By courtesy of Gregor Sifrer,
www.promontana.si

New route on Peak Gorky (6050m) South face, Central Tien-Shan, Kyrgyzstan

Peak Gorky from South (2 hours walk down S.Inylchek glacier from the base camp). S and SSW ridges are seen. Slovenija Direct is to the right (i.e. East) from S ridge. To be exact it is not South face, but SSE face. Photo: Mountain.RU region map (grid is 2 km)

In July-August 2003 the region of famous peaks Pobeda and Khan-Tengri was visited by expedition from Slovenia.

Its members were mostly young alpinists, climbing at such heights for the first time: Aleš Česen, Anže and Tine Marenče, Darko Podgornik and Peter Poljanec. The main goal of the expedition was the South face of Peak Gorky (6050m) which had not been climbed ever before.

The team arrived to Almaty, the former capitol of Kazakhstan by direct flight from Frankfurt, on 21 July.

On July 25, after transfer to Karkara camp near Kyrgizstan border (to the east from Issyk-Kul lake) and 40-minute helicopter flight, the expedition arrived to the Base camp located on moraine at 4100m between peaks Khan-Tengri and Pobeda.

About 10 days were spent on acclimatization on nearby peaks (twice up to about 5300m) and preparation of ABC in a snow cave at 4750m in the lower part of South face of peak Gorky. Meanwhile one of expedition members, Peter Poljanec had to leave the team and return home before expected date because of his twisted ankle.

Upon arrival to the base camp they noticed, that the wall could be climbed following two logical lines. The direct line over the waterfall, which rises over rock level in the upper part of the wall or over the snow and ice to the right side over the SE fissure. This direct variant was taken as more beautiful and as a bigger a challenge. That's why they decided to try that one first.

Two unsuccessful tries followed. First one ended in the ABC camp, and the second one in the direct variant beneath the rock level, three hundred meters under the top of the wall, because of the bad conditions (too thin, husk ice) and technical difficulties (they did not have enough equipment to get to the upper part of the wall).

The team did have success in the third try. They arrived to ABC cave in bad weather again, but in the evening a marvelous night with a full moon followed. Visibility was excellent. They started climbing at 23 pm. Unattached the group progressed quickly and at the sunrise they were already 100 meters beneath the first snowdrift (at the height of 5800 meters). Over it they discovered an interesting and difficult passage through a kind of snow-ice chimney. 50 meters of wading in the snow up to the waist on a slope terrain followed. After that technically not difficult part, but in the given circumstances probably the key of the route: 50 meters of hollow snow inclined by approximately 60 degrees. The exit part over the last snowdrift and they were on the pre-peak Gorky, at around 6000 m.

Slovemija Direct, South face of peak Gorky (1700m, V-VI,5,50-65,90)

They found themselves in a tough dilemma about descending because of the bad weather that was approaching. The decision saved them from bivouac in a hostile weather. They started to descend (also by rope descends) at the south ridge (in the direction of the first-climbers in 1962) that was hardly possible, with hollow snow up to the waist and snowdrift. Consequently they descended into the southern part of the wall after 200 meters. For some time the night descend took place in the catastrophic weather conditions. They got calmer in the lower part of the wall so they could descend directly into the base camp.

You would be surprised by the technical non-demanding access into the middle part of the wall and by extremely demanding and uneasy descend from the mountain. In the ideal conditions (shadow, good weather) the wall is really calm, but as soon as it starts snowing or the wall is touched by the sun, it becomes pretty live. That is why they climbed the wall mostly at night.

You can climb the wall at least over two more beautiful and logical lines: over the line of their first try (in better conditions) and the line of their descend.

1700 m high first direction SLOVENIJA DIREKT climbed in two days (11-12 Aug 2003) in the South wall of Peak Gorky (6050m) by Ales Cesen, Anze and Tine Marence and Darko Podgornik and evaluated as V-VI, 5, 90/50-65. The whole tour took 33 hours, including descent.

After successful climbing Peak Gorky (by the way named after Maxim Gorky, famous Soviet writer of early XX century) and short rest just enough time was left to try the to scale neighbour Khan-Tengri peak (7010m) via normal route from South. This time the tour took three days. The first day they started from ABC at 4200 and reached camp 3 (5800m) near the West saddle between Khan-Tengri and Chapayev peak (6371m). The second day they reached the summit (7010m) and descended back to camp 3. The third day the team returned to the base camp and from there on flew with the helicopter the following day, back to the valley (Karkara camp).

Then the team spent 4 days relaxing in neighbour Karakol town, next to Issyk-Kul lake and took flight back from Almaty via Frankfurt on 25 Aug.

In total the team spent 25 days on Inylchek region, excluding transfer and relaxation on Issyk-Kul. That was enough to get necessary acclimatization, climb a new difficult route on 6-km summit, climb 7-km Khan-Tengri, including days with bad weather.

Mountain.RU comment

Peak Gorky (6,050 m or 19,850 ft) is located in 38-km length Tengri-Tag mountain range which divides glaciers North and South Inylchek and joins at right angle Meridional range in the most heart of Central Tien-Shan. South Inylchek glacier is the biggest glacier in Tien-Shan mountains (length is approx 60 km), while the neighbour North Inylchek glacier, often considered as a tributary to S.Inylchek is 30 km in length.

Tengri Tag range stretches about 38 km east-west direction and contains the following summits (East to West):
- East Shatyor (the Marquee, East, 6637 m)
- West Shatyor (6500 m)
- Saladin (5810 m)
- Khan-Tengri (7010 m or 6995.2 m according to Soviet precise topographic measurments)
- Chapayev (6371 m)
- Gorky (6050 m)
- Abalakov (5561 m, also referred to as peak Soviet Kyrgyzia)
- Petrovski (5860 m)
- peak 5478 m
- Bronenosets (the Dreadnought, 4887 m)

Most of these summits except Khan-Tengri are climbed very rarely.

Other known routes on peak Gorky (6050 m):
1) via South ridge, 5B Russian grade, snow/ice, team lead by B.Gavrilov, 1962
2) via right buttress of Soth ridge from Gorky glacier, 5B Russian grade, mixed, team lead by, V.Naugolny, 1970
3) NE summit (6010 m) of Gorky peak via NW face, 6A Russian grade, mixed, team lead by, Y.Ermachek, 2001
4) traverse peak Gorky – peak Chapayev – peak Khan-Tengri, ascending peak Gorky via SSW ridge, 6A Russian grade, mixed, team lead by V.Kochetov, 1971

Next to base camp on South Inylchek glacier there is one other goal – peak Pobeda (the Victory, 7349 m), several peaks higher than 6000m and numerous ones exceeding 5000m, including unclimbed peaks.

The region is easily accessed by approx 400-km car transfer followed by helicopter available via local travel agents and basic facilities in Base camp. Some Travel agents are here (please choose region).

The nearest major airports are Bishkek (capitol of Kyrgyzstan) and Almaty (major city in Kazakhstan and former capitol).
The best time to travel is July-August, most of successful climbs usually happen in August.