Hakkari Cilo-Sat Mountains National Park (, established on 26 September 2020, is the 45th

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

in Turkey. It is located in

Yüksekova Yüksekova (; ) is a municipality (belde) in the Yüksekova District of Hakkâri Province in Turkey and is the largest city in the province. The city is populated by Kurds of different tribal backgrounds including non-tribal and is considered p ...

district within

Hakkari Province Hakkari or Hakkâri may refer to: *Hakkari (historical region), a historical region in modern-day Turkey and Iraq *Hakkâri (city), a city and the capital of Hakkâri Province, Turkey *Hakkâri Province Hakkâri Province (, ; ), is a province i ...

, Southeastern Anatolia.

Overview

The Mount Cilo and Mount Sat, also known as Buzul and İkiyaka Mountains respectively, are a mountain range located in

district, east of

Hakkari Hakkari or Hakkâri may refer to: *Hakkari (historical region), a historical region in modern-day Turkey and Iraq *Hakkâri (city), a city and the capital of Hakkâri Province, Turkey *Hakkâri Province Hakkâri Province (, ; ), is a province i ...

city, southeastern Turkey. The mountain range is far from Yüksekova town.

National park

Stretching over an area of , the mountain range and its surroundings were declared as the 45th national park in Turkey on 26 September 2020. The national park is administrated by the Directoriate-General of Nature Protection and National Parks at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The national park area is around long as the crow flies in the northwest-southeast direction. It features high mountain belts, plateaus, deep valleys, streams, waterfalls,

glacier A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...

s, many large and small

glacial lake A glacial lake is a body of water with origins from glacier activity. They are formed when a glacier erodes the land and then melts, filling the depression created by the glacier. Formation Near the end of the last glacial period, roughly 10,0 ...

s as well as many churches and rock paintings. The İnci Stream passes throughwitth Uludoruk reaching . the valley between the Cilo and Sat Mountains. Mount Cilo is the second highest mountain in Turkey with its peak Uludoruk reaching . Other important peaks of the mountain range are Suppa Durek with , Köşedireği Mountain with , Kisara Mountain with , Maunseli Sivrisi with and Gelyona Hill with . In 1931, the mounyaineers Ludwig Sperlich and his friend Ludwig Krenek made the first climb to Uludoruk peak. The mountain range has a very steep

topography Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sci ...

due to abrasion, cracking and erosion caused by glacial activities and freezing-thawing effect. Deep glacial valleys, moraines and lakes in the area show the deep effects of

glaciation A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate be ...

that started two million years ago. These glaciers are still in the process of melting, starting from twenty thousand years ago until today. It is claimed that this melting process may develop under the influence of global and regional climate changes, and bring about significant changes in the ecosystem of the region. In August 2023, it was observed that about of the glacier broke apart in the Cennet-Cehennem region of the mountain.

Flora

The upper parts of the mountains are covered with high

alpine meadow Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alpine tundra gets ...

s, where stony areas are dense. These areas are home to many narrow-ranging and endangered plant species. In the upper reaches, there are permanent glaciers and glacial lakes, especially concentrated in the Sat Mountains. Remnant oak forests and walnut communities lie in the low south-facing valleys. Cilo Mountains are one of the most important areas in Turkey and the world in terms of plants, and meet the criteria for

Key Biodiversity Area Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) are geographical regions that have been determined to be of international importance in terms of biodiversity conservation, using globally standardized criteria published by the IUCN as part of a collaboration between sc ...

. It is habitat for 53 plant taxa, including six

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

plants, among them are the endemic plant species ''Cephalaria hakkiarica'' and ''Cirsium hakkaricum''.

Fauna

The mountainous area is rich in animal species diversity. It is known that the Lake Urmia newt (''

Neurergus crocatus ''Neurergus crocatus'', the yellow-spotted newt, Azerbaijan newt, Azerbaijan mountain newt, mountain newt, or Lake Urmia newt, is a species of salamander in the family Salamandridae. It occurs in the mountains west of Lake Urmia, in northwester ...

''), which is close to extinction worldwide, the wild goat (''Capra aegagrus''), the narrow-distributed Persian mol (''Talpa davidiana''), as well as eleven butterfly taxa, including four endemic species. The polyeyed Hakkari freckle (''Polyommatus dezinus'') find habitat only here. Bird species known to breed in the area include

golden eagle The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of pr ...

(''Aquila chrysaetos''),

Eurasian griffon vulture The Eurasian griffon vulture (''Gyps fulvus'') is a large Old World vulture in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. It is also known as the griffon vulture, although this term is sometimes used for the genus as a whole. It is not to be confuse ...

(''Gyps fulvus'') and

Caspian snowcock The Caspian snowcock (''Tetraogallus caspius'') is a snowcock in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds. Dari partridge or valley partridge (scientific name: Tetraogallus caspius) is the name of a species of ...

(''Tetraogallus caspius'').

Activities

Although Cilo and Sat mountains are with the most landscape beauty, they can be used for nature sports only in a limited way due to security reasons. Injuries or deadly accidents can occur when glaciers break apart and create crevasse in the area. Mergan Plateau and Avaspi Glaciers are places of interest.

Mountaineering Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...

for Uludoruk summit is performed in the summer season by experienced mountaineers under a guide starting from the Serpil Plateau at the foot of Cilo Mountain.

Access

The -high Mergan Plateau, which is in the valley, where the Uludoruk glacier of the Cilo Mountains is located, is far from Hakkari. Cilo Mountain can be reached also from the south via Yüksekova- Dağlıca village road, but this road is not used for security reasons. Transportation to Sat Mountain is via Yüksekova, by motor vehicle and by foot or horse back riding.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hakkari Cilo-Sat Mountains National Park National parks of Turkey Mountains of Turkey Ecoregions of Turkey Glacial landforms Geography of Hakkâri Province Landforms of Hakkâri Province Tourist attractions in Hakkâri Province 2020 establishments in Turkey Protected areas established in 2020 Yüksekova District