Get your own Free Home PageMount Ararat lies in the far east of Turkey close to the borders with Iran, Iraq and Armenia. This area is also one of internal unrest, being a Kurdish region. We were lucky to visit it in 1988, a period of relative calm, when the area was being promoted as a tourist destination. We acclimatised in the Kackar mountains, which are still accessible to visitors and in many ways more attractive to mountain walkers since they comprise a complete range of mountains, rising to 3932m, rather than the isolated volcanic cone of Ararat. Ararat is the great prize however for mountain collectors, not only because it is the highest summit in Turkey but also for its historical significance. Our ascent was preceded by a visit to a recent discovery, thought by some to be the remains of Noah's Ark, although actually most probably a natural rock phenomenon with the shape of an enormous ship.
The ascent was arranged in the town of Dogubayazit to the south-west of the mountain. From here a truck took us nearly to the base camp. The first picture shows Mount Ararat from the base camp where two days were spent to acclimatise, the spare day being utilised for practise with ice axe and crampons above the camp. The third night was spent at a higher, more primitive camp, but again one which was permanently in situ through the season. From here we set off before dawn to climb to the summit. The first part of the climb was over typical volcanic terrain of loose scree but eventually we had to stop and put on the crampons to cross the final glacier, and the summit, as shown in the last two pictures, was pure snow.
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......or to find out more about Ararat's most famous visitor see Noah's Ark Search
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