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The 3rd
fieldtrip to Işıkdağı
On Friday April 4
the 3rd HART 310 fieldtrip to Işıkdağı
started, this year as a two-and-a-half day event with two nights
outside instead of the former one-night trips. The aim of the
trip is to practice using a map, compass and GPS.
New was the setup
with the route not written on paper but controlled by the
teacher via telephone communication. So starting on one point,
the next coordinate or task was given by telephone. Mobile
telephones work in general in the area but the experience was
that in valleys and mountains slopes the voice quality became
very bad. What worked better in these telephones was the message
service.
Once the students
had been divided in 3 groups the walk started at half an hour
intervals from the teahouse in Yukarıçanli.
The aim was to find the top of the
Kuzeybalçıklık
Tepe, the place that was chosen from the map as the campsite. As
groups 1 and 2 walked off in different directions, the 3rd group
headed from the given coordinate to coordinate towards the Tepe.
With telephone messages the other two groups were informed of
the planned camp place.
When the 3rd
group reached the top of this circa 1750 m high hill, there was
no trace of the other groups. Communication was impossible by
telephone and shouting and whistle signals gave no reply. The
top, covered in deep snow, was not the most inviting place to
The first
campsite
set up a camp, and
while the daylight was rapidly getting less, the group descended
fast downhill to a flatter and non-snow-covered field.
As it was dark
contact was made with the other two groups, Group 2 now
occupying a peak some 500-meter to the south-west of the
original coordinate. Since it was very dangerous to come down to
our camp along the steep rocky hills, it was decided, for their
safety,
that they would
make a camp up there, no matter
how uncomfortable
this might be.
Group 1, that
had drifted far to the east was contacted and given the new
coordinate of the camp. In the dark they moved with the help of
GPS towards the camp.
In the camp the few pieces of wet wood that
were lying in the surrounding were collected and a modest
bonfire was lit with great difficulties.
Around 20.30,
Group 1 at last reached the camp. They could warm themselves and
food on the fire.
Most students had to admit that the tinned food they don’t like
to use in town, tastes better when
consumed in
the field. There are of course always a few master cooks that
like to prepare a ten-course dinner on a gas stove! After
pitching the tents the rest of the evening was spent sitting
around the fire while drying socks and shoes.
The early morning
gave us a hour-long shower starting around 4.30, making
everything left outside wet as well as the few sleepers that had
trusted the bright stars.
Saturday morning
was sunny and warm. After breakfast the two groups set off two
wards Hill 1447. group 2 was since yesterday evening out of
contact.
Group 3 moved
beyond hill 1447 in the
Şarzak Dere
valley and worked their way up to the yayla houses some 3 km
away. One task was to identify the location of a group of
willows show on a photo. Since the valley is full of willows
special attention has to be given to the mountain formations
behind the trees. The location was found.
The famous
crossing of the waterfall (see Newsletter 1, page 22) was an
adrenaline stimulation adventure again.
The water in the
stream was extremely high and going on through the valley would
have been very difficult, so it was decided to climb up to the
top of the hill some 100 meter higher. This seemed not too easy
since it was steep and covered with deep snow. On top a
north-eastern bearing brought us through sometimes 1-m deep snow
and ice cold streams to the yayla house, where group 1 was
sitting around the fireplace. They had taken a non-authorized
shortcut and had arrived hours before!
The next
morning the groups left by a long but easier road and
returned to the teahouse around 12.30.
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