Ascent of Lenin Peak
20 Breakfasts,
19 Lunches,
20 Dinners Season Best time: 20, June - 1, September Route
Situated in the Pamirs on the border between Kyrgyzstan andTadjikistan, close to the borders with China and Afghanistan, LeninPeak is one of only five 7000 meter peaks in the former USSR. At 7134meters it is the third highest, the others being Peak Communism (7495m)and Korzhenevsky (7105m), both in the Pamirs, and Peak Pobeda (7,439m)and Khan Tengri (7010m) in the Tien Shan. To climb all five admits youto the elite group of Russian climbers known as Snow Leopards.
Lenin Peak is considered the most accessible 7000-meter mountain. Thereis a high way going almost to the foot of the peak. Also Lenin Peak bythe normal Razdelny route is practically no technical climbing involved.
Route Description
Base camp is situated on a raised meadow between two steep rivervalleys. The ground is a carpet of wild garlic and alpine flowers. FromBC we head over the Puteshestvinnikov Pass (4200m). The ascent usuallytakes 1-1.5 hours by a good path. Sometimes there is snow on the pass.Then we descend to the left moraine of the Lenin glacier. Further weshould cross the river carefully. The best time for crossing is earlymorning, as the river rises rapidly throughout at this time. Across theleft moraine of glacier to the Lenin glacier (4100m) and hike to camp 1(4200 m).
From camp 1 at 4200 meters, we cross the dry Lenin Glacier and ascendthe long snow slopes which run directly to the summit (north face). At5000 meters we traverse to the west and, ascending gently, we arrive atthe rim of a large snow basin. We cross this, traversing beneathRazdelny Peak. A short climb up a scree/snow slope leads to camp 2.There are a few crevasses on this section of the route but it isstraightforward snow plodding. It is, however, a long and tiring day,and an early start is needed to avoid the worst effects of the sun.Directly above camp 2 is an easy-angled couloir which leads to thenorth ridge of Razdelny Peak (6148 meters). Initially the ridge isalmost level, but as we approach Razdelny Peak the angle steepens.
The final 400 meter climb to the summit of Razdelny Peak isstraight-forward but the effects of altitude make it hard work. Theviews from the summit are superb. To the north we can finally get thetrue perspective of the Alai Plain while to the south there are amultitude of snowy peaks. Peak Communism and Korzhenevsky dominate ourview of the south Pamirs. Further east the Wakhan and Hindu Kush areclearly visible, and on a good day it is possible to make out TirichMir. From Razdelny Peak the ridge dog-legs to the west and drops down100 metres to Razdelny Pass at 6000 metres. It is here that we willmake camp 3.
From camp 3 the whole of the summit ridge is visible. From here we willhave two options. Either we climb directly to the summit and back tocamp 3 in one long day, or we place a fourth camp at about 6400 meters.From camp 3 we follow the broad ridge to a plateau (the site of camp 4)at 6400 meters. We traverse this back to the ridge proper where itsteepens to form a short step which is turned on the north side. Abovethis the ridge is broken and rocky until we reach a large snow plateau.We traverse this and rejoin the ridge just below the summit. The summitat 7134 meters is crowned by a number of plaques, including one ofLenin himself. The views, as you would expect, are outstanding andstretch right across the Pamirs to Mustagh Ata and Kongur in China.Further in the distance is the Hindu Kush and further west still theKarakoram.
| Day 1 - | Arrive in Bishkek. |
| Day 2 - | Flight to Osh. |
| Day 3 - | Petrovsky peak. |
| Day 4 - | Base camp. |
| Day 5 - | Preparation day. |
| Day 6 - | Camp 1 (4200 m). |
| Day 7 - | Mark (5300 m). |
| Day 8 - | Mark (6100 m). |
| Day 9 - | Descend to camp 1. |
| Day 10 - | Descent to the base camp 3500 m. |
| Day 11 - | Rest. |
| Day 12 - | Rest. |
| Day 13 - | Climb to camp №1. |
| Day 14 - | Climb to camp №2. |
| Day 15 - | Climb to camp №3. |
| Day 16 - | Mark (6400 m). |
| Day 17 - | Ascent of the summit. |
| Day 18 - | Descent to the camp №1. |
| Day 19 - | Descent to the base camp. 3500 m. |
| Day 20 - | Transfer to Osh. |
| Day 21 - | Flight to Bishkek. |
Notes:
Please note that the above itinerary isintended to be a guideline only. Unforeseen problems with team fitnesscould occur and there is always the threat of bad weather to force lastminute changes. Our expedition equipment and food will have to becarried up over a period of time and several climbs to each camp. Thisroutine, of climbing high and sleeping low before occupying each camp,will also provide essential acclimatisation. This period will alsoinclude essential rest days taken at Base Camp. The expedition guidewill work with the primary objective of getting as many people to thetop as possible, rather than adhering to any previously laid downitinerary.
| Services in the base camp "Lenin" on 3800m: |
Services in the camp 1 on 4200m:
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To climb Lenin Peak you need the following specialist equipment:
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