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Report on the Ascent of Peak Babel via the Southwest Wall, Category 5A

The object of the 1972 expedition by the Moscow Regional Council of the "Zenit" Sports Society was the Shakhdarin Ridge in the Southwestern Pamir. The Shakhdarin Ridge runs along the Pyanj River from west to east. Beyond the Pyanj and the Pamir River, the mountains of the Hindu Kush and the spurs of the Karakum are visible. To the left of the upper reaches of the Vakhan-Darya River, the highest point of the Vakhan Ridge, Peak Snowy Massif, is visible. At the confluence of the Pamir and Vakhan-Darya rivers, which form the Pyanj River, the Shakhdarin Ridge bends to the northeast. It is here that the most beautiful and highest peaks of the ridge are located:

• Peak Karl Marx, 6726 m (first ascent in 1946 by an expedition led by E. Abalakov);
• Peak Friedrich Engels, 6510 m (first ascent in 1954, led by Gvarliani);
• Peak Tajikistan, 6565 m (first ascent in 1962, led by Savvon). Peaks K. Marx and F. Engels were named in 1937 (geologist Klunnikov), and Peak Tajikistan was named only in 1962, the year of its first ascent. The object of the ascent being reported - Peak Babel - is located in the southeastern ridge branching off from the Shakhdarin Ridge at Peak F. Engels, between the Kishty-Jerob and Kasvir glaciers (see diagram). The expedition's base camp was set up under the tongue of the Kishty-Jerob glacier, located between the southern and southeastern ridges branching off from Peak F. Engels, on a large green plateau at an altitude of 4000 m.

Description

FIRST ASCENT TO THE SUMMIT 6007 M via the south-west wall (South-Western Pamir) (Peak I. Babel, Odessa, 1967)

Brief geological and geographical characteristics of the area

The mighty Pyanj River has carved a deep valley in the rocks, dividing two mountain systems: — Pamir — Hindu Kush Flowing in a winding course, it runs along the Shakhdarin Range — the southern boundary of Pamir, as if skirting it from the south. The Shakhdarin Range stretches for 350 km from southwest to northeast, reaching its highest heights with peaks Karl Marx — 6726 m and Engels — 6310 m, located near the confluence of the Vakhsh-Darya River and Pyanj. The peaks of Marx and Engels form a powerful mountain node with a fairly large area of glaciation — about 140 sq. km.