Exams, homework, and many other problems encountered through the day… Stress and exhaustion of the body, as well… And finally, there comes a time when one really wants to change the life one is living; when one really wants to find oneself in a place, where one can feel at peace. The unique address for such a place is nature.
How lucky we are that we have a great club at our university which provides us with the opportunity to meet nature: DOST, the “Unity of Sports of Nature.” DOST was established in 1989 through the leadership of H. Ertan Ercan, a long time faculty member in the Literature Department, various students, including Nasuh Mahruki and Tunç Fındık, the first Turks who climbed Mt. Everest. The members of the Unity give all their efforts to those who really want to be involved in the club. Every Tuesday, the club provides training courses for new members to learn about trekking, mountain climbing, rock climbing and first aid as well. The great thing about the training is that Nasuh Mahruki or Tunç Fındık might be the ones to train you! On weekends or vacations, the club goes either trekking or camping so that new members can apply their theoretical knowledge. Over the past years, activities have included Aladağlar, Bolkar, Erciyes and Hasan Mountain Training and Summit Camps and a practice at Kaçkarlar. Besides, there were rock climbing camps at Hüseyin Gazi, Ankara and Sivrihisar, Eskişehir.
The first activity this year was trekking in Kızılcam, Çamkoru on October 19. The president of the club, Özgül Balaban, says that students who are interested in sports involving nature are always welcome at DOST, and that in order to go to the camps and trekking activities they must come to the training courses so that they will not face any problems during an activity. The members of the club are experienced people who are willing to share all their knowledge. If you want to learn more about DOST and become a member, visit www.dost.bilkent.edu.tr

Pınar Yıldız (CS/II)