Ilgaz Anadolu'nun yüce dağı Ilgaz The sublime - Türkiye Seyahat ...

either ski or walk. If you want toenjoy a quiet and peaceful weekend,you can spend your time drinking yourhot tea in an indoor space and lookingat the excellent scenery. Professionalski centers in the region provide bothequipments and training. We hope youwill get professional help, but we havesome recommendations for ski loversand mountaineers who are going to visitthis place. In order to climb the KüçükHacat Hill, you have to find the ridgeeast of the camping areas. Followingthe ridge, you can reach the summit ofthe Küçük Hacat Hill in 3 or 4 hours,depending on snow conditions. Youshould avoid passing to the northernnorthwesternridge of the mountainwhile climbing or returning. Thisslope, which has steep rocky parts anddifficult courses with snow and ice, canbe dangerous forunequipped teams.Additionally, the lastpart of the KüçükHacat Hill can posean avalanche riskdepending on snowconditions and airtemperatures.The Mount Ilgazis rich not only interms of its flora, butalso in terms of thediversity of animalsliving around it. Theflora is supported bya rich group of forestanimals. Many riversthat flow duringthe whole year andthe rich flora createa habitat for wildanimals such asroe deer, deer, wildboars, wolves, bearsand foxes. Do notbe surprised if youencounter a gazellewith beautiful eyesduring your walks.Orchids shouldbe put underprotectionAnother importantfeature of the IlgazMountains is itsbeing covered withorchid forests. Most of the 24 orchidspecies growing in Turkey canbe found on the Ilgaz Mountains.However, every year, these niceflowers are excessively andunconsciously consumed to producesalep (a flour). In order to passthese very beautiful and impressiveplants on to next generations, theyshould be put under protection.For, the Mount Ilgaz hosts touristswho exclusively come to see theseflowers. During spring months, themountain acquires another kind ofbeauty, thanks to orchids.The history of Ilgaz goesback to the HittitesAfter Mount Ilgaz, you can visit thedistrict center too. This is a nicetown. It is a typical Western BlackSea Region settlement. You canhave a good time here, thanks to itswarmhearted and sincere people,and shops offering local products.It is not definitely known when andby whom Ilgaz had been founded.However, the Salmanhöyük (atumulus) and the İnköy Rock-CutTombs revealed that the historyof settlements goes back to theChalcolithic Period. On the otherhand, the first data about thewritten history of Ilgaz belong to theHittites.Another neighboring place worthvisiting is the Kırkpınar (“fortysprings”) Plateau, which has apond in the middle of it and whichis surrounded with pine forests.It owes its name to the numeroussprings situated here. The streamoriginating from the forty springsmeanders downwards. Accordingto the people of Ilgaz, the course ofthis stream was drawn by Khidr (arevered figure in Islam). Accordingto a legend, there is the camel of Ali(caliph) on the hill of Kırkpınar, andhis rock on the plateau. The ‘KeseVillage Kırkpınar Festival’ is heldannually at the plateau.The Ilgaz Mountains constitutethe best destination to spend thebest times of winter with a nicesnow vacation. The clean air full ofoxygen will relax you and providethe energy necessary to prepareyourself for the new year.Ne yenir?Etli ekmek, perişka, cızlama ve keşkek Ilgaz’ın yöreselyemekleri. Etli ekmek, ince yufkanın arasına konan ince kıyılmışet parçacıklarının sacda pişirilmesiyle yapılıyor. Perişka, bir türmakarna. Cevizli veya yumurtalı olarak tereyağlı sosla yeniliyor.Keşkek, üveyik buğdayından yapılıyor. Buğday taneleri içine et,yağ, su konularak toprak kapta fırına veriliyor. Cızlama ise sıvıhale getirilmiş hamurun, yağlı sac üzerine dökülerek pişirildiğibir yemek.Ne alınır?Burası tam bir tahta oyma cenneti. Tahtadan yapılmış süseşyaları, mutfak ve ev eşyaları revaçta. Siz de aralarındanbir kaçını beğenip alabilirsiniz. Tahta künyeler, isim yazılankolyeler, topaçlar, beşik ve kaşıklar…Ne deneyimlenir?Dışarıda kar yağarken otellerin sıcak su havuzlarında yüzülür.Gece klüplerinde karaoke yapılır. Şömine başında şarap içilir.What to eat?Bread with meat, perişka, cızlama and keşkek are the local dishes ofIlgaz. Bread with meat is made by cooking thin pieces of meat placedbetween thin flatbreads on a saj (griddle). Perişka is a kind of pasta. It isconsumed with butter sauce and either with walnuts or with egg. Keşkekis made from durum wheat. An earthenware pot filled with wheat kernels,meat, oil and water is placed into an oven. Finally, cızlama is preparedby cooking liquidized dough poured on an oiled saj.What to buy?This place is a paradise of wood carving. Wooden souvenirs, kitchenwareand household goods are popular. You can also choose and buy someitems among them, including wooden tags, necklaces with carved names,spinning tops and spoons.What to experience?Swim in the hot water pools in the hotels while it snows outside. Performkaraoke in nightclubs. Drink wine by fireplace.TÜRSAB DERGİ | OCAK 2013 11