We are going to Belukha. Equipment list

15.09.2021

Located in Altai, on the border with Kazakhstan, Mount Belukha (4509 m) is one of the most famous peaks in Russia. Akkem gorge, from which most climbing routes start, is popular with tourists due to unique nature, wonderful views, and legends associated with this place.

The classic route to the summit is classified as 3A. The routes of this category require some technical skills, which, with a strong desire, can really be mastered in 1-2 days of classes. On the Russian side, the slopes of Belukha have a northern exposure - therefore, here you need to have good physical fitness and be prepared for the fact that even in summer you will have to work at temperatures down to -15. In this, Belukha is very different from the four-thousanders in the Caucasus and Asia - the climate here is much more severe.

When choosing equipment for climbing Belukha, you need to remember that the roads to it end 50 kilometers before the base camp. It turns out that the equipment should be suitable both for long transitions in the rain (in Altai, heavy rains for several days are not uncommon), and for hurricane winds and hard frosts in winter. And in the backpack you will have to fit food, special and bivouac equipment. To be honest, it's not an easy task.

The peculiarity of climbing Belukha is that the whole event looks more like camping trip than for ordinary climbing camps. Here you will not return from short exits to a stationary camp. Almost every day begins with preparations, packing all the equipment in a backpack. This point should also be taken into account when choosing equipment.

They go to Belukha in winter and summer. And this is a completely different mountain. The equipment doesn't make much of a difference. The list below is for summer climbing. In winter, respectively, you need a warmer sleeping bag, a winter puff, double climbing boots, and, of course, you won’t reach in sneakers. If you are going to Belukha in the winter, the list of special equipment below needs some adjustments. We specifically noted those items of equipment that differ from the summer set.

Clothing, footwear, protective equipment

	It is advisable to take two sets: Thin thermal underwear made of Polartec power dry fabric for the approach. In case of hot weather, you can also have a T-shirt. Thick thermal underwear made of material like Polartec Power Stretch - for climbing and, possibly, for approaching in very bad weather
Breeches or trousers made of lightweight fabric	needed for the approach. Another option is to wear shorts over thin thermal underwear.
Pants and jacket made of thin fleece	Fleece acts as base layer
Membrane jacket and pants	As mentioned above, rains in those parts are not uncommon. Clothing based on Gore-Tex pro is the most wear-resistant and impenetrable.
Lightweight puff or jacket with synthetic insulation	If you already have a good puff, you can do without it, and not buy an analogue on synthetic insulation. However, keep in mind that the puff can get wet in a few days of approach. To prevent this from happening, the puff should be stored in a high-quality hermetic bag and not put on in bad weather without a membrane jacket until reaching the glacier.
Socks	Two or three pairs (sets) of socks. Choose specialized models for trekking above the boot top.
Buff (Buff)	In case of strong wind or sunburn. You can also use a balaclava, but most Climbing in it will be too hot.
Hat
Sunscreen	With a high protection factor
	The road to the foot of Belukha passes along a forest path with a very difficult terrain. If you refuse to have a full-fledged spare shoe, you can very easily lose your chance to climb. Firstly, in case of bad weather, climbing boots can get wet, and it will be very cold to be on the glacier in them. Secondly, even in good weather, mountain boots always rub blisters, even in the conditions of ordinary climbing camps. Here, as soon as you get off the bus, you will have to make many hours of transitions every day. Both of these problems can be solved with lightweight trekking boots or running shoes. The main requirement for such shoes is the presence of a hard sole, with a tread suitable for moving under a backpack, over difficult terrain. Trekking shoes are usually lighter and more comfortable, but if you have ankle problems, it is better to use light or even medium trekking boots.
Climbing boots	For the glacier on Belukha, classic climbing double-sided boots are suitable. For example, Scarpa Ortles GTX, Zamberlan 2090 Mountain Pro GTX, Asolo Aconcagua GV. If the shoes are not new, they must be impregnated before leaving, giving water-repellent properties.
(with margin)	When climbing Belukha, you have to work in very different weather conditions. Modern multilayer gloves with membranes can stay dry after a day on the glacier. However, even slightly worn gloves sharply lose their moisture-proof properties; they are hot and uncomfortable to work at positive temperatures. In addition, the possibility of losing a glove cannot be ruled out - in such a situation, the importance of a spare pair can hardly be overestimated. For climbing Belukha, it seems appropriate to have one pair of multilayer gloves with a membrane (Arcteryx Zenta AR or Rab Guide) and a pair of lightweight gloves made of windproof material, such as Marmot Evolution. Also, on approach days, it's a good idea to have a pair of protective gloves, like the Camp Axion Light, BD Crag Glove, or the more comfortable Phenix Trekking 2 BK.
	They are flashlights.

Personal special equipment

	Minimum 60 liters. Before choosing a backpack, it is worth clarifying the conditions for dropping off. Some firms offer to throw most of the cargo to Lake Akkem (2-3 days walk) on horseback. In this case, it would be best to have a trunk for 70-100 liters, and a regular assault backpack for 40-50 liters. A backpack will be needed to carry the things necessary for spending the night during the launch and, of course, during the ascent. If you plan to cast without horses, then you can recommend a universal backpack, which will be used for both casting and climbing. It must have a volume of at least 65 liters, with a small dead weight. Very handy here will be a well-thought-out suspension system. This volume allows you to significantly speed up the daily gathering of the camp. In addition, practice shows that with a height of 180 cm, this backpack can be used even on technical climbs. Although, of course, a smaller backpack is better for storming the summit.
Lanyard mustache

descender	If you work with your own ropes, the “basket” is better (BD ATC-Guide). For working with old stiff ropes that guides can hang, it is better to have a regular "eight".
Cats with anti-slips *	The presence of anti-skids on the long summer snow and ice route is MANDATORY! For climbing Belukha, lightweight aluminum crampons like Grivel Air Tech, or more wear-resistant Grivel G10 will be enough. *For winter, you should choose a more technical model - for example, Petzl Vasak.
Ice ax *	It is optimal to take a light ice ax, such as Camp Corsa. *On winter ice, lightweight ice axes can be a real curse. With them, even cutting ice for cooking can take many times longer. Therefore, it is worth having something more weighty - classic ice ax models will be just right. (Grivel Nepal SA).
Helmet	Preferably a lightweight model, such as the Petzl Meteor helmet.
strapping	It also makes sense to take a lightweight harness. Lightweight yet fully adjustable Petzl Aquila.
Carabiners	The optimal set of carbines for climbing Belukha: Camp HMS compact. HMS carbine - specially designed to work with descenders. Kong Ergo Screw-Lock . You need 2 pieces. Excellent carabiner for lanyard mustaches - light but with a large latch travel, provides good opening of the carabiner. Kong Heavy Duty Screw Lock . In order to be able to fasten into the bundle directly, without the use of special techniques, it makes sense to use a strong carabiner that can withstand a load of at least 10 Kn. in any circumstances. Black Diamond Ice Clipper. Auxiliary carabiner for hanging ice equipment. For Beluga, one piece will be enough. The leader can have two.

Personal equipment for bivouac and trekking

Rug tourist	Keep in mind that there will be overnight stays in the snow. A self-inflating mat is smaller than foam and provides better thermal insulation, but it must be transported inside a backpack and protected from punctures.
Sleeping bag	Extreme -20. For climbing Belukha, it is best to have a sleeping bag made of high-quality synthetic material. The climate there is quite humid, and every day you need to pack a sleeping bag in a backpack and it does not have time to dry. And whether the leaders of the event will take a rest day before going to the glacier and climbing is a big question. For this reason, a down sleeping bag here is a very risky option.
Tent	Carry it for a long time, so it is better to choose the lightest four-season tent.
Thermos	The optimal volume is 0.7-1 l.
Head Torch	The group should have at least one powerful flashlight for night orientation, for example, Petzl XP, BD Storm or even better BD Icon. The rest of the participants can get by with simpler flashlights (Petzl Tikka+ or BD Cosmo)
Trekking poles	You need a fairly strong model with a small weight. Compactness in assembled form is not so relevant. The time-tested Black Diamond Trail model will do just fine. It is highly desirable to have enlarged rings with you so that the sticks do not fall into the snow - otherwise they can break very quickly.

I have been to Belukha, on the slopes and on the summit several times. Winter spring and summer. I saw Belukha different.

In spring, he ran from avalanches and fell into cracks in winter. He lived in snow caves and saved his tent from summer storms with gale-force winds. Freeze and melt. Lived for weeks on the slopes, trying to understand the voice of the Mountain.

I succeeded a lot. In fact, everything that I thought of was successful. Not always the first time, but what is, is.
I want to tell you a few interesting points, maybe they will help you look at the mountains from the other side.

Winter. January. We are on Lake Akkem, we came, we are resting. The weather is wonderful, clear blue sky, frost around 20, at night - 35. Windless and quiet. The beluga whale is visible in the rays of the sun, it simply beckons: "guys... the weather is just right, go ahead!"
But I don't want to go. Everyone is ready to perform at night at the Tomsk sites (the house of the glesiologists at the foot of Belukha, from there the path begins in crampons and harnesses).

I'm against. Why? Everything inside me opposes. You have to leave at night, at three. To go through the frost on the ice all the rivers and lakes, and not fall through. We decided not to go out that night, to wait out the day. And just knocked 12 nights, the fairy tale ended and the uniform hell began. Howled, whirled. The wind rose so much that we thought it would blow away our barrels in which we were staying. The barrels bounced. The cables that held them together groaned. Going to the toilet was a big problem. In addition, the wind took all the sand from the mountains to the attacker. Everyone started looking at me in amazement. Nothing predicted such weather.

Except my intuition.

Since we stayed, we need firewood. Follow them to the other end of the lake, to the cedar with a saw and an axe. Both men and women went. All. You have to heat it up, it's cold. In the barrels of a brick stove, they eat a lot of firewood. The wind still did not let up, but it became a little quieter and the snow was no longer the same.

Went into the forest. Everyone found a lying log for himself, which must be sawn and dragged away, and then stabbed. Everything is on a slope, and in some places the slope is 35 degrees. And so we sawed off a lying log from a tree trunk, I say:
Now let's step aside, knock on it and it will roll.

The guy probably did not hear the first part of the phrase, but he learned the second very well. And with all his heroic power, as if he were on a tree ... it rolled ... right at me.

The tree has a girth of two, the branches stick out in different directions like that of an infernal machine. What I managed to do was, like a cockroach on all fours, to slide down and hide between the trees. My log hit those trees. And yet, several times, the branches hit me on the head. So my labor feat was completed, and severe medical everyday life began. Going down after the stress I experienced, I clearly realized that it was enough to play the fool here, we had to go out at night. And returning to the barrels, he loudly announced that the weather day was the last today, we leave at night. I was reasonably told in response that the wind would blow away, to which I so calmly replied: "There will be no wind."

Remembering how I predicted the wind, the people smeared my wounds on my head with brilliant green and began to gather for the night exit.

It was midnight and the wind died down, as if someone had turned it off. Everyone was in shock. Since then I have been regarded as a local mountain deity.

In summer, on the same route, the same exit, everything is planned out by day. Since the evening I am against going out. But the people insist that all trains have planes and tickets have been bought back. In the morning we go out and get into the rain. Raincoats quickly get wet backpacks and we ourselves too. All the way to Tomsk one gray rain with wind.
We arrive, but nothing dries. So we sit like fools wet and frozen.

Climbers descend from above and have not ascended to the top. On Berelskoye the snowfall is such that the tents are broken and it looks like it will be for a long time. All you can hear is the roar of the descending avalanches.

I look at vacationers, I feel sorry for them.
The next day the sky is clear, clear, no wind or rain. And here is the question: at least once in my life will I go against my intuition? The answer is unequivocal: no!

In the mountains, only flair rules. The mind is always wrong.

Delphinapterus leucas Pallas, 1776

Squad: Cetaceans (Сetacea)

Suborder: Toothed whales (Odontoceti)

Family: Narwhals (Monodontidae)

Genus: Beluga whales (Delphinfpterus Laceped.1804)

Other name:

Belukha, Beluga (equivalent, the most common is the first)

Where does he live:

The beluga whale population is subdivided into 29 local herds, of which about 12 are located on the territory of Russia. Distributed circumpolar, between 50° and 80° N, inhabiting all the Arctic, as well as the Bering and Okhotsk seas; in winter, calls are known to the Baltic Sea. Until the middle of the last century, in pursuit of fish (spawning salmon), the beluga whale entered large rivers (the Ob, Yenisei, Lena, Amur) until the middle of the last century, sometimes rising hundreds of kilometers upstream.

The size:

Beluga whales are characterized by sexual dimorphism: males are usually larger than females of the same age as them. Weight: males reach 850-1500 kg, females 650-1360 kg with a typical body length of 3.6-4.2 m. The largest males reach 6 m in length and 2 tons of weight.

Appearance:

The head of the beluga whale is spherical, "lobed", the lower jaws practically do not protrude forward without a beak. The vertebrae on the neck are not fused together, so the beluga whale, unlike most whales, is able to turn its head. This makes it easier for her to navigate and maneuver in the ice. The pectoral fins are small and oval in shape. The dorsal fin is absent - this allows the beluga whale to move more freely under the ice. Hence the Latin name of the genus Delphinapterus leucas - "white dolphin without dorsal fin".

Skin with a loose layer of epidermis (up to 12 mm thick) resembles an external shock absorber and partly protects belugas from damage when swimming among ice. They are saved from hypothermia by a layer of subcutaneous fat up to 10-12 cm thick, in some places up to 18 cm, which is up to 40% of the body weight of the beluga whale. The color of the skin is uniform. It changes with age: newborns are light brown due to the thick layer of the epidermis, which, as the baby grows, falls off in pieces and the lower parts of the dermis rise to the surface with an abundance of dark pigment - melanin. The general coloration becomes dark blue, growth and molting continue and the young become gray, then bluish-gray; individuals older than 4-7 years are pure white.

Behavior and lifestyle:

Some populations of belugas make regular migrations. They are associated with seasonal movements of schools of fish. Thus, the movement of the beluga whale population from Cook Inlet in Alaska repeats the movement of its main prey - salmon.

In spring, belugas begin to move towards the coast - to desalinated shallow bays, fjords and estuaries of northern rivers. Flying near the coast is due to the presence of food here and the higher temperature of desalinated water. The latter improves the conditions for molting and shedding of the old layer of the epidermis. Often, in order to remove the dead surface layer of the skin, beluga whales rub against the bottom - sand in shallow water. Beluga whales are tied to the same flying places, visiting them year after year. Tracking individual individuals showed that beluga whales remember the place of their birth and the way to it after wintering.

Local herds in summer (reproductive aggregations) play a dual role in the biology of the species. Firstly, they ensure the reproduction of the population and isolation from neighboring local herds, and secondly, they play a crucial role in terms of all types of individual contacts (sexual, play, etc.) between members of the herd, maintaining hierarchical relationships and contributing to education and training young animals. This ensures the preservation of the social structure of the local herd and the individual and group status of its members.

Not all populations migrate. Their need is determined by specific ice conditions and the presence of accumulations of food.

In winter, beluga whales, as a rule, keep to the edges of the ice fields, but sometimes they penetrate far into the glaciation zone, where winds and currents support cracks, leads and polynyas. When icing large water areas, they make mass migrations from these areas. The polynyas, to which the beluga whales rise to breathe, can be several kilometers away from each other. Beluga whales find them using direction finding and sometimes location. But sometimes they are trapped - in ice captivity, if the distance to clean water exceeds 3-4.5 km. The dorsal part of the body and the upper part of the head consist of thick and durable skin, which allows them to be used to maintain wormwood, breaking with ice up to 4-6 centimeters thick.

Beluga whales are social animals. A herd of beluga whales consists of clans, and clans are made up of families arranged according to the principle of matriarchy. The family consists of primary family groups: mothers and 1-2 cubs. Males in the herd and clan play the role of guards and scouts for fish aggregations. On large concentrations of fish, several herds of beluga whales sometimes gather, and feeding animals huddle into herds of hundreds and even thousands of heads.

Food:

Beluga whales feed mainly on schooling fish (capelin, cod, polar cod, herring, navaga, flounder, whitefish and salmon species); to a lesser extent - crustaceans and cephalopods. Prey, especially benthic organisms, belugas do not grab, but suck. An adult individual consumes about 15 kg of food per day. But such lucky days are rare.

Reproduction:

In the Sea of Okhotsk, beluga whales mate in April - May, in the Gulf of Ob - in July, in the Barents and Kara seas- from May to August, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence - from February to August, and in the Hudson Bay, fertilization of females occurs from March to September. Thus, the mating period lasts about 6 months, but the bulk of the females are fertilized in a relatively short time - late April - early - mid-July. In the rest of the year, in most cases, only individual animals mate.

The period of childbearing is extended, as is the mating period, and childbirth can be from early spring throughout the summer months. Thus, pregnancy in beluga whales lasts 11.5 months, there is an opinion that this period can reach 13-14 months. As a rule, females give birth in the mouths of rivers that bring warmer waters. The female brings one cub 140-160 cm long, very rarely - two. The lactation period lasts about 12 months. The next mating may occur one to two weeks after birth.

Lifespan:

Life expectancy in nature is 32-40 years (the known maximum age of the female is 44 years).

Number:the exact number is not known.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, there are about 150,000 belugas in the world. Russian populations, according to the International Commission on Whaling, number up to 27,000 individuals. At the same time, the 3 largest groups Sea of Okhotsk there are up to 20,000 belugas.

Natural Enemies:

The killer whale is the enemy of beluga whales.

Threats mind:

The main danger for these whales is toxic waste polluting their habitat, as well as industrial exclusion from their Arctic habitats, especially key breeding and feeding areas. In recent years, noise pollution has increased dramatically - due to the development of shipping and an increase in the flow of wild tourists, which prevents normal reproduction and leads to a decrease in the number of cubs - i.e. reduction in herd size.

Interesting Facts

In winter, the white whale hunts for cod, flounder, goby, pollock, making very deep dives - up to 300-1000 m, and remaining under water for up to 25 minutes. Despite the massiveness, the beluga whale is agile; She is able to swim on her back and even backwards. Usually swims at a speed of 3-9 km / h; frightened, it can make jerks up to 22 km / h.

For the variety of sounds they make, whalers in the 19th century. nicknamed the beluga whale "sea canary" ( sea canary), and the Russians had the expression “beluga roar” - the characteristic roar of a male during the rut.

The researchers counted about 50 sound signals in beluga whales: whistling, screeching, chirping, screaming, grinding, shrill scream, roar, and others. In addition, beluga whales use “body language” (slapping the water with their tail fins) and even facial expressions when communicating.

In addition to screams, beluga whales make clicks in the ultrasonic range. The system of air sacs in the soft tissues of the head takes part in their production, and the radiation is focused by a special fat pad on the forehead - melon (acoustic lens). Reflected from surrounding objects, clicks return to the beluga whale; The “antenna” is the lower jaw, which transmits vibrations to the cavity of the middle ear. Echo analysis allows the animal to get an accurate picture of its surroundings. Beluga has excellent hearing and echolocation. These animals are able to hear in a wide frequency range from 40-75 Hz to 30-100 kHz.

Beluga whales also have well-developed vision, both under water and above its surface. Probably, the vision of the beluga whale is colored, because. her retina contains rods and cones - photoreceptor cells. However, research has not yet confirmed this.

Compiled by: Member of the Board of the Marine Mammal Council,

Head Laboratory of Marine Mammals of the IO RAS, Doctor of Biological Sciences V.M. Belkovich

Tips for girls and still inexperienced tourists who decide to go on a mountain hike in Altai with an attempt to climb Belukha Peak.

"Everything is relative".
First of all, I thank the beautiful Belukha, Altai, instructor guides Yuri Ermachek, Ivan the Brave, Andrey Nekrasov, Sergey Vorotyntsev and Sergey Lotyrev, Vysotnik employees.
In our case, everything was ideal from the very beginning to the very end of the ascent and hike. This combination is rare, this should be remembered and appreciated.

"Nature vs Ego" or "The mountain cannot be defeated."
Very often I saw people who believed that they were stronger, smarter, cooler and all their merit. Such people were then taught a lesson, some soft, some harder. Nature is smarter, stronger and cooler than even the most trained and experienced person. Nature must be treated with respect and reverence, then the weather will be good, and it will be easy to go even in the most dangerous areas. We can assume that all this is esoteric nonsense, but the surrounding nature protects and gives a lot of energy to those who appreciate it and take care of it.

"Two golden rules".
1. Leave early
2. Walk longer - or "The instructor/guide is always right."
If the guide / instructor says that you need to leave earlier, then you need to.
If the guide / instructor says that you need to walk another hour before the next stop, then you need to go, even if you don’t have the strength and you just want to swear.
Few people understand that an experienced guide knows the peculiarities of the region to the smallest detail, and it is on the basis of these features, which the tourist cannot even guess, that recommendations are made on the exit time, distance / speed / route thread.
I think that many people understood this by the example of nast / porridge on the Mensu glacier, a downpour an hour after arriving at the base, etc. And in general, on the example of the fact that an ordinary tourist chooses the longest and most difficult path, climbs, sweats, and after a while he sees a guide full of energy waiting for him in the nearest clearing.

Is there some more unspoken rule of pace- if you are breathing in your back, it is better to ask if you need to skip ahead. Some can walk very slowly and for a very long time, and some walking slowly get tired many times more than if they run fast. Plus, for me personally, when someone breathes in the back, energy immediately goes to unrest, that I interfere with the person from behind, delay him, and as a result I get lost, I get tired much faster. Once again, asking if you need to skip will give an advantage to both.

"Movement - life or Acclimatization".
Usually, those who are on a hike for the first time, upon arrival at the parking lot, immediately lie down to rest. At the bottom, this is not fatal, but at a height this is absolutely impossible to do. Acclimatization takes place only in motion, the more and longer you lie, the weaker you become. Coming upstairs, do it through force, move. Put up a tent, sort things out, build a toilet out of snow, at least just walk. Movement is life, in this case a very clear statement.

"There is no bad camper" or "The importance of equipment."
Personally, I was lucky, because my sister brought me to mountain tourism, who already knew from personal experience what was happening and passed on her secrets to me. Of course, if you are going for the first time and are not yet sure that this is yours, then buying expensive equipment is absolutely unjustified. Moreover, a lot of things can be rented. For example, going on an ascent to Belukha, the ideal option would be to rent all the equipment at the upper base of Vysotnik, a tour of the Ak-Kem shelter.

Pros -
1. You don’t need to spend a lot of money on specific equipment, which you may not use later, and it will be problematic to sell even for 70% of the original cost.
2. You will appreciate this rental, because you will not carry extra 8-10 kg on yourself, climbing from Tungur to Ak-Kem. This scheme is justified even for those who have their own equipment, but do not have the extra money to throw it on horseback.

a) Backpack
It is not for nothing that nature gave you, girls, a thin waist and wide hips, compared to men. This advantage fits perfectly into the technique of wearing a backpack.
It was painful to look at the girls (and almost all the guys!) who actually carried the load on their shoulders, because the hip belt was fastened as if it were low-waisted jeans that exposed the chubby parts of the body.
The backpack needs to be customized for you both in height and in volume. Each normal backpack has instructions on how to fit and how to fill so that the load is optimal and minimal in the feeling when moving. The waist belt must be fastened so that it tightens at the waist, and not at the middle of the hips. It is by tightening the backpack at the waist that the load falls on our hips so that it is almost not felt. And if you carry it on your shoulders, then with a backpack of 10 kg you will curse everything around. The backrest needs to be adjusted so that there is some space between the shoulders and the straps of the backpack. A chest strap is also a useful thing, but it also needs to be adjusted based on your personal volumes in this area so as not to pinch anything, but also not to choke your throat.

b) Sticks
Those who run know that when running, the arms should not be raised above the level of the heart. This is normal physiology. The higher the arms, the greater the cost of the heart muscle to pump blood to these limbs. When cold, the body switches its attention to heating the insides, and the limbs go by the wayside, hence the freezing of the hands, if you go with ski poles. Or overexpenditure of energy and overheating, if you go in the heat.
Ski poles without height adjustment are not suitable for mountain hiking and climbing.
Safety precautions - when moving on stones, the sticks are held freely, i.e. do not slip into the straps, so as not to fly away after the stick if it is caught between the stones. Well, it is desirable, in order to preserve the beauty and tenderness of women's hands, to have thin gloves (ideally gloves for riding), they will protect against deep wounds and scratches from branches and large stones, plus sticks will not slip out of hands when it rains.

c) Shoes
Shoes - there can be no strict recommendations, because everyone's feet are different. Someone needs boots in size and a narrow last, someone is 1-2 sizes larger and with a wide deck. But practice shows that it is in mountain hikes, when you walk/slide up/down over rough terrain, with very different landscapes (driftwood, stones, mud, moss), then size-to-size shoes lead to toes breaking off with further blackening and loss of nails . Also, with heavy loads and improper lacing, there may be such swelling that the legs do not fit into shoes of your size in the morning. In this case, it is good to take at least 1 size larger, also because it can snow in Altai in summer and you will want to wear a woolen sock.
It is better to seal the places of possible corns with a plaster immediately, this really helps to reduce the number and soreness of the resulting corns. Well, so that those very nails do not turn black, it is better to cut them short before the trip, because the fallen off nail really recovers for a very long time.

d) Personal first aid kit
Everyone is helped by their own medicines and everyone has their own weak points, so a personal first-aid kit should be a must. This is the weight on which you can not save. Be sure to have painkillers for / from the abdomen, a lot of plaster. As practice shows, different ointments / creams are in great demand: from the sun, from burns, ointments for the knees, joints, ligaments, etc. Of course, one person (the main one) should have those specific drugs that are rarely needed, but which save lives, for example, drugs for pulmonary edema.

e) Nothing extra or 5 grams equals 5 kg.
Professionals have such a thing as minimizing the weight of equipment. From the outside, it may be funny when a person cuts off half the handle of a toothbrush, but in reality, every 10 grams in total leads to excess weight up to 5 kg. It’s good if you are a powerful man who only enjoys a 30 kg backpack, but even the thought of such a backpack terrifies me. Yes, and girls should not carry such burdens, feminism in life is stupid, but in the mountains it is deadly.
In general, this is a matter of finance, because you can always find better and lighter equipment and clothing. In this case, it is better to immediately buy a warmer and lighter sleeping bag, lighter and better clothes. Modern technologies allow, and the difference in this case can reach from 200 to 500 grams on one thing, and there will be not one or two such things, but you carry them on yourself. And there should not be a lot of things, no need to take underpants, T-shirts, socks for 10 days, one for you, one in case of emergency.
Therefore, in order not to lie face down in the stream and not bury things somewhere in the clearings, it is better to immediately think over the validity of what you are taking with you and not take too much.

f) Personal hygiene
The rule above also applies to personal hygiene products. It's funny, of course, to see how tourists get huge bottles of shampoos, conditioners, huge tubes of toothpaste, separate hand cream, foot cream, eye and ear cream. After all, there are 30-50 ml vials for shampoos, there are also small creams (30 ml, and you can anoint your hands and everything else with one face cream), there are small tubes of toothpaste (for example, toothpaste President 30 ml, enough for 16 days double use).
Not only is this a huge, unreasonable excess weight, it also takes away the volume in the backpack, and you bring it back, having spent only 10%.
Therefore, you need to take a small container with you, strictly designed for the duration of the hike / ascent. You still won’t wash your hair with air conditioning every day, believe me, it won’t be up to it.
Tip for girls, to avoid taking a bunch of wet wipes, you can use the following trick. Pour water into a bottle, and preferably a flask (with a pimpochka, as for cyclists, soft, such that you can press on the walls and water will flow under pressure), pour water, put it in a sleeping bag. In the morning you have warm water that can be used for washing, washing.
At altitude, if the real minus is outside, it is better to keep strategic means (ointments, creams) in pockets closer to the body, because they will freeze and it will be impossible to use them.

g) Comfort in the mountains
In girls, the lower back and buttocks usually freeze during cold nights. You can take several rugs, regular and inflatable, as well as pillows. And it is better (the rule "nothing more") to use this technique: 1. if only one rug and the night is not very cold (not in the snow), a seat is placed under the lower back. To prevent the seat from moving, you can either put it under the mat, or take it in a sleeping bag and attach it to you. You can also sleep on your side, not on your back, it's warmer.
2. If the nights are cold, you can sleep on a backpack, after removing everything from it. You can also use ropes (if it's climbing), securing yourself a royal bed.
Many wear inflatable pillows, I don’t see the point in this, because it’s more reasonable to put a compression bag under your head with things that are in this moment are not used. So that such a "pillow" does not run away, the bag is placed under the rug, preferably pre-packed in a plastic bag, in case the bottom of the tent gets wet.
If it’s really cold, then you can put all unused things under you in a sleeping bag, under freezing places. But they can migrate to the legs in the morning.

h) Physical fitness
Last on the list, but not least.
While hiking in the Altai Mountains, I noticed that skiers and long-distance runners feel best.
If you are not a skier or a runner, then even minimal preparation will have a good effect. From personal experience, I noticed that the following helps a lot.

For muscle endurance (especially legs), the minimum is callanetics, walking up the stairs at any opportunity (at home we forget about the elevator, in the subway we forget about standing on the escalator).
Ideally, you need a long jog (from 30 minutes, on the hills), a very good bike (1.5-2 hours on a pulse of 140-160, on the hills).
For the breather - at least some kind of breathing exercises (for example, bodyflex).
Ideally, running, cycling, skiing - interval training (with maximum acceleration in the active phase), walking uphill (in the park, in Moscow there are good places - Kolomenskoye, Biryulyovskiy forest park).
So that the breather does not go astray, it is advisable to learn to breathe through the nose even with active walking.
In order not to depend on water, you can learn to drink less. Just do not drink during training, but drink only after. The first time is difficult, then the body adapts and you don’t feel like drinking so much.

Well, so as not to reduce legs and arms from cold water, and the vessels felt good, at least a month in advance, start dousing with cold water.

I would also like to draw attention to the fact that when going on a commercial ascent, even the easiest in terms of category, you need to be adequately aware that if you are not physically ready or have some kind of sores that do not allow you to move quickly, then you expose yourself to the whole group is in danger, and in this case you need to either stay at home or order individual tour. It is impossible, because of your whim, to deprive others, who are stronger and more prepared, of the opportunity.
For example, the last time I tried to climb Belukha, we had a relatively small group of 10 people, but two of them were not ready. One man had problems with his knees (the menisci were cut out, he could not go down, he went through strength and extremely slowly, and we all know that going down the mountain is many times more dangerous than going up), and I had poor physical fitness (not enough breathers on the rises). We spent several days on the Berel saddle (there was a thunderstorm, a storm and it snowed all the time, after which it was impossible to walk for another 3 days because of the danger of avalanches). But if there was weather, then I had the sense to refuse to climb, because in a bunch the weak endanger everyone, both strong and experienced. Moreover, already on the ascent itself, you need to move quickly and smoothly, because. there is a danger of avalanches, cracks, breakdowns and shouting "stop" every 10 steps, resting for several minutes, means an increase in this very danger at times. Therefore, a separate request to commercial tourists - prepare physically more carefully. After all, you are endangering not only yourself, but the whole bunch.

Finally, a little encouraging advice. You can never build an opinion on the first day. Many people only warm up on the first day, and it may seem that there is no strength, you can’t do anything. And then on the second, third day they walk around. Therefore, sometimes it is better not to fly the first day, but to calmly increase the pace. Moreover, the approaches to Belukha are very long and tiring, which many do not expect and lose heart already on the second day.

Of course, we are all different, but I hope that these tips will help you avoid the biggest mistakes and allow you to enjoy Altai in all its glory.

Good luck everyone.

It took almost three days for the rescuers to reach the Kemerovo tourists who were trapped in the Belukha glaciers in the border zone. The participants of the rescue operation told Sibnet.ru why they had to wait so long for help, how the climbers survived without a tent, how they greeted their rescuers, and why they did not return to civilization in the end.

Last Friday, forecasters issued a storm warning for Gorny Altai and on Saturday the weather deteriorated sharply. On Sunday, August 12, rescuers received an SOS signal from the Ust-Koksinsky district, where Belukha is located.

Four residents of Kemerovo got in touch by satellite phone and said that they were blocked at an altitude of 4.1 thousand meters. The strongest wind tore their tent and carried away the equipment that could help them descend at least to Lake Akkem, where there is a seasonal rescue post.

Rescuers would have had to get to them from the post on foot for about three days, the situation was complicated by bad weather - it was raining here, turning into snow, blowing strong wind. It was decided to send a helicopter for the climbers, which arrived in the Altai Republic from Kemerovo on Monday and waited several days for permission to take off. The aircraft took off from the Gorno-Altaisk airport only at 16:00 on Tuesday, but three hours later the tourists were filmed from Belukha.

The hardest route

The tourists turned out to be no longer young and quite experienced climbers, the youngest of them is 48 years old, the oldest is 53 years old. They overcame one of the most difficult ice and rock routes - category 5A, while category 6B is considered the most difficult. Rescuers are not gods: how to return alive from Altai

The men planned to traverse (the passage of two or more peaks, and the descent from the previous peak should be in the direction of the next one) of three peaks and had to climb the Western, Eastern peaks and the peak of the Crown of Belukha Mountain.

“Four tourists were sitting on the western plateau. There was a lot of cloudiness, the pilots did a great job. First they flew above the clouds, then they dived into the so-called window, and managed to get to those in distress. They flew up in a helicopter, took them away, lowered them to Akkemskoye Lake, to our rescue base, ”said Yury Shvarts, 1st class rescuer of the Altai search and rescue squad.

Welcome - Welcome

According to one of the pilots, the head of the aviation department of the Siberian Regional Center of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia Sergey Zubov, the operation proceeded normally, but the cloudiness that kept around mountain peaks. But the wind that caused the emergency was normal.

“The clouds were all around the mountain, including at the landing site. It also hindered the excess - a height of four thousand one hundred meters. It was a field covered with fresh snow. When landing, a cloud formed, we had to very clearly maintain the place, but we managed to land very close to the tourists, ”said the pilot, the only pilot in the Krasnoyarsk Aviation Rescue Center who has a permit to fly to high altitudes.

The pilot explained that altitudes over three thousand meters are considered difficult, the machine becomes inert, uncontrollable, and, as a rule, there is no place to land. And this time it was not possible to fully land the car for loading people. It snowed in the mountains for two days, more than a meter of it poured, it was slippery. In touch mode, the crew held the helicopter while the tourists loaded their belongings and boarded themselves. The help of rescuers was practically not required, the Siberian regional center of the Russian Emergencies Ministry clarifies.

According to Zubov, the preparation for the operation was not long - it was a long wait for permission to take off: “We waited a long time for the weather, Belukha Mountain was covered with clouds for two days, today a window appeared, and we managed to do everything in 3.5 hours.”

Having flown up to the mountain, the rescuers searched for the climbers for no more than 15 minutes. Because of the cloudiness, we had to fly around the peak in a circle; tourists were noticed on one of the sides. Since Sunday, the men have been in contact with the rescue post every three hours, and therefore they already knew that they were flying after them. By the arrival of the board, they trampled on the snow with their feet the inscription Welcome - Welcome.

Shelter in the snow and gas burner

All this time, tourists were at an altitude of 4.1 thousand meters above sea level. They had warm clothes with them, a supply of food and a gas burner, on which they melted the snow.

“Since their tent was torn apart, they dug into the snow, made a cave with the help of its remains, and lived in this place. They had food, but they were running out of gas - only half a cylinder remained. If today we could not take them off, they would have to do without hot food,” said rescuer Schwartz.

He added that the tourists were physically weakened, they had to spend their energy on heating their shelter, and they also ran out of food. The temperature at this height was from zero to five degrees below zero, dropping to minus 12 at night. However, according to the rescuer, the men were not in danger of frostbite. As a result, none of them needed medical attention.

Often tourists go to difficult routes, not calculating their strength, often make some mistakes that can cost a person life. However, here, according to Schwartz, a combination of circumstances played a big role.

“Everyone can get into bad weather, regardless of whether he is a trained tourist or a beginner. Of course, they had a hard time. It's good that everything ended well, ”concluded the interlocutor.

Violators?

The rescue ship returned to Gorno-Altaisk without the tourists rescued from the trap, they remained at a seasonal rescue post near Lake Akkem. The fact is that the border between Russia and Kazakhstan passes through the Belukha massif. According to a representative of the power structures of the region, the tourists entered the border zone without special passes. And at the seasonal rescue post at the foot of Belukha, border guards were already waiting for them.

“At the entrance to the Ust-Koksinsky district, at the border control post, they told the border guards that they were going to the Tomsk camps, but they themselves went much higher, where the five-kilometer border zone is located. They should not mislead the employees of the customs post, but simply issue passes,” the interlocutor said.

Now climbers face administrative proceedings and a fine. However, they got into trouble and survived, and this is already great luck. Just a week ago, while descending from the top of Aktru on the North-Chuysky ridge, two climbers from Novosibirsk fell off and Kemerovo region, a resident of Kuzbass failed to survive.

And three years ago, in August 2015, four experienced climbers from Tomsk died while climbing the Maly Aktru glacier on a route of medium difficulty. They ignored a warning about worsening weather and froze to death on a slope after it started to rain and it got very cold. Help could not arrive in time due to bad weather and darkness.