Eastern Anatolia Alpine Touring Expedition
So Close to the Downtown, as Remote as Another Planet
Duration
Best Season
Tour Type
Accommodation
Difficulty
: 8 Days
: February - March - April
: Backcountry Ski
: Hotel
: Moderate – Hard
Overview
Turkiye has a diverse geography. More than the half of Anatolia topography is over 1000 m.Luckily, we have wonderful mountains. Especially in eastern and southeastern region are quite mountainous. In this trip we prepared an itinerary in the far eastern part of Turkiye. The city of Van, located at an altitude of 1,650 m just by Van Lake. Van Lake is the largest lake in Turkiye and it is by gigantic mountains which rise to a height of almost 4,000 m. Mountains around Van Lake are some of the best of its kind for alpine ski touring. The winter season is mostly cold and snowy. Snow stays almost down to Van Lake till mid of April. As a matter of Van Lake most of those mountains gives us the phenomenal conditions and panorama while skiing. The snow quality is usually very high, we either ski on good pow or firn. Most of the skiing routes are with the lake view or to the lake panorama. This makes our trip one of the best scenic touring in Europe.
Easy approaches to those villages and mountains make every single day excursion so close to the downtown but as remote as another planet. We will be in the heart of the mountains within a few tens of minutes!
We will access all of the mountains in itinerary from our hotel in Van by vehicle transfers. So, no rush to pack up every day! We will enjoy the same hotel during the entire program. Van city is one of the biggest and developed cities in the east. We will enjoy the lively city after our trips. We have included dinners in the program to have chance to take you the best samples of mouth-watering cuisine of the east to perform the best on the mountains.
Untouched slopes of Anatolia await for alpine tourers, let’s join us to explore more…
Itinerary Outline*
Day 1: Arrival at Van Airport. Transfer to Akdamar Island, sightseeing and check in the hotel after the tour.
Day 2: Mt Artos (3450 m) ski touring trip
Day 3: Mt Baset (3680 m) ski touring trip
Day 4: Mt Cat (3050 m) ski touring trip
Day 5: Mt Vavira (3380 m) ski touring trip
Day 6: Mt Suphan (4058 m) ski touring trip
Day 7: Transfer to Van Airport for the flights to return home.
* The aforementioned routes and itinerary operation may vary depending on weather conditions, road conditions, snowfall on the mountain and / or any other current conditions effects the operation such as avalanche risk and slope stability. Your tour leaders are entitled to make changes in your tour program for your safety by evaluating these conditions and informing you of alternatives.
Alpine skiing is a sport that is off-piste off-slope skiing. Apart from skiing skills, it requires off-piste skiing experience. Recommended for the ones above beginner level. This activity requires a high physical and mental condition. Some stages participants are required to carry ski or boards attached their backpacks. Most of the days consist of more than 1000 m of elevation gain by skinning and descents.
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival at Van Airport. Transfer to Akdamar Island, sightseeing and check in the hotel after the tour.
We will meet our participants arriving at Van Airport with morning flights. Please see the recommended flights & travel plan in FAQ. We will have lunch in Van and have a short briefing about the trip before we head off to explore the city. We can customize your day depending on the timing and visit some of the highlights of Van. Akdamar Island and museum of Van is on our list as a complimentary trip without any surcharge. Before the dinner time we will have another briefing for the upcoming adventure.
Approx. Vehicle Transfer Time: 45 min to 90 min.
Approx. Altitudes: Van, 1650 m
Meals included: Lunch – Dinner
Day 2: Mt Artos (3537 m) ski touring trip
After an early breakfast at the hotel, we will drive to Gevas, one of the little towns by Van Lake. Depending on the road and snow conditions a scenic short drive will pick us up roughly to 1800 m altitude. Mt Artos, aka Çadır Dağı, is one of the overlooking watch towers of Van Lake. We will start skinning up along a wide gully then on north aspecting face to the top of Mt Artos. 3537 m high top has a wonderful all-round panorama. We will enjoy the stunning scenery and get ready to hit that run! We will ski down the wide snow shield on the face and the steep snow gully at last to meet our vehicle. After a super ski-rush day we will drive back to the hotel.
Approx. Vehicle Transfer Time: 45 min.
Approx. Altitudes: Start, 1750 m – Mt Artos 3537 m
Approx. Activity Time: 5-6 hrs
Meals included: Breakfast – Lunch Pack – Dinner
Day 3: Mt Baset (3684 m) ski touring trip
We will leave our hotel to drive to the south of Van to get to one of the villages for an early morning start. Bağrıyanık village is our start point for today’s alpine touring route. We will start directly from the village to Mt Baset. Mt Baset is one of the highest mountains of the region with the height of 3684 m. Today we will climb and ski roughly 1400 vertical meters of excellent slopes. A scenic ski run is one of the bests of this remote environment. Late in the afternoon we will back to Van after enjoying hot drinks an route at a local teahouse. We will take you out for a nice dinner this evening. Anyone can also join us to enjoy a refreshing Turkish bath experience.
Approx. Vehicle Transfer Time: 1 hr. 57 km
Approx. Altitudes: Bagriyanik Village, 2350 m – Mt Baset,3684 m
Approx. Trek Time: 6 hrs
Meals included: Breakfast – Lunch Pack – Dinner
Day 4: Mt Cat (3050 m) ski touring trip
One of the most enjoyable ski touring days of the trip is to Mt Cat, which is relatively closer to the downtown with nice views around. After a nice breakfast, we will hit the road to drive to Yatağan Village. We will skin up along a riverbed to climb the front hills to the top. On the summit on a bright day, we will be able to see the majestic beauty of the mountains in the proximity. We will have a great run down to the starting point of our route by the village and hop on our vehicle. We will back to our hotel late in the afternoon before the sunset. Time to rest and enjoy the lively town.
Approx. Vehicle Transfer Time: 30 mins. 37 km.
Approx. Altitudes: Yatağan Village, 1850 m – Mt Cat, 3050 m
Approx. Trek Time: 4hrs
Meals included: Breakfast – Lunch Pack – Dinner
Day 5: Mt Vavira (3380 m) ski touring trip
The starting spot for the day’s touring is just by Önağıl Village on the road to Çat from Van. After breakfast we will drive to Önağıl Village. We will climb up along an obvious valley to the high hills of Mt Vavira, aka Çeper Dağı. Gentle slopes uphill and very satisfying downhill is todays highlight. We will ski it wild to fullfil the performance of the day.
Approx. Vehicle Transfer Time: 45-50 mins. 50 km.
Approx. Altitudes: Start point in Önağıl Village, 2200 m – Mt Vavira, 3450 m
Approx. Trek Time: 5 hrs
Meals included: Breakfast – Lunch Pack – Dinner
Day 6: Mt Suphan (4058 m) ski touring trip
Here we go for the highest summit of the Van region! We are heading to one of the highest volcanoes of Turkey. Mt Suphan is the boss of the Van Lake area. Today, earlier in the morning we will hop on our coach to drive to the other side of the Van Lake. We will give a great attempt for a ski touring to the top of it. After a longer drive we will arrive at the village of Kışkılı where we will start skinning up. A steady climb will take us to the crater’s highest point at 4058 m meters to enjoy the view. We will have lunch break on the top and then well deserved a long run back to the village awaits for us.
Approx. Vehicle Transfer Time: 2 hrs. 150 km.
Approx. Altitudes: Kışkılı Village, 2300 m – Mt Suphan Summit, 4058 m
Approx. Trek Time: 6-7 hrs
Meals included: Breakfast – Lunch Pack – Dinner
Day 7: Transfer to Van Airport for the flights to return home.
After breakfast we will have a transfer to the airport depending on our flight schedule.
Approx. Vehicle Transfer Time: 20 mins. 10 km.
Meals included: Breakfast
* The aforementioned routes and itinerary operation may vary depending on weather conditions, road conditions, snowfall on the mountain and / or any other current conditions effects the operation such as avalanche risk and slope stability. Your tour leaders are entitled to make changes in your tour program for your safety by evaluating these conditions and informing you of alternatives.
Alpine skiing is a sport that is off-piste off-slope skiing. Apart from skiing skills, it requires off-piste skiing experience. Recommended for the ones above beginner level. This activity requires a high physical and mental condition. Some stages participants are required to carry ski or boards attached their backpacks. Most of the days consist of more than 1000 m of elevation gain by skinning and descents.
Tour Dates & Prices
Best in February and March
Please ask for new prices for group of min 4, max 10 pax.
For groups under 4 people, please also contact us.Please ask our special prices for closed groups and Travel Agencies
Price Includes
English speaking tour leadership & mountain guide
All vehicle transfers from/to Van Airport
All meals mentioned in the program
6 nights half board accommodation in TWN/TRPL rooms
All required permits and entrance fees for the NPs
First-aid kit
General safety equipment
All legal obligatory insurances
1 MONTIS Trip Leader for 4-7 pax groups
2 MONTIS Trip Leaders for 8-10 pax groups
Price Does Not Include
International and domestic transfers and/or flights to Van Airport
Personal equipment
Alcoholic drinks and beverages
Unscheduled requests
Personal insurance
Tips
*Personal technical equipment (helmet, pickaxe, crampons) is provided free of charge on this tour. Personal equipment such as touring skis and split boards, avalanche detectors are not included in our price. A limited number of shovels, DVA devices and avalanche probes are available free of charge. Any snowboarders asking for snowshoes instead of skinning are welcome, we can provide snowshoes for free of charge.
Single Accommodation:
Single Supplement
140 Euro (due to availability)
Accommodation Upgrade
Any groups can upgrade for 4*-5* hotels while booking. Upgrade surcharge to Hilton Double Tree-Conforium Hotel or Elite World Hotel is 280 € per person. Please inform us in advance.
Accommodation
Rönesans Life Hotel &Spa
The facility is located in the silence corner of the lively downtown. Hotel also provides guests massage and Turkish bath in attached facility in the building. Spacious rooms, location and the general service quality are the major reasons to pick up this hotel for our winter activity guests.
https://www.ronesanslifehotel.com.tr
Hotel Royal Milano
Hotel Royal Milano is just at the heart of the downtown and within a stone’s throw away distances you can access many of the spots. Especially spacious rooms are our pick up objective for winter trips. Hotel serves dinner as well. A comfortable, clean and safe accommodation with convenient location.
http://www.royalmilanohotel.com/
FAQ
Travel Plan
Recommended Flights
This itinerary starts and ends in Van Ferit Melen Airport in Turkiye. Some domestic flights are recommended to /from Van to connect flights to international flights. Please ask for a confirmation before you purchased your flights. Arrivals by noon time and departures in the day time is principally recommended.
Itinerary can be customized for individuals and groups due to their travel plan. Domestic flights, extra tours and city sightseeing can be added to form an itinerary from/to Ankara and/or Istanbul. Please contact us for any further requests.
Note: Our Company is not responsible about the changes on the flights by the operators or airlines.
Visa
Holders of most European passports,UK, Austrian, Irish, Portuguese, Spanish and US passports require visas. Visas must be obtained in advance, passengers need to obtain an e-visa prior to their arrival. This can be done online at https://www.evisa.gov.tr/en/ for approximately US$20. The visa is valid for a stay of up to three months (dependent on passport holder's nationality). For a longer stay a visa from a Turkish Embassy is required. Please click for visa requirements to Turkey for detailed information:
http://www.mfa.gov.tr/visa-information-for-foreigners.en.mfa
Vaccinations
There are no mandatory vaccination requirements.
Weather
The peaks are subject to severe winds, and sudden changes in temperature.One has to be equipped for the worst, and one has to know when to quit. Daytime temperature is usually 0-8 C degrees and night temperatures are -5 to -12 C degrees without windchill affect. But the temperature can decrease to -15 C degrees above the 2500 m.The occasional storm can't be ruled out.
Is this trip for you?
Activity Level: Moderate / Moderate – Hard (3-4)
Click here to see the difficulty grading
Please note that the Tour Leader reserves the right to refuse participation of any client on any activities on safety grounds or if they feel that their participation will compromise the safety and enjoyment for the rest of the group.
The order of activities, trekking routes may be changed to suit local weather conditions.