I was in Sinop during the Turkish takeover of the installation in 1975. They closed the gate, broke our water pipe down to Sinop, and beat a big bass drum down by the main gate. We were more concerned about terrorists than attacks by the Turkish military and plans were made to evacuate us with helicopters if necessary. In a few days things returned to normal, but I will never forget what it was like to be stuck there!

Later that year something very unusual happened. One night millions and millions of birds appeared at one of the antenna sites. They were sitting every place a bird could sit on the guide wires up to the top and covered the ground everywhere. As we walked around, dead birds were falling to the ground and the noise they made squawking and chirping was deafening. I remember kicking my feet and throwing up piles and piles of dead and living birds. We decided they must have become lost during a migration over the Black Sea and were attracted to the mountain @comcast.netlights.