Ai-Petri (Main Summit) via the South Ridge, cat. 2a

From the Yalta–Sevastopol road (9th kilometer), follow the forest road to the Hostа-Bash clearing for 30–40 minutes. Ascend to the main couloir of the Ai-Petri massif from the Hostа-Bash clearing via the high riverbed. The route begins to the right of the main couloir and continues left and upwards along an inclined ledge to the start of the ridge. Then:

• Traverse 160 m across large slabs to the beginning of a counterfort,
• Ascend the counterfort, which leads to the south ridge. The route then follows the rocky south ridge (moderate difficulty) towards the summit tower. Bypassing the encountered gendarmes, ascend a couloir to a col between the pinnacles and the summit tower. From the col, ascend the moderate difficulty rocks to the summit. The route is 800 m long:
• easy rocks — 600 m,
• moderate difficulty rocks — 180–200 m. The ascent takes 4 hours.