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The Geography

Lands of Ardahan which is located on the northeast part of Black Sea which is the neighbor of Eastern Anatolia is high and rugged. Yalnızçam mountains consisting the farthest east part of Çoruh-Keltik mountains spread through Artvin province boundary. Keldağ (3.033 mt.) is located on the northeast part and Akbaba Mountain (0.026 mt.) is located on the east part of the province. Rugged parts of the south part of the its territories consist of Allahuekber Mountains and Kısır Mountain. The highest spot of the province is the summit of Kısır Mountain which is located on the southwest of Çıldır river and has 3.197 mt. height. There is various peaks of which heights exceed 3000 mt. within Ardahan. Square measure of Ardahan is 4.934 km and its average altitude is 1.829 mt. There are several major and minor rivers in the province and the most important ones are Çıldır river, Aktaş river, Ayı river, Karagöl river, Balık river, Kanlı river and Segre river. Çıldır river which is the second biggest river of Eastern Anatolia has an area for 123 km2 and its 58% is within Ardahan boundaries while its 42% is within Kars boundaries. Arable lands constitute 28%, meadows and forages constitute 49%, forests and moors constitute 9% and other lands constitute 14% of Ardahan’s territory. Continental climate prevails over the province. Annual average rain amount in Ardahan is 46,2 kg/m2 and annual average temperature is 3,7°C. Average sunshine duration is 5,6 hours in a day. High plains at the mid part of the province are called as Ardahan Plateau. Altitude of the plateau varies between 1800-2000 mt. Low part at the mid part is called as Ardahan Lowland. And other plain areas in the province are Hasköy Lowland which is the depression area located on the west of Kısır Mountain and Göle Lowland located on the southwest part. The most important river in Ardahan is Kura river and it passes through the province boundaries and flows into Caspian Sea over Georgia and Azerbaijan.