Ararat is far more than just a 5000 metre peak. This dormant volcano sits in Turkey, on the border of Armenia and Iran and offers the perfect first mountaineering experience complete with the challenges of altitude, camp rotations and a perfect first crampon experience.

We sent Alasdair, from the KE Office, to experience this challenging climb. He's answered 5 FAQs here:

Because this is a mountaineering trip, there are a lot of acclimatisation days where you are simply letting your body catch up to the extremities of the limited oxygen. But like many other mountaineering trips there is the point where you have to wake up at midnight and straight into a very physically demanding climb in minus 20 degree temperatures. 12 hours later you will get back to base camp for a precious 2 hours rest before another 3-5 hour walk down. This is a demanding, but also very rewarding, trip.

It’s a mix of hotels and tents. In Van the hotels are very nice with all the amenities, including air con. In Dogubeyazit the hotel is more rudimentary, but clean and fit for purpose.

On the mountain the tents are the standard mountaineering dome tents. We include foam mattresses, and you can double them up. However, many in the team brought their own camping mat.

Meat, a lot of meat. Breakfast was a slight exception. It was a mix of nuts with yogurts and bread with honey and jam, and boiled eggs. Lunch and evening meals were generally the same, grilled meat with a bit of bread a salad. It was all very delicious, however it is a real meat fest. Vegetarians can be accommodated, we had one in our group. However, it was very Aubergine and cheese heavy. So it’s not a problem if you’re a vegetarian, however just be prepared.

On the summit push I got to a point, around 4900m and thought I couldn’t go on. But I’m so glad I did. Once we put our crampons on for the final push the sun was out and that final summit climb was just incredible, I’ve never seen ice like it and the views from the top encompassed so many far places.

One surprising highlight is learning about the area and it’s incredibly deep heritage. Due to its sheer remoteness I had thought nothing much of the history, beyond the biblical relations. However, the valley leading to Ararat has a rich history as a vital Silk Route. Along it there are numerous large castles and palaces built to keep the trading caravans safe. Van Island was another fascinating place where we learnt so much about the Christian connection to the region. So while this is an incredible adventure, the cultural side notes really deepen the connection to the area.

When I did the Everest Base Camp Trek, everyone told me to take a buff to protect from the dust kicked up by passing Yaks. Well, the same can be said for Ararat. Horses carry packs and luggage between the camps and can kick up a lot of dust, a buff just helps keep the dust out of your airways and avoids irritation such as coughing.

On the mountain all the water comes from larger bottles. But lower down in the cities and hotels water from the tap is less secure. We recommend to avoid even brushing your teeth with water straight from the tap. With this, a water bottle with a filtration device such as the Water To Go bottles is really helpful to avoid buying too many plastic bottles of water.