Route Description

to the Main Peak of Ganal'skiye Ostryaki from the northwest, category 3B difficulty

I. Approach and Ascent (see area map).

Drive along the Milkovo road to the bridge over the Vakhtang Mal'kinskiy river between km 145 and 146. Get off the road after the bridge. There's a quarry on the right. Cross it perpendicular to the road and exit onto a forest road. Follow the forest road 8-10 km along the river valley to a clearing with a tent frame (on the right side of the road). On the left side of the road, opposite the frame, there's a passage through the alder bushes. The trail begins there. Follow the trail along the left slope of the valley. Do not turn left uphill. The trail leads to a terrace - a hollow. Follow it to a dry riverbed that crosses the trail at the forest and shrub boundary. Cross to the other side of the riverbed and ascend along it for 50-70 m. The trail then:

• turns right,
• follows logging roads through alder bushes to a stream flowing from Mt. Yurchik. Cross the stream, walk along it downstream for 100-150 m, and turn left onto a terrace above the stream flowing from the Ostriaki cirque.

CIS Climbing Championship 2009 Class of High-Altitude Technical Ascent

Report

on the ascent of Peak Korzhenevskoi, 7105 m via the Southwest Ridge, Category 5B (V. Markelov's route) by the team of Sumy Regional Federation of Alpine Sports from July 24 to July 28, 2009 Team Captain: Sergey A. Pugachev Team Coaches:

• Fedor P. Mityukhin
• Mikhail V. Zagirnyak

Ascent Record

1. Ascent class — technical.
2. Ascent area — № 4.3.
3. Summit — Komurzang Peak, height 4649 m, route via the Northwest Ridge.
4. Proposed difficulty category — 3B.
5. Route characteristics: height difference 1200 m, average slope 50°, length of sections of II difficulty category — 700 m, III difficulty category — 1000 m.
6. 5 rock anchors installed for belaying.
7. Total moving time — 6 hours 30 minutes.
8. No overnight stops on the route.
9. Climbers: Leader — Valery Alexandrovich Ovsyannikov (1st sports category), participants:

The summit of Pik Sverdlova is a huge cornice hanging to the east; ridges branch off to the NE, SE, and SSE. On the northeastern part of the summit, there is a rocky outcrop where a bust of Ya. M. Sverdlov was installed and a cairn was built, with flags of the Russian Federation and Kyrgyzstan erected. Descent from the summit is possible via any of the three branching ridges. Our group descended via the ascent route. The route's difficulty is assessed by the group as category 5A. Ascent time calculation.

1. Ascent from Lake 3800 m to the base camp on the ridge at 4800 m — 8 hours.
2. Traversing the section from 4800 m to the summit at 5280 m — 8 hours.
3. Traversing the section from the cave to the summit of Sverdlova — 7 hours. Recommended equipment for a group of 8 people:
4. Tents — 2 pcs.
5. Ropes 40 m × 4
6. Ice screws — 10 pcs.
7. Rock pitons — 10 pcs.

The ascent to the ridge in its lower part from the overnight stay takes 1.5 hours. Then the movement goes up the ridge in the general direction towards the peak Sverdlova massif. The average steepness of the ridge is 30–35°, but there are separate sections up to 45–50°, where alternate belay is required. The movement along the ridge to the summit takes 3 hours. The summit is a rocky outcrop where a spur branches off to the southeast from the main northeastern ridge. From the summit, the northern and eastern slopes of the peak Sverdlova massif and the eastern part of the Zadadsky ridge are well visible. Descent is via the ascent route. It takes 2 hours to reach the overnight stay. Category: 1B. Recommended equipment for a group of 4 people:

• Main rope (30 m) — 2 pcs.
• Tent — 1 pc.
• Ice screws — 2 pcs.
• Rock hammer — 1 pc.
• Crampons — 4 pairs
• Carabiners — 6 pcs. The description was compiled by alpinism instructor A. Kiselev

From the summit 5100 m there is a series of descents and ascents to the snowy narrow ridge "strelka" and along it a descent into the circus, onto the glacier. The time taken to complete the route from the summit 5100 m to the glacier takes 2 hours. On both sides of the snowy ridge "strelka" the slope is avalanche-prone, requiring great caution. The group mastered the route 3A cat. sl. Recommended equipment for a group of 4 people. Rope 40 m - 2 pcs. Ice screws - 2 pcs. Hammers - 2 pcs. Crampons - 4 pairs. Tent - 1 pc. The description was compiled by A. Kiselev

Ascent to the Akgyul summit via the Uraltsev pass, route 2А cat. diff. (fig. 24, 24a). The Akgyul summit is located in the northern part of the Issykteng — Chokhu spur. Route:

• From the Talgar mountaineering camp
• Through the Zelyonaya Polyana
• To the Uraltsev pass Features:
• In the area of the Uraltsev pass, there are many crevasses on the Shokalsky glacier (be careful!)
• A bivouac can be set up on the Uraltsev pass From the Uraltsev pass, go along the main ridge, then turn southeast onto the Issykteng — Chokhu spur.

Route Description

The approach to the start of the route is made via the Bogdanovich Glacier to the Komсомольский Pass. In the pass area, there is a starting bivouac. From it, the ascent begins along the northern ridge for 300 m towards the peak of Карлытау. At the very beginning, the ridge is gentle but icy; closer to the peak, the steepness increases to 35°. Here, one should descend to the ridge of the Aristov peak into a lowering referred to as the Aristov Pass. From the Aristov Pass, there is a straightforward ridge with two gendarmes, which are bypassed on the right via not very steep snowy ledges. Then, one should approach the summit pinnacle and exit to a saddle via a snowy couloir. The descent is made via the ascent route. The ascent takes 9–10 hours.

Recommendations

1. Number of participants: 4–6 people.
2. Starting bivouac: in the area of Komсомольский Pass.
3. Departure from the bivouac at 5:00 AM.
4. Equipment for a group of 4:

Р­Я rock outcrops (150 m). At the very beginning, there is a complex cairn. This is the summit. Then you need to turn west and approach the rocks that give rise to the western ridge. Descend 100 m down the southern counterfort. Here, on a rocky site, there is a convenient overnight stay. From the foot of the ridge to the overnight stay, it takes 8 hours of walking. From the overnight stay, cross the southern slope of the western ridge, staying on the right side on the ridge, descend to the 1st gendarme. It is bypassed on the right by snow. Then there are the rocks of the western ridge. The rocks are strong.

• The second gendarme is taken along the knife ridge.
• The 3rd gendarme - Tower - is taken head-on along the line of rocks and snow (or ice). Crampons may

Fig. 13 Fig. 14

3. Ascent to the Herzog peak via the North-Eastern ridge — for the difficulty category (Fig. 13 and 14)

From Dombayskaya Polyana to Turiy Lake — bivouac. From Dombayskaya Polyana 3.5–4 hours. From the bivouac up the moraine, then along the Alibek glacier (the glacier is exposed, belay!) to the rocky gate between the rocks of the northern edge of Herzog and the rocks under the eastern slope of Jalovchat. Up the steep snow-ice slope: