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Dates ( Days 8 / Nights 7 )

April 29 - May 06

July 01 - July 08

July 08 - July 15

July 15 - July 22

July 22 - July 29

July 29 - August 05

August 05 - August 12

August 12 - August 19

August 19 - August 26

August 26 - September 02

September 02 - September 09

Trip overview

Mineralny Vody - Terskol - Elbrus (5642m) - Terskol - Mineralny Vody

Why go there?

Elbrus belongs to a handful of mountains with a very special and irresistible kind of beauty which lies in their shape and setting. Most of them are volcanoes, such as Fujiyama, Ararat and Kilimanjaro, and like all these, this mountain is a world apart. It stands 11km north from the Main Range and exceeds its neighbors in height by 1200-2000m. The views from both the summits are breathtaking: to north it is a rolling carpet of pastures veiled by the blue haze of distance and on all the other sides the sea of snowy peaks. It is said that through the clear air of autumn you can see both the Black and Caspian seas.

Itinerary

Day 1

Today we fly (2hr) from Moscow to Mineralnye Vody, which is the gateway to the Caucasus. From there we go for 3.5-4hr in a private bus on a pretty good asphalted road across plains, through small towns and villages into the Baksan valley, up to its head to one of the best hotels of the area, not far from the village of Terskol. Hotel.

Day 2

In the morning we go to the Cheget Glade. The place is the social centre of the valley, the busiest in the area. The main feature is the seven-storey Cheget Hotel dominating the cluster of cafes, smaller hotels (all of them private), woollies market and sports ground. Above all this rise the formidable north walls of Donguzorun (4400m) and Nakra (4200m) peaks. The first run of Cheget cableway to "Cafe Ai" station (2,750m) takes 15 minutes. The cafe offers very good view (even though much replicated in web sites and booklets) of the two summits of Elbrus across the deep and green Baksan Valley. There is one more chair-lift to a shoulder (3,080m) on the ridge of Lesser Donguzorun peak (3860m), an even better view point for Elbrus again. We come to this point and can venture a bit higher along the rocky ridge. Return to hotel. Hotel.

Day 3

We go in a bus to Azau staion (2356m) of Elbrus car-cableway and the two runs take us to Mir station (3500m), where a chair-lift takes over to bring us to Garabashi huts (3750m) called Bochki (“barrels”). We put up either there or higher up in the new Refuge, not far from the ruins of the old one at 4060m (built in the 30-ties and destroyed by fire in 1998). In the afternoon we go for an easy acclimatizing walk to Pastukhov Rocks (4750m) and descend to the hut. Hut.

Day 4

Day of rest and preparation. Hut.

Day 5

The long and hard day of the ascent of West Summit. From the saddle between the two summits a snow slope of 30-35? (about 150m) leads to the summit plateau, from where the stunningly contrasting views to south and north open up. With return to the hut the climb takes 1-14hr.

Day 6

Reserve day to make up for bad weather on the planned day of ascent. Hut / Hotel

Day 7

We come down to find shower and comfort of the hotel. Party in the evening. Hotel.

Day 8

Bus drive to Mineralny Vody and fly to Moscow. End of trip.

Price includes

1. All land group transfers according to the program
2. Accommodation in a hotel on the double room basis (our private hotel is rather small, the number of double rooms is limited, so for big groups one or two triple rooms can be the only way out to keep the group in one hotel) – 4 nights
3. Accommodation in Garabashi huts or new Refuge on Elbrus – 4 nights
4. Meals: full board from dinner on Day 1 to breakfast on Day 8; only breakfast and dinner in hotel on rest days.
5. One English speaking guide and extra guides for theday of ascent of Elbrus (3-4 clients to one guide), cook at hut
6. Local registration, visa support
7. Cheget and Elbrus cable-way return tickets
8. Luggage storage when trekking or climbing
9. Ropes for climbing
10. Border zone permit (for Cheget outing on Day 2)

Price does not include

1. Moscow services
2. Return air fare to Mineralny Vody
3. Single accommodation supplement
4. Individual car transfers
5. Personal equipment rentals
6. Extra (personal) guides and porters
7. National Park fees
8. Insurance (medical and other)
9. Any changes in the program entailing extra expenses
10. Snow Cat service

Necessary travel papers (documents)

Passport with a valid Russian visa, immigration card, voucher from the Russian tour operator (a part of an invitation letter)

By air and by land

From Moscow to Mineralny Vody we fly with a Russian air company. Normally it is either Kavminvodyavia or Aeroflot.
For land transfers we have comfortable private buses or minivans. To get to Garabashi huts we use Elbrus Cable-way; from 3750m to 4600m on the day of ascent we take a Snow Cat

Accommodation

3 stars private hotel in the Baksan Valley (one of the best in the area), on the double (or triple) room basis. This hotel is pretty small, the number of double rooms is limited, so for big groups one or two triple rooms can be the only way out to keep the group in one place
On Elbrus: a bunk in a Garabashi hut (Bochki), which sleeps 6.
The number of places here is very limited, so at the peak of the season we can guarantee Bochki for early bookings only (a couple of months in advance at least). For late comers we do guarantee lodging on Elbrus – in some other and probably less comfortable hut.

Meals

Full board from dinner on Day 1 to breakfast on Day 8. Lunch on the day of the descent from Garabashi huts to hotel (if it is Day 6, then on Day 7 breakfast and dinner only in hotel).

Staff

An English speaking guide from 7 Summit Club for the whole program and extra guides for the ascent day (3-4 clients to one guide); cook at Garabashi huts.

Health and medical insurance

Health-care on the mountain is limited to the first-aid kit the guide carries. Down in the valley in case of serious health problems the local hospital and your insurance policy are to take over. Your policy must cover climbing to 6000m .

Weather

As on any high mountain a wide range of weather conditions and temperatures should be expected: from freezing-cold nights (down to -5-10ºC), to sizzling hot noons if still and sunny (especially on snow); from a delicious calm under a blue sky to a hurricane slashing your face like a whip. The higher you go, the harsher the conditions. So, the range of your clothes and footwear must comply with any of such turns. For details see our gear list.

Extra expenses

In Moscow: prices for meals in good cafes and restaurants are higher than in Western Europe; prices for fast food are much lower; Metro and buses are cheap (less than 1euro for any distance)
In Caucasus everything is considerably cheaper: you can have a decent meal with meat and beer for 6-7euro.

Internet, phone

Wi-fi access to Internet in each room in our hotel; cell phone works in the Baksan Valley and on Elbrus up to 5000m

Personal gear

Heavy-weight fleece / pile jacket
Light/medium-weight, synthetic long underwear shirt (polypropylene/capilene)
Water proof / breathable jacket with hood (Gore Tex is strongly recommended)
Long sleeve, light weight shirt for sun protection (preferably synthetic)
Down or synthetic fill jacket with hood, must fit comfortably over your fleece jacket
Fleece pants (full side zips allow ventilation)
Thermal under wear
Wind- waterproof and breathable pants with full length zips

Liner socks - 2-3 pairs
Wool or poly socks (medium-heavy thickness) - 3 pairs
Light weight trekking boots, or strong shoes
Climbing boots, plastic of leather – must be right for step-in crampons
Gaiters

Liner gloves - 2 pairs
Medium weight fleece gloves
Wool or fleece mittens
Wind-stop shell overmittens

Wool or fleece hat
Balaclava
Glacier glasses with side flaps
Extra pair of your normal glasses, or lenses

Down or synthetic sleeping bag good for -10ºC
Sleeping closed cell foam pad

Rucksack (40-50liters)
Day pack – for the summit attempt. Should hold: 1-
1-1.5liters thermos

Climbing gear
Crampons (with a repair kit), must fit your climbing boots
Collapsible ski poles (a must!)

Personal first aid kit
Head torch
Water bottle
Lip balm (spf 25+) and glacier cream (spf 40)
Pocket knife
Favorite snacks

All programme photos

Equipment