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ELSite update: mountain cell coverage map (Ala-Archa, Khibiny, Kodar, Elbrus), more accurate route difficulty calculation, infinite scroll, print-friendly output, and a Share button.
The website has been updated once again. Cellular Coverage Map Communication in the mountains is very important. It is not only an opportunity to post photos from the route on social media, but also serious assistance in rescue operations. An experimental feature has been added to view an assessment of cellular network availability in the area. Unfortunately, there is no comprehensive database of cell towers in the world, so it is impossible to calculate coverage availability for the entire world. However, geodata moderators now have the ability to add cell towers to our database, which has made it possible to at least partially improve data coverage for the regions: Ala-Archa and neighboring Alamedin, Arshan in the Tunkinsky Goltsy, Khibiny, eastern Kodar, and the Elbrus area. This is reference information. We are not responsible for data accuracy. But it would be great if we could gradually supplement the tower database and get a more accurate picture of coverage. For the geeks, here's how it works: the idea is based on ray tracing. We have the tower coordinates, their approximate height, and terrain. Using this data, one can build a map of shadows from the towers. Well, everything that's not shadow—there's coverage there. Well, and of course there are limits to signal propagation. For different technologies these are completely different distances: 5G and 2G differ by more than an order of magnitude. Refined Algorithm for Route and Section Difficulty Assessment
23-year-old guide Temur Kurdiani made the first solo ascent of the mixed 5A/M5+ route to the 4,869-meter summit, tackling 80-degree ice and vertical granite in just 4 hours.
According to information from mountain.ru and planetmountain.com: 23-year-old guide and alpinist Temur Kurdiani completed a solo first ascent of a route. The line follows steep, mixed terrain, and the climber graded the difficulty at 5A/M5+. Starting at 4000 meters, the ascent climbs the wall to 4700, where it joins the classic route all the way to the summit at 4869 m. The climb took just 4 hours, despite encountering sections of 80-degree ice and vertical granite. ![](https://summitx.info/media/1/lweRCxxrjJ6xkntiaPFoHsQenFkIyRwP
Refined the T-route difficulty calculation algorithm: adjusted ratings for different rock systems, snow and ice. Added transparency regarding how ascents affect ratings, plus improved profile and editor design.
Recently, the website implemented the ability to add your own ascents. These are used to refine the difficulty/hardness/danger of routes, as well as to build user ratings. The feature received a response from the community: many added their ascents, thanks to which I got the opportunity to test the ratings on real data. Thanks to Igor Dementyev, Alexey Pototsky, Dmitry Trukhatkin, Natalia T., Dmitry Dobrokhotov and many others! Refinement of the route difficulty calculation algorithm Thanks to your data, I found several important flaws in the algorithm and fixed them. The T grade algorithm became more accurate in several places: All rock grading systems are accounted for. Previously, only UIAA was calculated, while grades in French, YDS and Ewbank were silently lost. Snow 30-35° is now aligned with real difficulty. Previously it was counted almost as UIAA III. Aid climbing is better separated from snow and ice. A2 is now noticeably harder than AI4. Long easy sections no longer "complicate" the route technically: 100 m of walking snow and 100 m of WI4 now add completely different contributions. The difficulties of all routes for which ascents were specified have been recalculated. In the foreseeable future, 3-4 more clarifying changes to the algorithm will happen. It is not yet perfect, and there is work to be done. Transparency of ascent contributions to ratings
ELEvgenii LepikhinSummitX has introduced four new climber ratings: Mastery, Explorer, Current Form, and Altitude. Automatically calculated from logged ascents, these metrics provide an objective evaluation of different facets of your mountaineering experience.
User ratings have been added to the SummitX website. Now, your completed climbs automatically build not only your personal history but also several ratings: mastery, explorer rating, current form, and altitude rating. Ratings are recalculated once a day, at night. Therefore, if you added or updated climbs today, the changes will not appear instantly but after the next recalculation. User rating page: Detailed user analytics: Global analytics and leaderboards: Why ratings are needed
ELEvgenii LepikhinSummitX has launched a climbing history section: users describe route segments, building a living database with current difficulty ratings instead of outdated grades. Import from ФАР is available, with all fields optional.
A major new section has been added to SummitX: now every user can keep their own ascent history. This isn't just a "where I've been" list: from user ascents, a living route database gradually begins to grow. With current assessments and descriptions of sections, a history of changes, and a proper classification mechanism that doesn't depend on one person, an old table, or a random subjective assessment. The full list of ascents is already available here: . In a user profile, the list looks like this: (I've only just started filling out my own list). Rather broad search options for ascents are offered: Why add your ascents at all At first glance, it might seem like just a personal diary. Well, you climbed a route, wrote down the date, checked a box. But it's all a bit cooler than that. I'm trying to create not just a list of routes, but a system where routes are gradually refined by the climbers themselves. The more people add their ascents and describe route sections, the more accurate—and therefore more useful—the database becomes. Soviet/Russian route categories are useful, but they are very coarse. One 3B category can hide completely different things. Two routes of the same difficulty under the old classification can differ radically: one short but with a hard crux; another long but technically uniform; a third dangerous because of seracs; a fourth easy in movement but with almost no decent protection.
New features: direct video uploads to posts, a writing assistant for authors, a refreshed homepage, and an improved mobile experience.
Several useful features have been added to the website. Video Uploads Previously, only links to external video services (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.) could be added to articles, descriptions, and comments. Now it is possible to upload small video clips directly to the website. The video will be embedded directly in the article, route description, or geographical object. An example of a route description with video clips can be viewed in the description of the new Ala-Archa route: Writing Assistant For article authors, the ability to check the quality of typed text has been added. This will help you write higher quality texts, without typos and errors. For example, here is what the assistant found in this article while it was being edited: Other Improvements The main page has been redesigned. Instead of an article feed, it now contains summary information about the latest events on the website: articles, discussions, new routes, etc. New visitors will find it easier to navigate the portal's features. The article feed now lives on a separate page. Filters have become more compact in the mobile version of the website.
ELEvgenii LepikhinWeather in Ala Archa National Park by month: temperature, stability, precipitation, and safety recommendations for climbers.
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
ELEvgenii LepikhinStefano Ragazzo completed the first solo ascent of the "Riders on the Storm" route on the Central Tower of Torres del Paine, tackling the 1,300-meter wall in 15 days under extreme conditions.
Two years after the first free ascent of the legendary Riders on the Storm route on Torres del Paine's Central Tower, Stefano Ragazzo accomplished the impossible: the first solo ascent of the route. The Italian spent 15 days alone on the wall, tackling technically very challenging sections, terrible weather, and a problem with frostbitten toes. Ragazzo climbed from February 21 to March 7. "For the first time in my life, I fought for something more than just the summit: for my life, or rather, for the constant thought, the desire to return to my girlfriend's arms," Ragazzo confessed on social media. "This thought kept me alive and was probably the main reason I can write these words now." A Most Challenging Route The Riders on the Storm route, first climbed in 1991 by Germans Kurt Albert, Bernd Arnold, Norbert Bätz, Peter Dittrich, and Wolfgang Güllich, is a 38-pitch, 1300-meter line on the east face of Torres del Paine's Central Tower in Patagonia. The route's difficulty is rated VI 5.12d (European scale 7c), A3. Frequent rockfall and icefall significantly increase the danger. The route includes a complex section using ITO, followed by a large pendulum across a smooth wall on pitch 16, and a huge overhang on pitch 26. In the 35 years since the first ascent, the route has been repeated only three times. Only a powerful team consisting of Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll, Nico Favresse, Sibbe Vanhee, and photographer Drew Smith managed to finally climb it free. All this suggests that the route is challenging enough to deter many top teams. A solo ascent seemed impossible. Miraculously Avoiding Death
ELEvgenii LepikhinOpportunities for solo ascents of unclimbed peaks in Nepal, permit regulations, and new summits open to alpinism in 2024.
A query from a reader (ExplorersWeb's reader — editor's note) planning a trip to Upper Mustang drew our attention to the hurdles independent climbers face when planning their Himalayan projects, especially solo ascents or attempts on unclimbed peaks in restricted areas. We reached out to a Nepalese tour operator for clarification on obtaining such permits. Q&A \ Matt Powell from the US asked: I was hoping you could provide me with some clarification regarding Nepal's rules for solo climbers, particularly in restricted areas such as Upper Mustang and the Nar Phu valley. Is it possible for a single climber (myself) to obtain a permit to climb a peak in a restricted area if I use the services of a Nepalese guide? And if so, how do I go about it? Dawa Stephen Sherpa clarified that it is possible. However, he added, the climber must obtain the permit through a registered and certified trekking agency in Nepal. The main question, however, lies in what permits the climber needs and what are the requirements for each. It turns out that it depends on the height of the peak and involves various permits and procedures. Expedition Peaks Peaks above 6,500 m are considered expedition peaks and require a permit and the presence of a sirdar/guide and liaison officer on the expedition, increasing the cost. Permits for these peaks are issued by the Department of Tourism, under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation of Nepal. Once the climber has paid for the permit, the agency receives a letter from the Department of Tourism, which must be presented to the immigration department, issuing a second permit: the Restricted Area Permit (RAP). This allows the climber to enter the restricted zone at no additional cost, since they have already paid for the climbing permit.
ELEvgenii Lepikhin### Mirko Grasso and Jernej Kruder Open "Tarock" in Chile Mirko Grasso and Jernej Kruder have pioneered a new route, "Tarock" (7c, 750 m), in Chile's Cochamo Valley, employing a mixed climbing style and receiving photographic support from Czech photographer Vladek Zumr.
Mirko Grasso from Italy and Jernej Kruder from Czechia have established a new route in Chile's Cochamo Valley. The 750-meter route has a difficulty of up to 7c. Cochamo Valley, despite its growing popularity, remains wild and offers excellent opportunities for climbers. A great illustration of Patagonia's potential beyond the well-known peaks such as Torres del Paine and Fitz Roy. Grasso and Kruder set up base camp in La Junta, in the heart of the valley, at the beginning of the year. La Junta is a two-hour drive from the Chilean town of Puerto Montt and a three-hour walk along the trail. During a short weather window, the climbers identified a suitable line on the summit of Cerro Valvalun, which they described as the most imposing peak in the area. When establishing the route, the climbers used different styles. At first, they placed bolts and pitons, and then climbed the route free solo. It took them two weather windows to achieve their goal. During the first, they climbed the route with bolts in three days. The route can be divided into two parts: the first passes through smooth, technically complex slabs and requires thoughtful protection and careful climbing, the second part is characterized by cracks and corners, as well as reliable climbing on granite. "The upper part is a pleasure: incredible cracks, always available for climbing, never boring," the climbers noted. On the first ascent, they used 29 bolts and 15 pitons for advancement and protection, as well as classic protection points.
