On Top of the World at Nemrut Dagi

Nemrut Dagi (Mt. Nemrut to us English speakers) is probably the biggest attraction in eastern Turkey.  It's best known for its giant, very odd stone heads, but what is less talked about is the 50 metre pyramid of fist sized stones at the top.  As our (not so) trusty Lonely Planet tells it, the summit was created when a megalomaniac pre-Roman king cut two ledges into the rock and filled them with huge statues of himself and the gods (who he thought were his relatives).  He then ordered an artificial mountain peak of crushed rock to be piled between them.  It's possible that the king's tomb and the tombs of three of his female relatives may be buried beneath the rock, but nobody knows for sure.

Mt. Nemrut was high on my list of things to see in Turkey, and getting there was no easy task (more on that later for those interested).  But it was totally worth it for the crazy heads, the even crazier rock pile, and the stunning views.

We stayed at a pension right below the south gate, which is still at least 6 km from the summit over a shadeless, uphill road.  We arrived after an overnight bus, a lot of attempted scamming, and a very bumpy dolmus ride up the mountain.

When we awoke from a nap at noon, it was about 27 degrees.  Our original plan had been to either walk to the summit or a hitch a ride up from our pension owner, which the LP claimed was possible for 40 TL.  However, the owner showed a sudden lack of English language skills when asked about driving us, and some Germans we met in the lounge advised us against walking up, especially in the sun, claiming the road to be steep and more like 7-9 km.  Fortunately, they offered us a ride up since they had a rental car, which we were pleased to accept.

The Germans were plant-/bird-watching enthusiasts so we stopped on the way up to look at some flowers and a glacier.  Snow in the heat felt lovely!

Wacky flower brought to our attention by the flower loving Germans :)

But, of course, the best part was at the top - here's some shots of the rock pile, the crazy heads, and the awesome views!

The hot, steep climb to the Western Terrace.  So happy we got a ride to the summit!

Chad wanted to climb the rock pile.  So did many others.  Sadly, this sign forbids them from doing so.

After an awesome afternoon at the top, we returned home to the following:

Kebaps barbequed by our pension owner - dinner was included in our stay as we were in the middle of nowhere and there were no other options.

This moth is a huge - a wing span of at least 6 inches!  He was doing his best to blend in with the carpet.

The next morning we left at 7:15 am to head to Gaziantep - it was a whirlwind visit but worth every second!