Peak Sodruzhestvo
To the Classification Commission of the Presidium of the USSR Alpine Federation
Description of the ascent route to the summit 5640 m
The 5640 m summit is located in the central part of the Pamir in the Academy of Sciences Range between Peak Kommunizma (7495 m) and Peak Garmo (6615 m).
The 5640 m summit stands out distinctly on the ridge, having a beautiful outline. A small glacier flows down from the slopes of the 5640 m summit, being a right tributary (orographically) of the Vavilov Glacier.
The first ascent to the 5640 m summit was made by participants of the British-Soviet expedition consisting of: – 1. Hunt J. — group leader – 2. Law J. — member – 3. Jones R. — member – 4. Nicol Gr. — member – 5. Shalaev N.I. — member – 6. Gippenreiter E.B. — member
The ascent to the 5640 m summit from the base green camp, located near the tongue of the Garmo Glacier, took 8 days for the first ascenders.
Day I. The journey from the base (green) camp to the New Marmot camp, set up at the confluence of the Vavilov Glacier and the Garmo Glacier, takes 6–8 hours. The route goes as follows: – Initially, the path follows a trail on the right lateral moraine (orographically) of the Garmo Glacier to Avo-Dor. – After Avo-Dor, the lateral moraine drops off with a steep rocky slope, and further movement is most conveniently done along the Garmo Glacier. – Depending on the state of the glacier (different in different years), it is most advisable: – to walk on the glacier, sticking to its white streams, – or to cross the glacier and exit onto the left lateral moraine after the confluence with the Shokal'skiy Glacier.
Day II. The group took 1.5 hours to move from the New Marmot camp to camp №3, located on the left (orographically) moraine of the Vavilov Glacier. The rest of the day was spent gathering equipment dropped by helicopters.
Day III. The route from camp №3 to camp №4 goes along the Vavilov Glacier in the direction of its third tributary. The time required to traverse this section depends on the state of the glacier, which can be extremely unfavorable in August. For our group, the round trip took 8 hours. Overnight stay at camp №3.
Day IV. With the remaining equipment, we relocate from camp №3 to camp №4.
Day V. The ascent to the 5640 m summit is made directly from camp №4. Initially, the path goes across scree in the direction of the ridge of the 5640 m summit, slightly below the gendarmes, then along the glacier descending from the slopes of the summit. We cross the glacier in its lower part. The ascent to the ridge is made along a snowy slope with a gradient not exceeding 35°.
After reaching the ridge, further movement is carried out along it. The ridge is not complicated, covered with snow. There are two gendarmes on the ridge, composed of hard granite rocks; the walls of the gendarmes drop off steeply and have almost no holds. An attempt to bypass them was unsuccessful. The group descended onto the scree located on the other side of the ridge and set up camp №5 here.
The journey from camp №4 to camp №5 takes 6 hours.
Day VI. From camp №5, we re-emerge onto the ridge via a loose and steep couloir, but now above the gendarmes. Further, the path goes along a snowy, broad ridge; the ridge is not steep, but there are snow cornices. Movement is with alternating belay. After traversing a horizontal section of the ridge, we approach the rocks, where we set up camp №6 and process the first rocky section.
Day VII. Law J. remains in camp №6. The rest of us continue onward, five in total. The section processed the previous day is an internal angle with a steepness of not more than 40°. During processing, 3 rock pitons were driven in.
Using the fixed ropes, the group overcomes the rocks and emerges onto a sharp ridge covered with snow, with several rocky, snow-covered outcrops.
Beyond the snow-covered rocky outcrops, there is a second rocky section, during which we drove in 2 pitons.
Beyond the second rocky section, the ridge becomes even steeper and sharper. In the upper part, the ridge becomes more gentle. However, there is an ice section here, during which: – we organize piton belay (4–5 ice screws); – we cut steps in the ice.
Then we reach the summit.
The journey from camp №6 to the summit without backpacks took 6 hours. The descent to camp №6 takes just as much time. On the summit, the group leaves a tent in a cairn, flags: – British – Soviet
Day VIII. The descent from camp №6 to camp №3 takes 6–8 hours.
The joint British-Soviet group requests that the Presidium of the USSR Alpine Federation petition the Supreme Soviet of the Tajik SSR to name this summit Peak Soglasiya (Peak Concord).
The group (Soviet part) requests that the Presidium of the Alpine Federation classify this route as cat. diff. 4B+1.
The description of the ascent route was compiled by USSR Sports Master Shalaev N.I. on October 26, 1962.