Kackar Kaçkar

Mount Ararat

Turkey

Mount Ararat
5 days Grade C/D  Vehicle and Mule Supported
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Mount Ararat. reputedly where Noah's ark landed, is at 5137m the highest mountain in Turkey. Ararat may be either approached from Erzurum in turn reached by train or air. This is the main city of Eastern Turkey. It has a long and important history related to its position as the eastern bastion of defence on the Anatolian plateau. An alternative approach is via Van and its beautiful lake. Van is best reached by air. From either Van or Erzurum, Doğubayazit can be reached in a few hours drive. This town lies at almost 2000m and is the base for the ascent of Mount Ararat. Not far from the town lies the famous temple of Ishak Paşa.

The ascent involves two camps at 3200m and 4200m. Few acceptable alternatives exist due to a lack of water. The ascent above 3200m is generally on snow that may be icy and might require crampons. Although a rope is carried it is rarely needed as the ascent is non-technical and crevasse problems are negligable.

The weather on Ararat is generally stable and it is possible to make an ascent on almost any day. It is however a very high mountain and good acclimatisation is essential. On our programmes we generally prefer this to be done away from Ararat itself as the mountain does not lend itself to acclimatisation treks at a suitable altitude and the campsites are dirty and sometimes crowded. If no alternatives exist then the best option is to spend 2 nights at 3200m on the way up. On the acclimatisation day you should then walk up part or all of the way to 4200m as a practise day.

On the summit day allow about 4 to 5 hours for the ascent and a further 3 to 4 hours for the descent back to the more pleasant altitude of 3200m. Given an early start it is possible to descend all the way and so avoid the unpleasant campsite.

Note: Mount Ararat requires the use of crampons and walking poles but previous experience in the use of them is not essential. In fact Ararat could be a training mountain for those interested in going on to higher and more demanding summits such as Elbrus, Peak Lenin or Kilimanjaro.

Ski Ascents are possible in spring and at this time the camps are much more reasonable to stay at. Winter Pictures.

The trip described below could be an add-on to one of our Kackar trips, no acclimatisation days are programmed in. Email us for more information on a private trip to Ararat at ewp@ewpnet.com