Check out the previous story on the Mountain.RU: Ak-Su peak, 5355m

 

Krasnoyarsk route on Ak-Su (N) 5217m

6B, VI, A4, 1600m
Winter, 2004

Technical data of ascent

2. Peak - Ak-Su (N) 5217m, via the "mirrors" of the North Face, Center.

- Difference of altitude - 1420m,
- Difference of the wall part of the route - 1360 m,
- Extent of the route - 1600m,
- Extent of pitches of 6 category graded - 1215m, 5 category graded - 295m, average steepness of the wall part of the route - 72 degrees.

6. There were left on the route: pitons - 50: including bolts - 40 (at the belays).

It was used pitons on the route: stationary bolts - 40 (at the belays).

It was used aid climbing devices - 1000 (including fifi hooks and sky hooks).

8. The head: Pugovkin Anton

Participants:
- Dmitrienko Eugeny
- Cherezov Sergey
- Tsyganov Dmitry
- Litvinov Andrey
- Malygin Paul

9. Coaches of the team:

- Zaharov Nikolay
- Balezin Valery

10. Dates:

- Fixing the rope: on February, 3-7 2004.
- Climbing: on February, 10-23 (on February, 13 - a forced rest day)
- Summit - on February, 23 2004 at 12:00
- Descending - on February, 24 2004 at 17:00.

11. The organization: Krasnoyarsk regional sports committee.

 

 

 

The brief description of the area

The speciality of Ak-Su area in winter is unstable and quickly varying weather. The optimum weather for winter ascents is in December, then it worsens and it is the worst in February. The first attempts to summit Ak-Su were exactly in Februarys in 90th years. All of them were unsuccessful. The first winter ascent was accomplished in December, 1998.

Our team had luck with weather in the beginning of our ascent: there was a clear windless weather and that allowed us to fix the rope on the bottom part of the route in high rate. But as soon as the team blasted, heavy snowfall began and continued for 11 days frequently accompanied by very strong winds. The temperature did not fall below negative 25, basically it was about negative15C, a wind sometimes reached 30ì/s. Despite of bad weather conditions during the ascent, the team only one day did not work on the route, having considered that day as potentially microavalanches dangerous.

As to our climbing technique we basically used fifi hooks, anchor hooks for belay stations. Due to them we practically did not use bolts on the route. Only 4 bolts we used to create belay intermediate points. The other bolts we used at the belays. As the team descended via the line of ascent we left all the bolts. During the ascent we left 5 ropes fixed on the route, and all of them were taken off while the descent.

The team adhered to the capsule style tactics, at which we transferred two three-local portaledges in process of fixing the rope. In total we settled three camps. We summited starting from the Camp III (4815m) and descended back to the portaledges for one day.

The description of the route on pitches

0-1 Snow-ice slope with a bergschrund right at the beginning.

1-2 A rocky plate of 60 degrees with system of small corners and cracks. A direction of movement from the left to the right.

2-3 On the ledge 5m to the left, further upwards on an corner leading to the rock, then climbing 25m on it using sky hooks. A belay on a snow ledge.

3-4 Climbing the ledge 10m to the left, further upwards on a corner.

4-5 Continuation climbing on the corner.

5-6 A rock plate with a good crack for chocks.

6-7 Continuation climbing the crack up to the ledge, after which there is a wall of 35m in height, but with good places for belays points in small cracks.

7-8 A corner, with quite a good surface and cornices hanging from the left side. After the corner the wall, which we climbed using sky hooks (relief), comes to end with the cornice of 1m. Under the cornice to the right in the corner with a fissure.

8-9 A corner of 20m, leading to a snow ledge, climbing on it to the left 10m up to the corner with a fissure.

9-10 A corner of 25m, the site of first 10m of it is ice-covered. After the corner there is a plate with a deaf crack.

10-11 Continuation climbing the deaf crack, up to a crescent, then climbing about 10m on it. Further there is a plate with several vertical cracks.

11-12 A corner of 10m, then there is a system of vertical narrow cracks in a monolithic plate.

12-13 A wall with bad, deaf cracks, about 20 meters, further a big corner begins, and from the left of it big cornices hang. Cautiously! There are lively spanked blocks in the corner.

13-14 Climbing the corner about 20 meters, further the corner hangs and goes from the left to the right, we moved under overhanging on the wall also from the left to the right.

14-15 An abrupt wall, with a poor surface. We used here a lot of relief sky hooks.

15-16 "Mutton foreheads" filled with ice in places.

16-17 Snow with ice, then an abrupt wall, further again ice site up to the rock on which we hammered "spit" to belay.

17-18 A wall with a deaf crack right under fifi hooks and anchor hooks.

18-19 Continuations climbing about 10 meters via the deaf crack, further a wall without a suitable surface, which we climbed using sky hooks, and then there is a good crack, from left to right.

19-20 Beginning of the crux's ropes of the route. Very poor surface, therefore we bolted a bolt on the middle of the rope to belay.

20-21 After a belay in a corner through 5 meters there is a wall needed using sky hooks. A belay under a small cornice.

21-22 After the cornice the wall continues and we climbed it with fifi hooks and sky hooks.

22-23 A belay on a small ledge before the abrupt wall of 30m in height. (fifi hooks, sky hooks), further there is a ledge, then about 15 m after it we climbed on cracks using fifi hooks up to a small ledge.

24-25 A crack under fifi hooks 15 meters long up to a ledge, then climbing 3 m on it to the right and then meters 10 on a corner up to a inclined snow site under the "Nose". There the camp III was established in the right part.

25-26 Then the route coincides with Popov's route. A corner with a rich surface.

26-27 Continuation climbing of about 40 meters via the corner , then there is a cornice which we bypassed from the left and further the corner lasts. Attention, in a corner there are a lot of lively stones!

27-28 20 meters on the corner of 60 degrees, up to a ledge, further a wall of 15m, after it- a corner filled with ice.

28-29 Plate with a crack of 30m, a ledge, after it- a crack under fifi hooks and anchor hooks.

29-30 On the wall we had to come under the left part of the cornice, then 10m to the right under the cornice, and further the output behind the cornice on a flat (50 degrees) wall.

30-31 A corner with ice.

31-32 A Wall of 15m, 50 degrees, further there is a corner particularly filled with ice, then there is a wall of 20m, 80 degrees.

32-33 To the right on a corner 5m, then the approach on a wall of 6m under the cornice with the big start in 5 meters, and then a wall of 20m.

33-34 A corner.

34-35 Outgo on the "roof". A system of corners with rocks. Complex free climbing.

35-36 A corner leading through 25m to the couloir, filled with ice, and then it leads us up to the summit ridge.

36-37 Climbing the summit ridge up to the top.

The routes on Ak-Su 1). Troshinenko's route, 1982, 2). Kavunenko's route, 1984, 3). Moshnikov's route, 1984, 4). Popov's route, 1986, 5). Kostenko's route, 1988, 6). Pershin's route, 1988, 7). Chaplinsky's route, 1988, 8). Shabalin's route (through the "Nose"), 1994, 9). Klenov's route, 1996, 10). Antonov's route (the Cold corner), 1997, 11). Ruchkin's route, 1997, 12). Klenov's route, 1998, 13). Shabalin's (the "Nose" diretissima), 2002, 14). Pugovkin's route 2004