THE STORY OF SARIKIZ

While living with her family in a village of Ayvacik that is a part of Çanakkale, little Sarikiz's mother dies. Her father says to her ' You know I loved your mother dearly, we have a lot of memories  here, and it is hard for me to forget her. Let's move away from here and they move to the village of Kavurmacilar which is close to the village of Gure on the skirts of Kaz Mountain. There they work as shepherds. They are much loved in town. The town's elderly and the young all go to Sarikiz's father for advice. The villagers believe he is very knowledgeable.Years go by, Sarikiz grows up to be a beautiful girl and her father gets old. He has a wish to make a pilgrimage. He always prays to God for his wish. Sarikiz encourages her father to go. She tells him she is old enough to care for herself and that he should go before he gets too old. Her father entrusts her with his neighbor and leaves. After her father leaves for pilgrimage, the young men of the village start asking for her hand. Sarikiz turns them all down.
They in turn spread lies about her. When her.father returns from pilgrimage everyone is very distant and cold to him. When he asks the neighbor he entrusted his daughter with, the reason of this, he tells her Sarikiz has taken bad ways. The father thinks about it for days. He can't even fulfill his religion's requirements. He has to clean his honor if he wants to live in the village. He can't bear to kill his beloved daughter either.So he takes his daughter to the summit of Kaz Mountain along with some geese and leaves her there. He believes she will be  prey to wild animals there.

Years go by. Travelers from Bayramic claim they were helped and directed by Sankiz when they were lost on the mountain. They also tell the story of how the geese had come down to the field and ruined the crops of the farmers. So Sarikiz throws the stone in her apron the geese from going down. Today the ruins remain of the place called Kaz Avlusu (Goose courtyard). The father who hears the stories believes it could be his daughter.He climbs the mountain and at the summit he sees geese in a place closed up with walls. He finds his daughter in the place where is called today 'Sarikiz Tepesi. Sarikiz is happy to see her father, she shows him respect.When he asks to clean up before his prayer, she pours water on his hands Her father says the water is salty. She says she made a mistake and goes to get fresh water. When she pours the water her father tastes it and realizes that his daughter has dissolved. A black cloud fills the sky and Sarikiz disappears. He decides his daughter disappeared because her secret was revealed.He understands that  daughter had been slandered and he curses the villagers. Wandering the hills with grief, he dies in what  is today called Babatepe  (Fatherhill). The locals visit the place every month of August to remember Sarikiz and her father. Sarikiz is considered to be a saint by the Turcoman, the Nomads and the surrounding peoples. They believe she continues to possess the super human powers she is believed to have during her lifetime.When people face dilemmas or have certain wishes they visit this place. This place is an embracing place open for visitors. On special days and weddings the locals come here to pray and give offerings. On Sarikiz Tepesi the locals have formed a little mound with stones, it is called Sarıkız'ın makamı. Sarıkız'ın makamı is within the National Park borders. You need a permit to get in. The locals usually go up the second week of August. They camp in Sarlkiz between 15 and 25 of August. The Turcoman camp in the Turcoman Plane on the skirts of Karatas Hill and the Nomad camp on the left side of the plane are in the Güllüce region. Sarıkız has a special place for the Turcoman. A Sarikiz visit is called 'cilbaga gitmek '. The visitors are called 'cilbakci ' and the visiting car is called 'cilbak car '.

The Turcoman people do good deeds on three days: Saturdays at Sarikiz, Sundays at Baba and Mondays at Şahtaş. Some local villages only visit Sarikiz.There is a notebook for wishes in Sarikiz. This notebook that can be read by everybody contains wishes for husbands, children ,cures and jobs. Some use symbols to express their wishes. For example one who wishes for a baby may wrap a stone with a cloth or one wishing for marriage may leave a veil. Some light candles to make their wish. The visitor search for ladybugs under the stones believing finding one is a sign that their wish will come true. They take the Stone with them for luck and return it after the wish comes true.