Report

On the ascent of Peak Kommunizma (7495 m) via the left edge of the north-eastern wall from the Ordzhonikidze Glacier by the LGS team of "Spartak" DSO

• August 3–17, 1972
• First ascent.

III. General Description of the Route

The eastern ridge of Peak Kommunizma, by which the first ascent was made in 1933, is the right (orographic) side of the Ordzhonikidze Glacier. The orientation of the ridge is close to latitudinal, and its slopes are steep walls exposed to the North. Due to the northern orientation, the walls have significant glaciation, often expressed in the form of hanging glaciers. As one advances towards the upper reaches of the Ordzhonikidze Glacier, the steepness of the walls increases, reaching its maximum at the junction of the main massif of Peak Kommunizma and the ridge leading to Peak Izvestiy. The summit of the North shoulder of the Peak Kommunizma massif (around 4.8 km) is dominant over the Ordzhonikidze Glacier cirque. Here, the ice masses can no longer cling to the slope (steepness reaches 60–65° in the middle and about 80° in the upper part of the wall) and expose rocky outcrops. This is the northern wall of Peak Kommunizma (Photo 2). The wall is bounded on the right by the icefall from the ridge between Peak Kommunizma and Peak Izvestiy, and on the left by a hanging glacier. The rocks are schist. The orientation of the strata is inclined, so the rocky masses intersect the wall from right to left at an angle of about 45°. The icy slopes between the rocky walls and the schistose nature of the massif stimulate frequent avalanches and rockfalls crossing the rocky outcrops. These circumstances deprive climbers of natural shelters and dividing counterforts when ascending the wall centrally.