Video guide to the "Rechka" route (Ilyushenko, ice 4B) on Peak Baychechekey by Dima Pavlenko. Captured work on the key wall.

Route Description

From the Myrdı bivouac, ascend the grassy slopes towards the lower part of the eastern ridge of Pyramida. Then turn right onto the large, wide slopes cut by a chain of couloirs and scree, rising towards the terminal moraine of the Pyramida glacier. Reach the glacier via the large, long moraine. Continue straight up towards the clearly visible, rightmost narrow saddle on the Pyramida ridge. The ridge connects to the summit of Ak-bashi to the right. The ascent to the saddle follows a snowy slope with a steepness of up to 40°, then a narrow 100-meter couloir (ice in the second half of summer). From the saddle, descend 50 m to the other side and follow a wide, 400-meter scree shelf that wraps around the base of Pyramida from the west, approaching a large rocky outcrop. Ascend the outcrop upwards and to the left, then move onto inclined shelves above a white quartz vein (protection!). Then bypass the first rocky prominence and move towards the wedge-shaped rock protruding from the second rocky prominence on the ridge. Ascend to the wedge-shaped rock via broken rocks, then follow the inner angle - a couloir (water!) - to reach the upper scree slopes above the wall via a small R6 rock wall. Follow the scree slopes and small ridges to reach the main ridge of the summit at a large, horizontally lying slab. From here, move left and down into a small depression, then ascend to the summit via yellow rocks. 6 hours from the bivouac. Descent from the summit follows the "Pyramida via the Southeast Ridge" route.

• Departure time from the bivouac should be no later than 5 am.
• On the eve of the ascent day, mark the path to the terminal moraine of the Pyramida glacier.

Video guide to Route 3A via the west ridge to Peak Ratzek by Dima Pavlenko.

Video guide to the Gavrilov's route (4A) on peak Korona by Dima Pavlenko.

Video guide for the 2Б route via the north ridge to Razek Peak by Dima Pavlenko.

Video guide for Mikhailov's route (5B, rock climbing) on Peak Boks by Dima Pavlenko.

One of the most popular routes to the Corona peak crest wall. It starts from the bergschrund, from which there are about 450 meters of even ice to the ridge. On the penultimate rope of the route, there is a small ice ridge, which is a bit more complicated than the main section of the route. The start of the route is 70-100 meters to the right of the https://summitx.info/en/routes/58844837/about route. In the Russian official classification, both these routes are considered variants of the same route.

In autumn 2025, two ice streams formed on the northern wall of Pik Korona. The first ascent of the right stream (rated 5A in the Russian classification) was made by Aleksandr Parfyonov's team in early 2026. The first ascent of the left stream was made by Konstantin Markevich with Aleksey Pototskiy in the second half of March 2026. Further, according to Aleksey:

Last year was very hot in July. And as a result of this circumstance, two new routes formed on the northern wall of Pik Korona. The charm of these routes is that this year or next, such conditions may not happen, and these routes may not exist. But while they are there - we have to climb 😁 And we did. One route was climbed by Parfyonov with a partner in February, and the second one - Kostya Markevich and I last week.

Honest 5B and this is the coolest ice in the area. The icicle itself is 170 m of 87-degree lace cascade ice. And before that, there's another 30 meters of A3 ice climbing. The lower part is 450 m of gentle ice at 55-70 degrees.

Loading video...

Work on the route

Logistics

How to Get There

By Private Vehicle

As of May 2025, entry to the national park is closed to vehicles with internal combustion engines. Entry for electric vehicles remains open and costs 800 som. There is a parking lot at the top, costing 50 som for an unlimited time.

By Taxi

You need to get to the entrance to the national park: https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=19/42.655741/74.495202&layers=P. However, taxi drivers are not very fond of going there, so some minor difficulties may arise. The cost per car is around 600-800 som from the center of Bishkek.

By Public Transport

In May 2025, a free bus was launched. It starts from T. Usubaliev Square (often referred to as the old central square of Bishkek, near monuments and administrative buildings in the center) — a landmark in the city center.

Transport Inside the National Park

If you're not using a private vehicle, you need to pay 200 som per person to enter the national park. The number of days spent in the park is unlimited. Payment can be made in cash, by card, or with national QR transfers. Buses run around the clock from the entrance of the national park to the end of the road inside the park. The interval between buses is approximately every 10 minutes during the day and every 30-40 minutes at night.

People often ask about the weather in Ala-Archa, when the best season is, and when it's safe to ice climb. I've decided to put this information into a micro-article.

January

Stable weather, many sunny days, often calm. The temperature at Ratschek hut is -10 to -20°C with rare deviations from this range. However, there's only 2 hours of sunlight per day, not enough to warm up.

February

Almost like January, but towards the end of the month, stability is lost – March is approaching.

March

Very unstable weather. Stormy winds can last for 2 consecutive days, and fog can hang for 2 weeks. Heavy snowfalls are rare but possible. On good days, even in early March, it's sometimes possible to walk in a T-shirt when the sun is out. Daytime temperatures range from -10 to +5°C.

April

The same March winds, but it gets warmer.

May