Balik Gulf

The waters east of Samsun lie off the fertile Black Sea coast of northern Anatolia. Rivers descend from the Pontic Mountains to the sea, while the sheltered bay at Samsun has long served the port known in antiquity as Amisus. Coastal vessels connected the harbour with Sinop to the west and the ports of Pontus to the east, passing a shore of river mouths, hills and small anchorages.