This fascinating mountain has always been the image of challenge for the climbers and the adventurers. Some are attracted to take this expedition due to the legend of Noah's Ark. The expedition starts from Dogubayazit. Ararat may be technically not a difficult task but physical conditions (cold winds and high altitude) make the site an excellent choice for climbers.
" Mt. Ararat is in the east of the Aras mountain range in eastern Turkey, rising at the common borders of Turkey, Armenia and Iran. Ararat, an inactive volcano capped year round with ice and snow, reaches 5137 meters. Serdarbulak plateau which is 2687m high divides the area into two peaks: Great Ararat (Buyuk Agri) which is 5137m (16,495 feet) and the Little Ararat (Kucuk Agri) which is 3896m (12,877 feet).
The Bible tells us that after the Flood, Noah landed his Ark on the top of Mt. Ararat. The Armenians call Ararat Masis Leusar, which means "Mountain of the Ark." The Persians call the mountain Koh-i-nuh, which means "Noah's mountain." Long ago, people believed that no one was permitted to reach the top of Ararat. Since 1700, however, many mountain climbers have reached the top of Ararat. German climber Johann Jacob Frederick von Parrot reached the summit of Ararat for the first time in september 1829.
In 1985 an expedition led by David Fusold resulted in the discovery of a boat-shaped stone formation on a nearby peak called Musa Dagi ("Mount Moses") east of Dogybayazit near the village of Üzengili. Ground-penetrating sonar investigations at the site produced intriguing but inconclusive evidence, the stone formation was nothing more than a curious stone formation.
A lot of travelers have described Mt Ararat in their stories, but no one of them ventured to ascend the mountain to see the Noah's Ark with their own eyes. Franciscan monk Oderih wrote in his report to the Pope in 1316: "The people, who live there, say that no one has ever ascended the mountain, because the Lord might dislike it." The legend said that God did not let people disturb the Ark, and people believed it until the 19th century.
Individuals are not allowed to take risk to search forevidence. During 1970s guided treks up Mount Ararat were allowed, after several grim incidents the government forbade them because of very real danger from smugglers and other outlaws, Kurdish terrorists, severe weather and wild beasts.
German traveler Dr. Parrot was the first person, who performed the officially documented ascent in 1829. His guides all believed that the Noah's Ark was on the top of the mountain, and no human being could approach it.
In 1893, archdeacon Nurry released an official statement, in which he said that he had seen the Noah's Ark with his own eyes. The giant ship was resting on the edge of the frozen mountain lake, which partially melted only during very hot summers. A small part of the ship thawed out as well, while the main body of the ship remained underneath the ice.
Researchers of the 19th century decided that the Ark had gradually slid down the slope of the mountain and went to pieces, which became a part of the glacier.
This has not deterred ark-hunters, who have trekked up Ararat over the years in search of Noah's Ark. The most famous expedition was that led by ex-US Astronaut James Irwin in 1982.
In the summer of 1916, Lieutenant Roskovitsky's crew was flying above Ararat on a spy aircraft of the Imperial Air Force. Military men saw a semi-frozen glacier lake in one of crevasses. Roskovitsky could see the frame of a huge vessel lying over a side. The same year, about 150 people ascended Ararat from different sides. The Russian expedition discovered a ship, and everybody took it for the Noah's Ark. Members of the expedition managed to enter inside the vessel, take pictures, wood and resin samples. However, when the materials were processed, the revolution was about to break out in Russia. The report of the unique expedition was lost in the chaos of the revolution, and its details remained only in the memory of Ararat conquerors.
In 1949, American air photographers took pictures of an object on one of the mountain's slopes, which reminded the outskirts of a ship. Turkish Air Force photographed the same object in 1987. To crown it all, there are numerous photographs of another object, which is situated 30 kilometers far from Mount Ararat on a small mountain range. The ark was found in 1960 and it reminded the vessel as described in the Bible
