Immediately west of the Gulf of Antalya, the Olimpos Beydaǧları Milli Parkı (National Park) stretches from the coast into the nearby mountains. The romantic site of ancient Olympos and the fascinating eternal flame of the Chimaera are both located near the holiday villages ofOlympos and Çirali in the southern section of the park.
The Site
Olympos was once among the most celebrated cities of the Lycian League. During the Roman period Olympos was widely known as a cult site dedicated to the fire god Hephaistos (with a grand temple built in his honour at the site of the Chimaera). There are also references in Plutarch to ritual feasts taking place here in honour of Mithras, the Persian god of light.
The city began to slip into decline due to constant raiding by pirates who plagued the town even after the successful campaign waged against them by the Romans in 78 BC. Today, although the ancient Olympos ruins are badly overgrown and in a severe state of dilapidation, the site is incredibly picturesque, standing in a valley near the sea with the forest densely packed around it. The remains include a Roman theatre, Byzantine basilica, temple, bridge, defensive wallsand chamber tombs.
Chimaera
One of nature's great curiosities, the eternal flame of the Chimaera (the fire-breathing monster of Greek mythology) is a phenomenon first mentioned in AD 300 by the Byzantine Bishop Methodius. Natural gas escaping from eighteen or so holes and crevices in the rock has burned here since ancient times. Although barely discernible in daylight the flames are said to be visible far out to sea at night. The gases are still to be properly analyzed but are known to include methane.
This is a tourist attraction that many people prefer to visit at night. You can walk from Çıralıalong the marked path to the site. Once you've reached the car park there is a 150 m ascent to the top of the hill. From Olympos the Chimaera site is 7 km away
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