At Camlitepe

This is Çamlıtepe, lonely hill in the middle of the Anatolian plain with a citadel of majestic Anatolian cedars on top. Here are some more pictures of the place, as well as its residents.

These photos were taken on a road trip to Ankara with my friend Ömer, in 2004. When we saw Çamlıtepe, we spontaneously parked the car in the middle of the road and climbed to the top. Here is the view from the hill itself.

Here is our first resident of Çamlıtepe, a little Ablepharus kitaibelii skink. These little lizards are remarkable because unlike most other skinks, they lack moveable eyelids. They also make great pets.

Here is another, a juvennile viper of the Vipera genus. Determining the exact species needs a close-up examination of these venomous snakes. As you can see from this shaky picture, I was in no position to do so.

Ouch, he's a feisty little one! Luckily, no one was bitten. If you ever see such snakes in real life, don't be as stupid as I was and get the hell away from them.