The small village of Bagras (Ötençay) lies 4.5km off the road connecting İskenderun to Antakya. It’s well worth making the detour to see the impressive remains of Bagras Kalesi, a castle atop a rock high above it. The setting is somewhat marred but not totally ruined by a line-up of wind turbines behind it.
It’s not clear precisely when the castle was built although there seems to have been a fortification on the site by the time Alexander the Great passed through in the fourth century BC. No doubt it was rebuilt over and again until finally in 1516 it was captured for the Ottomans by Yavuz Sultan Selim on his way to seize Egypt.
A track runs right up to the walls of the castle but there doesn’t seem to be any way to get inside it.
It’s probably not wise for a woman to venture up here alone. I was followed by a motorcyclist.
Transport info
Ask to get out of any minibus running along the İskenderun to Antakya route at the road junction but take with a pinch of salt claims that you will be able to get a taxi to the castle – you will probably have to rely on a lift if you don’t have your own car and don’t fancy the trek up, especially in summer sun – it’s a shadeless trek.
