It was a hike with Idadik.org. We left Izmir by bus at midnight, heading for Bursa. At 3 a.m. we stopped for an early breakfast (sik!). Then we drove to the starting point, a small village where a tractor was waiting for us. We set off on the tractor at around 6 a.m. and reached the starting point about half an hour later. The forecast had predicted rain in the middle of the day, but it was clear for the time being. The sun began to rise. We climbed slowly and easily up the path through a beautiful coniferous forest. That’s how we reached the mountain stream we had to cross. The stream wasn’t wide or deep, but it had a typical mountain character. Our guide, Ergun, had been thoughtful enough to prepare a rope for the crossing. First, he crossed the river himself, and then he guided the whole group across using the rope. The river originates from a beautiful waterfall. The snowfields in the mountains hadn’t melted yet, so the waterfall was in all its glory!

After taking in the beautiful scenery, we began the climb up Little Uludag, and it was quite a challenge – no descents, just a steep ascent! At least it wasn’t raining and the temperature was comfortable. We finally made it to the top around 11 o’clock, took a moment to enjoy the view, and stopped for lunch.

After the break, we set off towards the summit of Big Uludag. First there was a slight descent, then a gentle climb. Nothing too difficult. But then the fog began to thicken, and visibility dropped to just a few metres. We were walking as if in a thick fog. We are, of course, extremely grateful to our guides, who knew the route to the summit so well.

We successfully reached the summit, had a photo shoot, took a break, and set off back down. We had a beautiful descent along the ridge, with a mountain lake on either side – it was as if we were walking along the nose of a giant, with eyes on either side! Amazing! We made our way down to the country lane, and that’s when it started to rain. We still had a long way to go, but all my companions were ready for the challenge. As well as the rain, we had to walk across snowfields several times, which completely blocked the path. And I lost count of how many times we had to cross the streams and rivers flowing from beneath those snowfields!

We were gradually getting more and more tired, as we’d hardly slept a wink on the bus that night, and it was already past 6 pm. The rain just kept falling, and we were desperate for some kind of miracle – perhaps a passing tractor would turn up! But then the heavens took pity on us – the rain stopped, and the sun even peeked through.

We made our way back to the bus at 8.30 pm. Once we’d waited for the rest of the group, who were scattered along the road, we set off on the return journey. I personally fell asleep straight away. At around 11 pm, we stopped for dinner at a lovely roadside eatery – so that the journey would be more pleasant on a full stomach. We reached Izmir at 3 am. It had been a very long day – about 32 km long! wikiloc