PASSPORT
I. Technical class. 2. Turkestan Range (Pamir-Alay). 3. Peak AkSu, via the East Ridge. 4. Approximately Category 5B difficulty, first ascent. 5. Height difference — 1510 m, length — 2740 m. Length of sections with Category R5–R6 difficulty — 1180 m. Average steepness of the main sections: – 55° (3870–4320) – 73° (4780–5180)
Including Category R6: – 85° (4800–4840) – 80° (4890–4915)
- Pitons driven:
| Rock | Bolt | Nuts | Ice screws |
|---|---|---|---|
| 122 | - | 63 | 45 |
| 9 | - | 2 | - |
- Team's travel hours — 35, days — 3.
- Overnights 1, 2, 3, 4 — bivouac.
- Leader: Valery Pavlovich Budyanov, Master of Sports
Members: – A. I. Kamelin, 1st category – V. M. Karliner, 1st category – V. A. Lebedev, 1st category
- Coach: Valery Pavlovich Budyanov, Master of Sports
- Approach to the route — August 18, 1983 at the summit — August 20, 1983 return — August 22, 1983
Brief description of the ascent to Peak AkSu
Peak AkSu is located in the Turkestan Range in the upper reaches of the AkSu gorge. The ascent was made from the "Alay" alpine camp, which in the 1983 season was situated in the AkSu gorge at the confluence of the rivers: – AkSu – KaraSu
The path from the "Alay" alpine camp passes along the right (orographic) bank of the AkSu River. Along a good trail to the cirque under the slopes of Peak AkSu. Then, ascent along the right (orographic) moraine of the lateral glacier, descending from under the walls of Peak A. Blok. After reaching the lateral glacier, the group stopped on the right side of the glacier opposite the ice saddle between peaks 4600 and AkSu. They camped here. The approach from the alpine camp takes 4–5 hours.
August 18, 1983. Departure at 6:00 AM. An early start is necessary due to the rockfall starting at 11:00 AM from the ridge and rocky outcrops in the upper part of the ice slope. The route begins with an ascent to the ice saddle between peaks 4600 and AkSu. The bergschrund in the lower part of the ice slope is traversed via an ice bridge. The ascent to the saddle takes 6 hours of challenging ice climbing: – The ice slope (550 m) has an almost constant steepness and is traversed using front points of crampons with continuous use of ice screws.
After reaching the saddle, the route proceeds right along a snow field along the ridge, then ascends to the ridge along a talus slope to the base of the first pinnacle. Along the ridge for 2–3 hours to the first bivouac. The ridge is rugged and challenging to traverse, but despite this, there are many places suitable for bivouacking.
August 19, 1983. The entire day was spent traversing the ridge. – The pinnacles are generally solid but steep rocks. – On the last two pinnacles, it was possible to find a bypass via traversing along ledges. The second bivouac was set up directly under the base of the summit tower. A control cairn was built at the bivouac site. In the evening, the lower part of the tower was prepared — 100 m of rope were fixed.
August 20, 1983. The ascent to the tower took 8 hours. Climbing is very challenging; the rocks are smooth, almost without holds, and sometimes icy. The lower part of the tower (7–8 pitches) can be considered the crux. The route here follows an implicit rock ridge, which is a continuation of the crest and is bounded on the left and right by smooth walls descending to the glacier. – The ice couloir in the middle part of the tower was traversed in crampons for the first time. – After ascending the tower, the route to the summit follows a sharp ridge composed of monolithic blocks. – Traversing this section takes 30–40 minutes.
Descent from the summit tower via the ascent route to the bivouac took 6 hours (10 rappels of 45 m).
August 21, 1983. In about 6 hours, the group descended along the ridge (via the ascent route) to the saddle, setting up 5 rappels and several straightforward descents. They bivouacked on the saddle because the descent from the saddle, due to rockfall hazard, needs to be done early in the morning, just like the ascent.
August 22, 1983. The descent from the saddle took 4 hours. They organized: – two rappels with belay from rocks; – 9 rappels using "screwing out" ice screws.
Note: The rock pitons and ice screws used during the descent are not included in the number of pitons listed in the ascent passport.