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Author: Viktor Kolesnichenko, Ulyanovsk
Photo: Ivan Dusharin
Translated by Anna Samodelko, Anna Piunova, www. mountain.ru

 

The Expedition to Karakorum (Pakistan)

The objects and the terms of the Expedition

The Expedition took place from 01.07.03 to 12.08.03 in unexplored region in the North part of Pakistan, Karakorum, Yutmaru Glacier. The ambitions of the Expedition were to find out about that region, to summit the unclimbed top Pumeri Chhish, North Face, Yutmar Sar and to take a documentary film about the Expedition. The ascent is declared to the Russian Championship.

The Team-members:

Russian climbers:

Special added:

Irfan, officer of a radio communication, Lakhor, Zakhid, a cook, Pakistan.

The route

It took us five days to get from the capital of Pakistan- Islamabad to the Base Camp including 2,5 days for trekking on Hispar Glacier and 3 hours for trekking on Yutmaru Glacier with 42 porters. The Base Camp was installed on the right side- moraine straight on the route in a green flexure with a nice little lake. We needed two weeks to choose the route to work it up and to get the acclimatization. Yutmaru Glacier flows out of a great circus like a horse-shoe with 1500m-tall vertical walls and solid mass of overhanging ice-cornice upper in a plateau at the altitude 6000m. Leaning the information received from the satellite, we chose the route along a not well-defined snow-ice pillar leaded us as we considered right on the plateau. From there we was going to summit the one of the unclimbed peaks over 7000m- Pumeri Chhish, 7350m or Yutmaru Sar, 7330m. The way from the Base Camp to the beginning of the route was for 3 hours. The mean steepness of the Wall was just over 50° : the gently sloping plots take turns with the 70-80° -steep walls. There are many dangerous bergshrunds on the route, the avalanche track lies across it. And the upper part of the route is dangerous because of the overhanging ice-cornice. We used ice-screw and snow anchor during the ascent. As we think it’s the easiest way to the plateau in spite of that fact the route came us out to the ridge and we should descent 600m to reach the plateau. We followed the sharp ridge to the nameless summit, 6920m. Two Camps (5600 and 6300) were settled on the route. The ascent took 6,5 days in all including 1,5 days for descent and 2 days for waiting for better weather on the route. When we climbed the ridge we saw the huge snow-ice circus with steep north faces of Pumari massif, slopes of Yutmaru massif and greatly torn Yazghil Glacier. It could take us for 4-6 days to descent from the ridge on snow-ice 60° -steep slope and to try to reach another of the above-mentioned summits. And we also needed the time to descend from the ridge (6850m) to the Base camp. So after climbing the 6920-summit we appreciated the situation and decided to descend.

The Totals

The new region is discovered for ascent the beautiful still unclimbed summits over 7000m. The way is fond out and the new easy of access route to get the Yazghil Glacier circus is laid. The first climbing to the summit, 6920, was done. We put in an application to the Ministry of tourism, Pakistan, to name it after “United Russia”. The 13 films were photographed.

The Sponsors:

Ulyanovsk-GSM, a general sponsor,
Areal, Ulyanovsk, the equipment and the clothing,
The Party “United Russia”, the financial and information support.

Photos