia, about 90 km northeast of Erzurum in a straight line and about 100 km by road. Tortum Lake above the falls was formed by a landslide that blocked the Tortum river valley; it is 8 km long and 1 km wide. Since the Tortum dam and hydroelectric plant were completed in 1960, water has been drawn from the lake through channels and tunnels to the turbines, and only surplus water feeds the falls. So the waterfall runs strongly only for a short period in May and June, when the lake is exceptionally high, and its bed is almost dry the rest of the year. In season, heavy white water pours over a wide rock lip in a broad curtain, with spray rising into rainbows, then runs on through a green rocky gorge. Bare mountains surround it, with turquoise Tortum Lake above. Visitors stand on viewing platforms in front of and above the falls and walk the path down to the bottom. The visit is often combined with Tortum Lake; check the flow before going, as May and June are the best months.
In season.
In the spray.
Above the falls.
Uzundere, Erzurum, Turkey
May and June.
Almost, outside its season.