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Uludağ National Park (Uludağ Milli Parkı) encompasses Uludağ, which means Great Mountain in Turkish. It’s the highest mountain in the Marmara region of Turkey.
Features of Uludağ National Park
The national park covers 12,762 hectares. It contains high plateaus, alpine meadows, glacial lakes, streams, waterfalls, and beautiful deciduous and fir forests. 71% of the park is forest and 28% is meadows. The mountain is also a refuge for rare birds and butterflies. The highest peak on Uludağ is at 2,543 meters (8,343 feet).
History of Uludağ National Park
Uludağ was known as Mount Olympus (Όλυμπος) to the Greeks and Romans. In the 8th through 11th centuries, it was a popular monastic retreat and contained several hermitages. The most famous monk to live on the mountain was Saint Joannicius the Great (762-846).
The first skiing was done on the mountain in 1933, and Uludağ National Park was established in 1961. Today, it’s one of the most popular winter sports destinations in Turkey with about 150 days of snow each year. In the summer, both locals and foreigners visit for trekking, camping, and picnicking.
Bursa Cable Car
The Bursa Cable Car (Bursa Teleferik) takes visitors up to the national park from Bursa. The original line was built by Von Roll of Switzerland and was 4.5 kilometers (2.8 miles) long. Construction started in 1958 and it opened on October 29, 1963, with three stations. It could transport 120 passengers an hour in two 20-seater cabins. It closed on its 50th anniversary, on October 29, 2013, to make way for a new line.
The new line was built by Leitner Ropeways of Italy and incorporates the original line. It also includes an extension to a fourth station at the ski lodge area. The new line went into service on June 7, 2014. In the past, the ski lodges could only be reached by bus or taxi from the third station.
The Bursa Cable Car is 8.8 kilometers (5.5 miles) long, making it the longest cable car line in the world. It can transport 1,500 passengers an hour in 174 eight-seater cabins. The complete journey takes 22 minutes and there are some spectacular views of Bursa on the way up.
Stations
There are four stations in total, with the bottom station in Bursa at Teferrüç (395 meters (1,296 feet)). The second station is an intermediate station at Kadıyayla (1,230 meters (4,040 feet)) with no option to exit.
At Sarıalan (1,630 meters (5,350 feet)), the third station, it’s possible to get out for activities such as camping, hiking, and picnicking.
The fourth and final station is at Kurbağa Kaya (1,870 meters (6,140 feet)), also known as Oteller or Çobankaya, where visitors can find ski lodges and chair lifts as well as some more great hiking trails.
Our Experience at Uludağ
For our day on Uludağ, we wanted to head up the mountain to beat the summer heat down in Bursa. We had originally planned to head up to the fourth station to go hiking. When we arrived at Teferrüç Station to buy tickets, we learned that the line was undergoing maintenance and was only open until Sarıalan Station. We decided to head up anyway and see what we could do.
Be aware that prices for Turkish citizens are much lower than prices for foreigners. The Turkish price for a round-trip is 180₺ while foreigners pay 595₺ (as of August 2023). The official website only lists the price for Turkish citizens. It was a bit of a shock to us, but we paid and went up anyway.
Sarıalan
Once we got up to Sarıalan Station, we walked around to look for a hiking trail. It’s mostly restaurants, campgrounds, picnic areas, and an adventure park.
There’s not much up there as far as hiking, but we did manage to find an interpretive trail at a campground. The trail is a loop and took us about 45 minutes to complete.
Even though Sarıalan was fairly crowded and there were lots of campers, we had the entire trail to ourselves. While we hiked through at a leisurely pace, there were only two other people we passed.
The trail runs through a forest and has a few interpretive panels along the way. Unfortunately, they’re all in Turkish, but I was able to translate much of the text for the rest of our group. There are also a few fun obstacle courses along the trail. They include monkey bars, balance beams, and other activities.
Palabıyık Cemal
After we finished the hike, we walked back down towards Sarıalan Station and stopped for snacks and drinks at Palabıyık Cemal. It’s actually a place where you can buy fresh meat to grill yourself. We only ordered some fries and drinks and relaxed for a bit before jumping back on the cable car. Service was friendly and we enjoyed the outdoor seating.
