Kaçkar Mountains Traverse emergency & health guide: hospitals, 112 and mountain safety

Emergency numbers in Turkey

There are no huts and no hut wardens on this trek. A rescue from Dilberdüzü or the Naletleme pass is organised through 112 and can take many hours, especially in fog. The nearest emergency departments are in Yusufeli (Artvin side, about 1.5 to 2 hours from Yaylalar) and in Çamlıhemşin and Pazar (Rize side, 30 minutes to an hour from Ayder). Carry travel insurance that covers trekking and evacuation, and do not cross the pass alone.

Rules to know

• Permits and fees: no permit or ticket is needed to trek or to climb Kaçkar Dağı, and walkers pay nothing. Vehicles pay a national park entry fee at the gate on the Ayder road (195 TL for a car in 2026). The local authorities advise inexperienced hikers to go above Dilberdüzü with a guide, because fog can come down suddenly; guides and pack animals can be arranged in Yusufeli and the villages.
• National park: most of the route lies in Kaçkar Dağları National Park (created in 1994). Do not pick plants, disturb wildlife or light open fires, and carry all your rubbish out.
• Camping: there are no huts. Dilberdüzü has plenty of cold water but no facilities; the other usual camps are Deniz Gölü below the summit, the Kavrun lakes and Kavrun. Camp away from the yayla houses and ask before pitching near them.
• Summit: the southern route from Dilberdüzü via Deniz Gölü is a scramble on loose rock. Wear a helmet, start before dawn and turn back in fog. In June and early July take an ice axe and possibly crampons.
• Wildlife and dogs: brown bears, wolves and lynx live in the range. Keep food tidy at camp, and give the shepherds' guard dogs at the yaylas a wide berth.
• Drones of 500 g or more must be registered in the Turkish civil aviation (SHGM) drone system before you fly them.
• Money: pensions and tea houses in the yaylas take cash. Carry Turkish lira for the whole trek; the only ATMs are in Ayder, Çamlıhemşin and Yusufeli.
• Season: June to September. Outside the summer the yayla pensions are closed, and in winter snow fills the valleys and the slopes are prone to avalanches.

For the national park, contact the Kaçkar Dağları National Park Directorate through the DKMP regional office in Rize (+90 464 214 5547). Yusufeli Municipality and Çamlıhemşin Municipality publish information on Yaylalar, Olgunlar, Kavrun and Ayder, and the kackar.org forum has route reports and GPS tracks. Carry a GPS track or offline map, a headlamp and a first-aid kit, and tell your pension in Yaylalar or Kavrun when you expect to come down.

Nearest hospital for each stage

Hospitals

Clinics and doctors

Family health centres (aile sağlığı merkezi) in the towns treat minor problems on working days. They are not emergency departments, and there are none in Yaylalar, Olgunlar, Kavrun or Ayder.

Pharmacies, cash and supplies

• Pharmacies: Ayder
• ATMs: Ayder
• Shops: Ayder
• Bus stops: Ayder

There are no pharmacies in Yaylalar, Olgunlar, Kavrun or Ayder. The nearest are in Çamlıhemşin (Çamlıhemşin Eczanesi, +90 464 651 7161), Pazar and Yusufeli; at night and on Sundays a duty pharmacy (nöbetçi eczane) is open in each town, shown on every pharmacy door. Carry a first-aid kit, blister care and your own medicines. Take cash in Turkish lira for the whole trek: ATMs are in Ayder, Çamlıhemşin and Yusufeli, with none in Yaylalar, Olgunlar or Kavrun.

Pharmacies, ATMs, shops and stops: © OpenStreetMap contributors. Hospitals and health centres checked online.