Rhododendrons in the snow
Skiing in Turkey
We went to Rize province in February 2025. There was so much snow that our return flight from Trabzon to Istanbul was cancelled. Only in Turkey can you choose whether you prefer freeriding among rhododendrons (which may not always be what you wanted) or endless plains where there is neither a bush nor a foot, in which case you have to go above 2000 m.
Dancing with rhododendrons
The hikes near Ridos Thermal Hotel & Spa – east of the town of Ikizdere – look something like this – that is, they look like this when you find a good path. When you climb to the ridge, it's even better. We planned according to the density of the vegetation and the slope. The descents through the forest were great – until the moment when a stream appeared, or another rhododendron.
The end of the road at the minaret
Başköy is a village from which you can't go any further. We got here on the first day through the forest, the road was completely sunken. The wooden skis are not mine, the guys from Beskydy had them, they are made by a friend who was of course with us.
Three thousand meters above the main road
And here is Viki, the author of the skis – on the peak we reached the next day. The peak has no name, it is located at an altitude of 3 thousand meters above the Ovit tunnel, which runs between Ikizdere and Ispira.
Endless freeride
It's always flat in the photo, but the slopes are pretty steep here, 40 degrees is no problem.
Is it a climbing insert?
There's no problem with diversifying your pedaling a bit. We didn't like the slope, we were in danger of falling off, so we preferred to take it up the rock.
Ovit Dagi 3084 m
It fell almost a meter. We didn't reach the top, there was no step visible at the top.
Ridos Thermal Hotel & Spa
A week's stay cost us 10 thousand CZK including food and thermal baths. Complete luxury. Not that we were looking for it, but there's not much else to live for here.
