Best place for an Armenian to die is Mt. Ararat: Expedition Reaches Mt. Ararat Summit

On July 15, a team of 11 men, including six from Southern California, two from New Jersey, two from Canada, and one from Fresno reached the summit of Mt. Ararat. Team “Ararat 11,” a code name that the team had given themselves would soon be known to all Armenians, reports Asbarez.com.

On July 13, team “Ararat 11” traveled 14 hours in a van to Georgia in order to enter Turkey. At the Turkish border, one of the Turkish guards asked them why they were going to Turkey. A team member, who was fluent in Turkish, told the guard that they were going to climb Mt. Ararat. The guard took one look at one of the team member’s white hair and asked, “This guy is going to climb Mt. Ararat?” The guy that the guard was referring to was Vatche Soghomonian of Fresno. The guard got up from his chair and requested a photo with Soghomonian. According to Soghomonian, the guards at the Turkish border were overall very cordial.

The team crossed the border into Dogubayazit, Turkey, a town at an elevation of 6,000 feet and situated on the base of Mt. Ararat. Team “Ararat 11” started their climb on July 15, 2010 and on day one they reached camp one at 10,000 feet. On day two they climbed to camp two at 14,000 feet where they spent the night.

That night there was heavy snow and hail “from hell,” Soghomonian recollected Even though their guide refused to continue the climb, the team was determined to reach the summit of Mt. Ararat. When one of the team members, Seth Setrakian got altitude sickness, he was told by Dr. Khodam Rostamian, a doctor from Glendale Kaiser that was with the team that he should descend to a safe area and wait for the team there. Setrakian answered that if one was going to die, the best place for an Armenian to die was on Mt. Ararat.

Determined and their will power in tact, the team finally reached the summit of Mt. Ararat on day three where they erected the Armenian national and the Nagorno Karabakh Republic flags. The team sang and danced and “One had to be there to see the feeling of each individual. We were in heaven that day, “said Vatche Soghomonian