The national park is on the Ilgaz Mountains, a mountain range in the western Black Sea Region. The mountains are bordered in the north by Gökırmak River and in the south by Devrez Creek, forming the hydrographic boundary between the two river basins. The Gökırmak River originates in the northern slopes of the Ilgaz Mountains, and flows in the west–east direction joining Kızılırmak River as one of its main tributaries. Devrez Creek follows the North Anatolian Fault joining also Kızılırmak in the east. The highest peaks in the range are Büyükhacettepe at, Küçükhacettepe at, Çeþtepe at and Karataş Hill at. The ridges of the Ilgaz Maountains stretch about in the west–east direction.
Climate
Average annual temperature at the national park is 9.8 °C. January is the coldest month with an average temperature of −0.8 °C, while the warmest month is July with 20 °C followed by August with 19.7 °C. According to the meteorological station in Kastamonu, average annual rainfall is. In the lower parts of the national park as in the valley floors, rainfall is about and at the mountain peaks, it is about. Precipitation is highest in spring and early summer. The north facing slopes of the higher regions receive relative more rainfall. Central Antolian climate causes snow over remains for about six months with snow thickness reaching about on slopes.
Ecosystem
Thanks to the location of the national park in the transient region between Central Anatolia and Black Sea Region, the national park has a rich ecosystem of flora and fauna. ;Flora Forests, covering 81.7% of the total area, are the main vegetation group found in the national park's flora formation consisting offorest, underwood and alpine flora in general. The low altitude parts of the northern slopes are generally covered with Turkey oak, European black pine and fir forests. At the altitudes of, hornbeam and beech become dominant accompanied with some other firewood and deciduous plants. At higher elevations, at and above, Turkish pine and Scots pine establish pure or mixed forests. This zone is rich of endemic flora found in northern Turkey. The alpine zone beginning up from is utmost rich consisting of rare and endemic vegetation formed by dwarf shrubs. On the summit of Küçükhacettepe and Büyükhacettepe, which is the highest peak, numerous rare and endemic taxa are found. ;Fauna It is believed that some 30 mammals are found in and around the Ilgaz Mountains. Abundant and all-year-long running streams as well as rich vegetation enable well-matched conditions for the habitat of fauna such as deer, roe deer, wild boar, grey wolf, brown bear, red fox, wildcat, lynx, European pine marten, beech marten, weasel, rabbit, squirrel, hedgehog, mole, bat, European badger and European otter. Studies showed the existence of 617 taxa in and around the national park.
Recreation
Mount Ilgaz National Park offers opportunities for diverse outdoor sports including hiking, camping and caravaning as well as daily activities. Angling at fishponds situated on Karasu stream in Baldıran Valley is possible between June 15 and September 15. Visitors can also buy trout throughout the year from fish hatcheries in the same area. Another important feature of the national park is its potential for winter sports, which is performed at the site since the 1990s. The ski resort attracts visitors from Istanbul and Ankara. The nearest ski resort to Ankara is situated in the national park, called "Ankara Konağı". The Ilgaz Ski Resort, established officially in 1997 containing the entire national park, has an ski slope available, which is served by a chairlift and a surface lift, each long.
Access
The national park is situated on the state road between Çankırı and Kastamonu, which runs from Ankara to Black Sea coast northwards. It is east of Istanbul and northeast of Ankara, and south of Kastamonu, where also an airport is available. The site is north of the town Ilgaz on the Istanbul-Samsun highway . The main entrance to the national park is near the mountain pass at, which is the highest point of the highway.
Catering and lodging
To meet the catering and lodging needs of the visitors, the national park consists of a holiday village, social facilities and a hotel, all situated within Kastamonu Province side of the province borderline. In addition, there are accommodation facilities belonging to various public institutions. Ilgaz Mountain Resort offers 118 suites having 446 beds. The total lodging capacity at the national park is 666.
