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Author: Valery Khvostenko, Krasnoyarsk

Kodar-2005

Expedition of Krasnoyarsk climbers devoted to the 70th-anniversary of Krasnoyarsk region Expedition purposes: to summit the anonymous mountain and to name it "Krasnoyarsk region peak"; to participate in the Russian Mountaineering Championship, technical class. Terms: January, 14 - February, 12, 2005 Ascent area: Stanovoe uplands, Kodar range, the north of Chita area. Ascent objects: Anonymous summits in Kodar range Prospective base camp site: in the area of the Vodopadny stream - the right inflow of the river Left Sygykta, North side of Kodar range Team's members: Zakharov Nikolay, the head, the coach Balezin Valery, the coach Kukharev Alexander, the doctor Dmitrienko Eugeny, Prokof'ev Denis, Tsyganov Dmitry, Cherezov Sergey, Tsygankov Victor, Belyaev Eugeny, Sikilinda Alexey, Loginov Igor, Vershinin Michael. Check out on the Mountain.RU: Kodar range, Czarsky Tron (Czar's Throne, 2500) New Route, 6B, 1000 meters SW wall The ascent is supposed to be led onto North-East exposition of the anonymous mountain. The wall was discovered and observed during the previous expedition in February, 2003. Altitude difference was initially estimated as not less than 1000 meters at average steepness of about 70 degrees. Approach: from Krasnoyarsk by train up to Taksimo village on Baikal-Amur highway, then helicopter fly of about 1,5 hours to northeast.

Sunday, 6 a.m., a railroad station, it's very frosty. On a chilled platform there are about twenty welcomers, reporters, trustworthy wifes - girlfriends in full dress... Our 13-th carriage is coming. The guys looked like fire-eaters finally arrived! Hurrah! Cheerful, without caps, bosom unbuttoned they seem don't mind the cold weather. Bear-hugs, hand shakes, kisses.

Well, how was it there?!
And here is what we succeed to find out. All of them are delighted with the area. The most beautiful mountains, sharp ridges, fantastic walls. Ergaki, Tuva are no match for! Absolute altitudes are somewhere under 3000 meters, but the gorge is deep, and due to that the walls have significant altitude differences. The area is distant, wild, but challenging. Kodar's summit is peaked, beautiful, estimable.

The wall is technically difficult. Some times they made only a pitch a day. Total altitude difference is about thousand meters, the Wall is about 800 meters.

The team worked very orderly. Teamwork was at the guys' best. But there was a problem of the leader. To the extent that too many leaders were in the team. All of them strained at the leash. As the result Evgeny Dmitrienko (team's captain) led for 3 days, Viktor Tsygankov - 2 days, Evgeny Belyaev - 2 days and he left to his partner Denis Prokof'ev only a day to be a leader. In total it took 8 days to fix the rope. Then they had a rest day (some guys stayed at the base camp and the others - in the cave) before the summit push. The ninth day (29.01) all the team summited and descended.

Weather stood tolerable in spite of we expected the worse. But the temperature held in an interval negative 30-40C. The team had successful gear. Nobody got frost bitten. Warmed tent was like homy. If it was strongly heated it became up to +30 there, in early morning - about negative 2-3C.

For three days the team waiting for the helicopter ate the whole lot. As it appeared the helicopter flew "on enemy territory", in Bodaibo, and was arrested for debts of "Buryat airlines" there! Nikolay Zakharov moved heaven and earth to get it back. Later the pilots asked the guys: " Is it the truth that you ate bark of fur-trees?!" We can only guess what arguments Nikolay used. The helicopter could take ground only one wheel and the guys were taking aboard and loaded being suspended. The helicopter flew around this fantastic gorge farewell.