Obruk, Turkey

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extensive cemetery lies opposite the caravanserai, mosque and the few houses which remain from this once large winter village.

Other traces of the previous settlement can be found in front of the cemetery and around the edge of a giant sinkhole (Obruk), which lies due east behind the caravanserai and extends some 170m/550ft into the limestone. The oval sinkhole some 200-230m/650-750ft wide is filled with water to a depth of 145m/475ft. The water from this freshwater lake which is linked to the underground karst spring of Taspinar on the edge of the Tuz Gölü 30km/19mi to the north comes from underground sources and is used for irrigation and drinking. In the middle of the plateau (Obruk Yaylasi) 25km/16mi southeast of Obruk (Kizören) and south of the village of Cukurkuyu as many as 20 giant sinkholes can be found in fairly close proximity. With a diameter of 502m/1,646ft, they range in depth from 50m/165ft to 120m/395ft; however most of them are dry.