From Sea to Sky in a Cable Car through the Clouds
Olympos Teleferik boasts an impressive list of records: originally built in Switzerland in 1908, it is the world’s longest cable car. It’s also the highest sea to sky (or mountain) cable car climb-- starting at sea level and delivering you to the peak of Tahtali at 2356 meters (7,762 feet).
This was more than enough to entice us to venture to Olympos for ourselves. More technical details about the cable car include ferrying up to 80 people, traveling at 10 mph, and a ride time of the most glorious, beautiful 10 minutes of your life. For those coming by car, there is free parking. Tickets may be purchased onsite or online for 25 euro. The cable car ride times change according to the year, so check out Olympos Teleferik’s website for more information.
We set off in the morning excited for this adventure, but a small worry nagged in our minds. It was a cloudy day, and there was hardly any blue sky visible at all. We were afraid we might arrive at the top of the mountain and find ourselves stuck in a cloud. We made our way to the substation regardless, where we purchased our tickets and grabbed a cup of coffee before setting off in the cable car. Don’t toss your ticket-- you’ll need to show this on the way back!
The apple-red cable car was spacious with large windows that covered every side. The conductor cleaned the windows of any condensation before boarding, allowing for clear visibility, no matter where in the car we stood. There were about 15 people in our car altogether, allowing us to move around freely and comfortably from each window.
There were one or two benches for those who wished, but I had my nose pressed up against the glass, watching in wonder as the car moved swiftly up the cable, above the trees, and into the cloud cover. Wispy clouds darted across our windows, revealing thickly wooded forests of pine. The further we ascended, the more the clouds pulled back, until we were staring at mountains of massive, grey slate. They surrounded us, towering thousands of feet into the air, and we felt very small. We gained height as we were pulled along into the clouds, and all went white for about 30 seconds. The sun suddenly shone all around us, lighting up the car, everything glowing warmly outside the window. Blue sky burst through, the most beautiful, soft and fluffy clouds covering as far as we could see. Tahtalı Dağı (or Mount Tahtalı) was then visible, its snowy slope rolling beneath our car as we were pulled higher and higher. Clouds and mountains. It’s all we could see.
Once at the top, we ran off the cable car where we were greeted with another cafe and a small gift shop. Stepping outside the door on that level took us to a 180 degree view of the left side of the mountain. The cold and the wind had us shivering. Snow covered the mountain top, and an igloo had been built to protect smokers from the wind.
Ascending a floor revealed the 360 degree view of the mountains, snow, and clouds that surrounded us for miles. It took our breath away. The Taurus Mountains in the distance were black, blue, brown and dusted white in a sea of clouds, like a powdered Turkish Delight in a bed of cream. The sky was deep blue with streaks of wispy white clouds too high to reach with our cable car. I could have stared at it all for hours if not for the biting wind. We lingered on top as long as we could stand before retreating back inside for another cup of coffee.
On the way back down, we discussed how we hadn’t even thought that the mountain was so high that we’d be higher than the clouds we thought would ruin our view. We returned to ground with a new sense of confidence in having thwarted the weather’s intentions that day by riding a cable car to a heaven high above them.
TO OUR FRIENDS IN THE WEST, KEEP LOOKING EAST!
Maja Thoenes
A girl who grew up a bookworm and blossomed into an outdoor enthusiast, Maja's passions include writing, mountaineering, traveling, running, Netflix-binging, skiing, and baking for her friends. Her education and career has been focused on Japan, where she studied and taught English for three years. Maja is a published author and resides in Colorado with her husband and border collie. You can find her work on Amazon.