Crimea, Mt. Merdven-Kaya. Route via the southeast wall and south ridge — “Paskhalnaya” (2A cat.)

One day, Sitnik M.A. took a look at a new guidebook to the Crimean Mountains, brought to him by Lav­ri­nen­ko A., and was horrified — “We don’t have many 2A routes. This is a disorder! We need to fix this somehow.” That's when I came up with my project, and it was a go. I had been itching to traverse the ridge I had discovered during a photo shoot in the area, but I didn’t know how to approach it. I showed it to Mikhal Sanych, he took a look at this mess, and said, “Why don’t you try it this way?” and we gave it a shot. It seemed to work out okay. Out of all the variety of equipment, my partner and I didn’t bring the following on our ascent:

• ladders
• platforms
• jumar
• rope for handrails We had to make do with:
• a set of small- and medium-sized protection gear

Uarch-Kaya

R4

R3­–R1­–R0 Red Fox 45 Shamoniya 215/4 A

Bedovaya Golova 4A cat.­ diff.

Bedovaya Golova, 4A cat.­ diff. Then there is an exit to a sloping shelf with grass. Go left-up to a large stone with a small tree. Station on a stone (there is a bolt with a ring). Mike from above R2–R3: 60–70 m along the "gardens" — under the yellow spot in the inner corner. Station on 2 bolts (a triangle is knocked out).

Author: Yuri Kruglov, Sevastopol Today we climbed "Mezhdubolie" - a new route on Merdven-Kaya (Uarch-Kaya). No bolts! The idea to climb this beautiful and untouched line between Alina and RedFox on Merdven-Kaya (Uarch-Kaya) came to my mind a week ago, when we were climbing the "Alina" route. Right from the bottom, there's excellent terrain for climbing and natural protection. So we decided to tackle this line. Today, the idea was realized. An excellent route, pure technical climbing, no bolts, no pre-drilled holes, no prior preparation, honestly from the bottom up in 2 hours 0 minutes... The third pitch - we climbed straight up - very logical. We intersected the RedFox line, but didn't encounter a single bolt on the way until we reached the R5 station of RedFox. We finished the last pitch on it. The whole climb took 2 hours. Useful gear:

• several small stoppers
• several small aliens
• a set of cams from 0.5 to 4

Route description prepared by: Alexey Abramov, Moscow Uarch-Kaya, "Karnaval" route, cat. 4B, (10 pitches, 6a grade), 270 m "Karnaval" route line

Condition as of August 30, 2003

Approach: From the forester's house near Kilse-Burun peak, take the Upper Road for 3.5 km towards "Chortova Lestnica" pass. You can leave your car near the second bridge (counting from the forester's house). From the memorial, follow a wide, well-trodden path (the path starts from the "Opolznevskoe forestry" sign on the left side of the road, if you're driving from the forester's house) upwards towards "Chortova Lestnica" pass for about 3-4 minutes until you reach the southeastern ridge, where the "Surpriz" 1B route begins. The start of the "Surpriz" route is marked with blue paint on the rock. From the inscription, follow downwards along the riverbed for about 50 m, then turn right and move about 20 m under the wall to the characteristic blocky rocks (a sign should be installed here soon). R0–R1:

• Climb simple blocky rocks to the left onto a ledge with trees (20 m, no protection)
• Then, follow an internal corner with a stationary piton at its base, move 25 m (III+, medium and large stoppers, friends) right-upwards along moderately difficult rocks to a large terrace with juniper. Belay station on two stationary pitons.

Route to Merdven-Kayas 1B cat. dif.

The lower part of the "Assa" route goes along the left edge of an oblique ledge - a couloir, to the right of the "Bezzavetny" route, connecting with it in some places. In its middle part, it connects with the "Zлая" route (approximately two ropes). Approach: from the camp of the Mountain School "Category of Difficulty", go towards the "Khergiani" rock and further beyond it to the entrance to the couloir. The approach takes 5 minutes. "Assa" route on Merdven-Kayas 1B cat. dif. "Assa" route on Merdven-Kayas 1B cat. dif. Technical description of the route:

• R0–R1
• 50 m

Merdven-Kayasa — 1. "Musi-Pusi"

Massif: Merdven-Kayasa (Khergiani) 856 m Complexity: 2B IV Author: Savelyev (Simferopol) A. Lav­ri­nen­ko Year of creation: 2004 Number of pitches: 7 Route description: The route goes along the Western counterfort of the Western wall. Approach:

• From the start of the trail to the "Chertova lestnitsa" pass, follow the upper road towards Yalta for about 700 m
• On the parapet to the right, there will be an inscription in green paint "Krym"
• From here, left along the trail through the forest under the wall The start of the route is marked. R0–R1: 30 m. Along the bushy corner — a crag onto a shelf, then up simple rocks, and left onto a ledge. Belay station. II

Merdven-Kayas — 16. "Right Slope"

Massif: Merdven-Kayas (Khergiani) 856 m Complexity: 3А V Authors: A. Lavri­nenko, O. Po­pov Year of creation: 2012 Number of pitches: 8 Time to complete: 3–4 hours Route description: A logical line that leads up a couloir to the ridge and then through a complex wall to the summit. The route is monolithic, but there are loose rocks on the gentler sections of the couloir. It is hazardous in rain and during snowmelt. Not recommended for large groups. The approach starts from where a dirt road leads to the base of Khergiani rock. Follow the trail upwards, bearing right to bypass Khergiani rock, then up a couloir (with some simple scrambling) to reach a large inclined grassy ledge. Traverse right along the terrace and descend to the base of the couloir. R0–R1: 60 m

• Up the simple rocks of the couloir to the left to reach a tree
• From the tree, traverse right, then upwards
• Belay station on a ledge with personal anchors

Merdven-Kaya — 3. “The Evil One”

Difficulty: 3B V. Year of route creation: 2008. Length: 220 m. Time to complete: 3–5 hours. Route description: Passes through the left part of the SW wall. The approach starts from where the dirt road goes under Hergiani Rock. Up the trail, bearing right, bypassing the rock, then through a couloir with some simple climbing, exit onto a large inclined grassy ledge. Up the ledge to the left. The start is along a steep corner from a small tree. Landmark — a bush in a diagonal crack. R0–R1, 45 m Up the inner corner to a dry tree, then along an inclined inner corner up to the left. Move along the left edge of the corner. Station on a juniper in the corner. Climbing:

• 10 m IV
• 35 m III R1–R2 50 m From the tree, continue up the corner to the left, climbing is not difficult. In the upper part, the corner is blocked by a “cork”, it is bypassed on the right, then traverse left, and up onto a horizontal ridge. Station on personal anchors.

Merdven-Kayasy - 15. "Fiesta"

Massif: Merdven-Kayasy (Khergiani) 856 m Complexity: 4A Author: Lavrinenko A., Miryuk Year of route creation: 2007 Number of pitches: 5 Length: 270 m Time to complete: 3–5 hours Route description: The route is logical, but requires some navigation skills. On the 3rd rope, the rocks are destroyed, climb very carefully! It's advisable to take a 60 m rope, but you can go with a 50 m one, there are enough trees, only on the last rope you'll have to make a station on nuts or pitons. The approach starts from the place where a dirt road goes under the Khergiani rock. Up the path, turning right, bypassing the rock, then along the couloir, местами — simple climbing, exit to a large inclined grassy ledge. Up along it, under the base of the inner corner, where the route begins. R0–R1, 55 m All the time up the corner, the complexity gradually increases. Insurance with large stoppers and friends, there are several trees. Station on a tree at the beginning of a wide chimney. 15 m III, 40 m IV+; R1–R2, 60 m