Ascent Passport

Class — winter.
Central Caucasus.
Peak Shchurovsky, 4259 m, via the northeast wall (V. Abalakov's route).
Category of difficulty: 5B.
Height difference: 800 m, length – 1050 m.

Length of sections with category 6 difficulty — 220 m. Length of sections with category 5 difficulty — 780 m. Average steepness of the route — 68°. Average steepness of the main sections — 75°.
Number of pitons driven

Rock	Nut	Ice	Bolt
18	115	25	0

Team's travel hours — 27, days — 3;
Overnights — 2 on ledges, semi-reclined, 1 at the summit — good. All overnights in a tent.

Leader — Moiseev Alexander Anatolyevich, Master of Sports. Participants:

Fedorchenko Roman Viktorovich, Candidate for Master of Sports
Lobankov Vladislav Petrovich, 1st sports category

Start of the route — February 22, 1998, summit — February 24, 1998, return to base — February 25, 1998.
Organization — Rostov Regional Federation of Alpinism and Rock Climbing.

General photo of the summit of Peak Shchurovsky (4259 m), Olympus 120 camera, f=50 mm

V. Pelevin via the NE ridge, 1947, 4B;
V. Abalakov via the NE wall, 1953, 5B;
L. Kensitsky via the N wall, 1962, 5B;
M. Khergiani via the bastion of the N wall, 1962, 5B;
V. Abalakov via the NW wall, 1947, 5A

Photopanorama of the area. Olympus 120 camera, f=35 mm

Rock	Ice	Nut	Route diagram in UIAA symbols / Notes	Section #	Length	Steepness	Category of difficulty
0	4	0		0–1	50	65	IV
1	4	0		1–2	50	75	V
0	4	0		2–3	50	60	V
1	1	3		3–4	50	65	V+
0	3	2		4–5	50	70	V+
2	0	6		5–6	50	75	V+
0	0	8		6–7	50	60	V
2	1	5		7–8	50	60	V
0	2	6		8–9	50	70	V+
0	0	8		9–10	50	70	V+
2	0	7		10–11	50	65	V
0	0	8		11–12	50	60	V
8	19	43	Overnight from February 22 to 23, 1998, travel hours – 10.		550
1	0	10		12–13	50	65	V+
0	0	10		13–14	50	80	VI
1	0	9		14–15	50	70	V+
1	0	20	Overnight from February 23 to 24, 1998. Travel hours – 7, processing – 1 rope.		100
0	0	9		15–16	50	65	VI
4	0	5		16–17	50	60	V
0	0	6		17–18	50	65	V
0	0	9		18–19	50	80	VI
2	0	6		19–20	50	75	VI
0	4	0		20–21	50	70	V+
2	2	8		21–22	50	80	VI
18	25	115	Total travel hours – 27.		1050
9	6	52	Overnight at the summit from February 24 to 25, 1998, travel hours – 10.		400

Description of the route by sections

Section	Description
Section R0–R1	Overhanging wall of the bergschrund. Steep ice gully.
Section R1–R3	Steep ice gully.
Section R3–R4	Exit from the gully to the right onto a steep rock wall. Rocks are covered with snow, making belaying difficult.
Section R4–R5	Straight up the rock slabs, then left, through a gully onto a rock wall of a canyon-like couloir, up it; smooth slabs with few holds, covered with snow.
Section R5–R6	Rock wall.
Section R6–R7	Inner corner and exit onto a rock ridge.
Section R7–R8	Rock ridge ends with a 15-meter ice gully.
Section R8–R9	Long vertical chimney leading to snow-covered slabs.
Section R9–R10	Along the slabs into an inner corner, leading to a "tooth," height 3750 m.
Section R10–R11	From the "tooth" to the right, through a 15-meter wall onto a ridge.
Section R11–R12	Rock ridge ends with a vertical wall, through it onto a snowy shoulder, where a "semi-reclined" overnight stay. Further through a wall onto a small ridge, covered with snow.
Section R12–R13	Wall covered with frozen "live" rocks.
Section R13–R14	Long inner corner. Movement along the right part.
Section R14–R15	At the exit from the corner, on the left, a ledge. Overnight stay on it. Further straight up, along the right part of the ice gully. Steep rocks covered with snow.
Section R15–R16	Slabs with few holds.
Section R16–R19	Alternating walls and rock ridges, approach to the summit tower.
Section R19–R20	Rocks covered with snow.
Section R20–R21	Long ice gully.
Section R21–R22	Overhanging rock wall, steep ice pitch leading to the summit.