Aksu Nature Park
Aksu Nature Park (Aksu Tabiat Parkı) is a protected area within the district of Kargı that covers Aksu Pond (Aksu Göleti) and the forest around it. The list of Çorum nature parks kept by the 11th Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry names three: Aksu (Kargı), Sıklık and Çatak (both Merkez).
Declaration and area
According to the Ministry’s Nature Conservation and National Parks page the park covers 68 hectares at an altitude of 1,450 m and was declared a nature park in 2021. The record in the Ministry’s nature tourism application gives the declaration date as 10.08.2021 and the area as 68.06 ha. According to a Çorum Haber report of 13 August 2021, the area was registered as a nature park with the approval of the then Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Bekir Pakdemirli, and became Çorum’s third registered nature park after Sıklık and Çatak. For those parks see Sıklık Nature Park and Çatak Nature Park and Çatak Ski Facility.
Location and access
According to the Ministry page the park is 134 km from Çorum city centre and 23 km from the centre of Kargı, reached by the Istanbul-Sinop highway. The Çorum Haber report, relaying a statement by the Çorum Governorship’s Nature Conservation and National Parks branch, says the area lies on the Sinop-Istanbul highway and is 19 km from Kargı. For other highland areas in Kargı see Kargı Highland and Abdullah Highland; the Kargı Highland page also mentions Aksu Pond.
Vegetation
According to the Ministry page the whole nature park has the character of a forest of black pine and Scots pine. The branch statement relayed by Çorum Haber says the area holds many tree species such as Scots pine, black pine and fir, as well as herbaceous plants. Aksu Pond adds landscape value, and two perennial streams feed the pond and the area.
Wildlife
The Ministry page lists among the mammals found in and around the site red deer, roe deer, brown bear, lynx, fox, wild hare, wild boar, hedgehog, mole, weasel, badger, wolf, squirrel, pine marten, bank vole, wood mouse and edible dormouse. The same page records that red wood ants nest at many points in the area, with nest mounds rising up to 1.5 metres.
Notes
This page rests only on official institutional statements; no information on trails, facilities or visiting conditions is given because none is verified in the sources.
Sources
- Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, 11th Regional Directorate, Aksu Tabiat Parkı. https://bolge11.tarimorman.gov.tr/Menu/91/AksuTP
- Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, 11th Regional Directorate, Tabiat Parkları (Çorum list). https://bolge11.tarimorman.gov.tr/Menu/19/Tabiat-Parklari
- Çorum Haber, “Aksu Göleti, Tabiat Parkı ilan edildi” (Aksu Pond declared a Nature Park), 13.08.2021. https://corumhaber.net/aksu-goleti-tabiat-parki-ilan-edildi
- Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Nature Tourism Web Application (EKOTABAN), Aksu Tabiat Parkı record. https://ekotaban.tarimorman.gov.tr/alan/5348