The Yozgat Pine Grove National Park , is a national park

National park

A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...

 consisting of pine

Pine

Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...

 trees in Yozgat

Yozgat

Yozgat is a city and the capital district of Yozgat province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. According to 2009 census, population of the district is 113,614 of which 73,835 live in the city of Yozgat.-History:...

, Central Anatolia Region

Central Anatolia Region

The Central Anatolia Region is one of Turkey's seven census-defined geographical regions.- Provinces :Total population: 12,105,975* Aksaray Province* Ankara Province* Çankırı Province* Eskişehir Province* Karaman Province* Kayseri Province...

 of Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

. It was established on Februart 5, 1958 as the country's first national park.

The park, a forest island on hills within wide steppe

Steppe

In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...

s in the region, covers an area of 264 ha (1 sq mi) and its average elevation is 1360 m (4,461.9 ft) above sea level. Yozgat Pine Grove National Park is administered by the Directorate-General of Forestry, a governmental agency of the Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs. The species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 of pine trees within the national park are found only in the higher elevations of Caucasus Mountains

Caucasus Mountains

The Caucasus Mountains is a mountain system in Eurasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea in the Caucasus region .The Caucasus Mountains includes:* the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and* the Lesser Caucasus Mountains....

. According to Ali Şimşek, the director of the park, the trees, between 350 and 500 years old, are under protection. Some of the trees are tagged with their age on them.

The national park is located 5 km (3.1 mi) south of the city Yozgat. It is a popular recreational area for the residents of the city. The park has various facilities for visitors like a three-star hotel, campsite

Campsite

A campsite or camping pitch is a place used for overnight stay in the outdoors. In British English a campsite is an area, usually divided into a number of pitches, where people can camp overnight using tents or camper vans or caravans; this British English use of the word is synonymous with the...

, restaurant, cafeteria and playground

Playground

A playground or play area is a place with a specific design for children be able to play there. It may be indoors but is typically outdoors...

.