While there is a shorter, less dusty path available, shepherds take the more difficult route through the valley.
In the Kiyiduzu village of Bitlis, Turkey, shepherds must make a 30km roundtrip every day.
During high summer, locals herd their sheep 15km through a valley to reach the high plateaus needed for grazing. The sheep cannot stay there overnight, however, as they need to be returned to the town to be milked.
Shepherd from Kiyiduzu village, Kutbettin Kaya, said that he owns 350 sheep, as well as other animals.
“I go to Mount Nemrut every day, the journey lasts 15km. Then I come back down the same road within the day,” he added.
While there is a shorter, less dusty path available, shepherds take the more difficult route through the valley. The reason for this, young shepherd Murat Alican said, is so “the herds of sheep don’t destroy the villagers’ crop fields.”