Heli-skiing season starts in Turkey's Kaçkar Mountains

RİZE – Demirören News Agency

The heli-skiing season has begun in Turkey’s northeastern province of Rize’s Kaçkar Mountains.

Many adventurous skiers and snowboarders from all over the world, taken by choppers, are left at mountains’ peaks and start descending through the untouched snow.

Adrenaline addicts even ski against avalanches to get the full experience.

Exhilarating yet dangerous, athletes or adventurers who do heli-skiing have been urged to take necessary precautions.

Skiers carry airbag backpacks in case of a possible avalanche that will serve the purpose of a tent. A GPS device in the bag sends a signal to the chopper, and even if the skier is stuck under an avalanche, their location can be determined quite easily.

Moreover, the chopper is equipped to conveniently intervene in especially cases of emergencies.

However, heli-skiing is not a budget-friendly sport. In order to experience this rollercoaster of an excitement, one must be prepared to pay between 10,000 and 20,000 euros for one week.

The event, organized by the company Ayder Heliski on Kaçkar Mountains, will continue for two months until the end of March.

Many adventurers from all over the world had registered to participate in this breathtaking event in 2018.

İsmail Hocaoğlu, the head of Rize provincial directorate of culture and tourism, previously said that in 2017 around 300 people had participated in the heli-skiing activity on the Kaçkar Mountains.

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“This year, we think the attraction will increase. The athletes are mainly from countries like France, Italy, Russia, Switzerland, Austria and Germany. Although less in number, there are people doing this sport in Turkey,” Hacaoğlu had said back in November of last year.

Heli-skiing in the Kaçkar Mountains’ virgin peaks is on the bucket list of skiers or snowboarders seeking adventure.

Since 2004, tour agencies have been organizing heli-skiing tours to the sparkling Kaçkar Mountains for ski enthusiasts. With its 130-kilometer length and 30-kilometer width, the Kaçkar Mountains are as if they were made for heli-skiing with its relaxing nature and fascinating gradient.

Other than the Kaçkar Mountains, the Ayder Plateau, where skiers reside, and the İkizdere town with its thermal baths are also exceptional heli-skiing terrains.

For the last 10 years, around 3,500 athletes have come to the Kaçkar Mountains for heli-skiing from Germany, France, Sweden, Spain, Canada, United States, Russia and Switzerland.