World Climbing Championship High-Altitude Technical Class National Team of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Peak Trud, 4635 m via the west face, 5B cat. diff. (first ascent)
General photo of the summit
Taken from Kroshka glacier on May 26 at 19:00
Ascent Passport
1. Region, gorge:
Tien Shan, Trans-Ili Alatau, Middle Talgar
2. Summit name, route name:
Trud, 4635 m via the chimneys of the west face, first ascent
3. Cat. diff.: 5B, 1200 m, M6, WI5, 6b
4. Route type: combined
5. Steepness and length:
Height difference: 800 m. Route length: 1200 m. Steepness of the main part: 70°. Average steepness: 55%.
6. Equipment used:
Pitons: ~20. Nuts: ~50. Ice screws: ~50. Bolted anchors: none. Pitons left on the route: none.
7. Climbing time: 23 hours
8. Team leader: Kirill Belotserkovsky, Master of Sports
Climber: Grigory Shchukin, 1st sports category
9. Coach: Artem Skopin, Master of Sports
10. Dates:
Started the route: May 27, 2020, at 3:00. Reached the summit: May 27, at 19:00. Returned to base camp: May 28, at 2:00.
11. Organization: Kazakhstan Mountain Club
West face of Peak Trud, 4635 m
- V. Popov 1984, 5B
- Yu. Tyatinim 1959, 5B
- K. Belotserkovsky — G. Shchukin 2020, 5B
- V. Yun 1982, 5B
- V. Gorbunov 1983, 5B
Characteristics of the region and the ascent object
The central part of Trans-Ili Alatau is its highest region, with the largest glaciers:
- Korzhenevsky,
- Shokalsky, Bogatyry,
- Dmitriev, Toguzak, and others. The mountains are composed of granites and diorites. Main rivers: Left and Middle Talgar, Issyk, South-East Talgar, Turgen, all belonging to the Ili river basin. Pass altitudes: 3500–4000 m. The highest point of the ridge is Peak Talgar, 4973 m. The average height of the peaks around Talgar massif is around 4500 m.
Peak Trud is considered part of the Talgar massif but is separated from the main peak by the deep Talgar Trough. Thus, it is more accurate to consider it part of the Gorin massif, which includes:
- Peak Gorin,
- South-West Talgar,
- Daugava,
- Trud.
To the south and east, it is bounded by the complex Korzhenevsky glacier. A scree slope, sometimes covered with snow, descends from the summit to this glacier. To the north-west, the South Talgar glacier flows. At the foot of the west face lies the Kroshka glacier. The west face is of particular interest to alpinists. The South Talgar and Kroshka glaciers are separated by a ridge starting from the Trud massif and ending at peak 4012. To the north-west of the summit lies the Aktuz pass, and to the south-east, the Talgar Trough pass.
The history of Peak Trud began with the ascent by a Leningrad team led by Yuri Tyatinim in 1959. Until the early 1980s, all ascents followed this route.
Between 1982–1984, new routes were established by:
- a Novosibirsk team led by V. Yun, and Alma-Ata teams led by V. Popov and V. Gorbunov.
All routes are combined and have a 5B category difficulty. Unfortunately, I couldn't find the report on Gorbunov's team's ascent, so the route line is approximate.
The next attempt to climb a new route on Trud occurred in 2015 when I and Tursunaly Aubakirov tried to climb the chimneys to the right of Tyatinim's route. The route was icy, but we were stopped by a section of crumbling rocks and descended. In 2020, Grigory Shchukin and I completed the route we lacked the strength to finish in 2015.
Route diagram in UIAA symbols
Technical description of the route
The route starts from the Kroshka glacier. A scree slope leads to the start of the couloir. We turned out of the main couloir in its lower third.
R0–R1 Snowy couloir, partially covered by a rock wall. After 150 meters, we turned left into another couloir. We climbed simultaneously until the turn, then alternately.
R1–R2 Steep chimney with ice.
R2–R3 Steep chimney with ice.
R3–R4 Traverse around an ice column, followed by difficult climbing on ice poorly attached to the rock. At the top, a steep, nearly vertical chimney with ice.
R4–R5 Chimney with ice, blocked by an overhanging ice plug. Apparently, an icicle broke off, leaving only a cornice. Above is a large rock plug that can be passed underneath. In 2015, this section was a continuous ice stream.
R5–R6 Steep, heavily damaged chimney. Risk of deep fall.
R6–R7 From the belay station, complex climbing on a crumbling internal corner. To the left is a monolithic wall with small footholds; to the right are loose blocks. The second half of the section involves easier climbing with large distances between belay points. Then comes a "roof."
R7–R8 Wall with a stream, followed by a snowy slope. Above, the snow ends, and "ram's foreheads" begin.
R8–R9 Snowy couloir pushing towards a rock wall. Climb up the wall to reach snow again.
R9–R10 Steep snowy slope leading to an ice wall on the right. Climb 15 meters up the ice wall to the next snowy slope.
R10–R11 Climb left-up the snowy slope towards the ridge. En route, cross a gentle, smooth slab. Easy in rock shoes; in crampons, it's quite an adventure.
R11–R12 Ice couloir to the left of the ridge, leading to a convenient ledge on a small ridge.
R12–R13 Snowy-icy couloir to the ridge.
R13–R14 The ridge, covered in snow, leads to the summit.
Descent along the ridge to the north, towards Daugava. Then, 7 rope lengths down to the ridge connecting Trud with peak 4012. We descended to the ridge in the dark. Initially, on slushy snow, then, avoiding obstacles by going right on ice, we reached the couloir leading to the glacier. Down the couloir to the glacier, then to the tent.
It's crucial to remember the correct couloir to turn into; otherwise, you'll end up on the wrong slope.
Tactical actions of the team
May 25. Started from Tuyuk-Su alpine camp. Descended on asphalt road to the Chimbulak ski resort, then ascended to Talgar Pass via a trail. From the pass, descended on a well-trodden path to the so-called Small Talgar Pass — a saddle before descending into the Left Talgar gorge. Followed a good trail down to the bottom of the gorge.
The log used to cross the river in previous years was washed away. We had to cross using another log 150 meters downstream. After crossing another stream, we were on the left (by our direction) bank.
Ascended to the Nauryksay gorge and, within a few hours, reached the moraine of the Jambul glacier. Set up camp at 2800 m.
Encountered tracks of snow leopard, maral, and bear along the way.
The Middle Talgar gorge is part of the Almaty Reserve. To enter, a permit is required from the reserve's main office.
May 26. Approached the TEU North pass via the moraine. A snowfield in the center of the scree allowed us to quickly reach the pass (4000 m) in crampons.
From the pass:
- descended via scree to the TEU glacier;
- traversed the glacier in a rope team to the start of the moraine;
- followed the scree and grassy slopes to the bottom of the Middle Talgar gorge, to the river of the same name;
- crossed to the other side via rocks.
Then: Passed by the Karaulchitaou bastions (still holding long vertical ice streams between them) and turned onto the ancient moraine ridge of the Kroshka glacier. Crossed the mobile moraine in the middle and emerged onto a gentle slope via an ice "forehead."
It's simpler to bypass the moraine and glacier via the scree slope under peak 4012.
Along the glacier, approached the pass south of peak 4012. Set up camp, linked up, and went to inspect the planned route under the wall of peak Chekist. Significantly less ice on the route compared to 5 years ago. Returned to the tent. I went to the pass under 4012 to recon the descent route while Grisha stayed at the tent.
May 27. Rest day.
May 28. Started at 3 am. Reached the glacier, linked up, and began climbing. First 200 meters were steep snow, occasionally ice. Encountered a rock wall that was icy in 2015. More snow, then easy "ram's foreheads" covered in rock debris.
Reached the start of the steep chimney, set up a belay, and pulled up Grisha. Two rope lengths of steep chimneys with ice inside followed. On the third rope, had to bypass an ice column, then climb on ice poorly attached to the rock. Several rope lengths of complex climbing led us to the highest point we reached in 2015. Changed into rock shoes and, pressing loose blocks against the wall of an internal corner, climbed up. Above the corner, easier climbing with large distances between belays. Then, a "roof" — alternating snowy couloirs with rock steps. A stone hit my goggles and eyebrow on one of the snowfields. The plaster didn't stick to my eyebrow, so I continued climbing, occasionally wiping blood from my face. Crossed the west ridge and emerged onto the main (east) ridge. Easy climbing along the ridge to the summit by 19:00.
Possibly, it's worth descending from the summit to the Korzhenevsky glacier, then via the Aktuz pass, on ice and snow, to the Kroshka glacier.
We, however, followed our plan and rappelled 7 times to the ridge between Trud and 4012. Then, on slushy snow, reached the ridge. Along the ridge, bypassing obstacles to the right, we reached a ridge connecting Trud to 4012, then descended via a scree couloir to the Kroshka glacier.
The entire ascent from tent to tent took 23 hours. I led the entire route. Climbed without ITO and without falls. Grisha climbed everything except two key pitches with free climbing. The weather was sunny and windless all day.
Returned via the same route as we came — through the TEU and Talgar passes. Reached the alpine camp by noon on May 30. The entire trip took 6 days:
- 4 days trekking to and back
- 1 rest day
- 1 day for the ascent.
We first attempted the route in June 2015. There was significantly more ice then, making climbing easier. In May 2020, there was less ice, requiring more scrambling on rocks.
Grisha Shchukin crossing the Left Talgar
Grisha Shchukin approaching the TEU pass
Grisha Shchukin on pitch #10
Kirill Belotserkovsky on pitch #12
Grisha Shchukin reaching the summit. In the background, Peak Talgar.
Grisha Shchukin and Kirill Belotserkovsky on the summit
Kirill Belotserkovsky descending towards the west ridge
