About Elbrus

Training, Gear & Communication:

Q: How did you train for this climb?
A: I did a lot of running for aerobic conditioning plus weight training for the heavy loads. In 2011, I climbed other mountains extensively as part of my 7 Summits program.

Q: Was altitude a problem on this climb?
A: Yes, it is always a challenge on these big mountain climbs. Many people feel some type of AMS above 11,000' and we had half of our nine member team quit just above the 12,000' High Camp. As I mentioned before, I had already climbed four other 7 Summits peaks in the previous 6 months, so I was in excellent condition and never felt the altitude or the strain.

Q: Can you prepare for the altitude?
A: Not really. The common approach is to move slowly up the mountain (1000' a day maximum) spending your days at a higher altitude than where you sleep up until your summit bid. The human body simply does not function well at high altitudes and especially above 8000m (26,300'). As you go higher, the barometric pressure decreases, although the air still contains 21% oxygen, every breath contains less molecules of oxygen.

Everest legend Tom Hornbein explained it to the American Lung Association this way:

The lower oxygen stimulates chemoreceptors that initiate an increase in breathing, resulting in a lowering of the partial pressure of CO2 and hence more alkaline blood pH. The kidneys begin to unload bicarbonate to compensate. Though this adaptation can take many days, up to 80% occurs just in the first 48 to 72 hours. There are many other physiologic changes going on, among them the stimulus of low oxygen to release the hormone, erythropoietin to stimulate more red blood cell production, a physiological and still acceptable form of blood doping that enhances endurance performance at low altitudes. Adaptive changes are not always good for one’s health. Some South American high altitude residents can have what’s called chronic mountain sickness, resulting from too many red blood cells; their blood can be up to 84-85% red blood cells. The increased blood viscosity and sometimes associated pulmonary hypertension can result in right heart failure.

You cannot do much to acclimatize while at a low altitude but there are companies that claim to help the acclimatization process through specially designed tents that simulate the reduced oxygen levels at higher elevations. I have no personal experience with these systems but you can find more details at the Hypoxico website. They cost about $7,000 or can be rented for about $170 a week. Outside Magazine posted an article in 2013 questioning their effectiveness.

Q: What kind of equipment did you use?
A: Mostly I use the same gear I used on Denali. Lot's of layers. My personal technical equipment included a long handle ice axe, harness, carabineers and crampons. It is always critical to protect my toes, fingers and face since these were most susceptible to frost bite. As for warmth, I always wear a knit cap and at least liner gloves when I get the least bit cool - regardless of the outside temp. I use a 3 layer system of Merino wool base layer (top and bottom), heavier fleece as in the Mountain Hardware Power Stretch (a Farmer's John kind of suit) or just my Patagonia Guide Pants depending on how cold it is that day then my top wind or warmth layer e.g. Patagonia Micro Puff and/or JetStream Shell. When the winds pick up and the temps hover near 0F, I add my Feather Friends 850 Fill down jacket plus my mitts. I have a gear page for reference. I am very pleased with all my gear but had a few standouts that I note on my gear page.

Q: Anything special in your gear for Elbrus?
A: I used everything on my gear page under Elbrus. We had excellent weather in mid August with temps never below 10F. But Elbrus can be extremely cold and windy so multiple down layers are required. My boots were the Kayland 6001 and were warm enough.

Q: Did you use a satellite phone?
A: For details on my expedition communications, please see this tutorial. For details on my expedition communications, please see this tutorial. I used an Iridium phone to post dispatches on this site. Cell phones connections are available on the North side of Elbrus a short walk from base camp and widely available on the south.

Expedition Basics

My 2011 Experience

Q: Did you summit?
A: Yes, I reached the West summit, the higher of the two, on August 11, 2011.

Q: Why did you choose AlpsIndustria as guide services?
A: I was signed up to climb from the south side with International Mountain Guides (IMG) but similar to most guide companies they cancelled their climb after local officials closed that side due to violence in early 2011. Phil Ershler helped me get on at the last possible minute with Alps so that I could continue my 7 Summits program in 2011.

Q: How did they perform?
A: Very well but everything has to be framed with respect to the Russian climbing culture. The logistics were smooth including airport pickup and hotels. I always felt that someone was looking out for me. The food at base camp was better than at the High Camp where it was very basic as is normal with all high altitude climbs. The lead guide, Daniel, was quite skilled but spoke very little English. We climbed mostly in the heat of the day for some unknown reason. The tents were a mix of different brands but were in good condition. The kitchen tents had basic folding stools or chairs and dishes were plastic bowls. Overall the entire staff was professional and friendly.

Q: What were the camps on the north like?
A: I climbed from the north side. The east and west summits were clearly visible for miles. We took a 5 hour drive from Pyatigorsk on dirt roads to a primitive base camp located in a cow pasture at 8,200'. There were many other teams located here and it was quite noisy and crowded. There was a tent toilet in the field and a running stream nearby people used for bathing. The High Camp was at 12,000' on volcanic rock at the edge of the permanent snow fields of Elbrus. Because flat space was at a premium, the tents were closely spaced and it was noisy at night. The toilet was a spot on the rocks which was covered with human waste and toilet paper. Water was taken from the glacier run-off and boiled.

Q: What was the route to the West summit like?
A: From the High Camp at 12,000' it followed a direct path to Lenz's rocks around 14,000'. There teams went directly up to the lower east summit or veered right towards the higher west summit. We roped up on the lower glacier and just below the west summit due to large crevasses. The snow was firm until the August daytime sun created a slick mush. It was a 6,000' gain from High Camp to summit and took 7:30 minutes up and 4 hours down with frequent smoke breaks for our guide. The final climb to the summit starts with a 1,000' steep snow slope with switchbacks and then traverses across a high plateau to a small bump on the most westerly end of the West summit. There a plaque in Russian marks the true summit. The views were outstanding.

Q: What kind of weather conditions did you have?
A: It was not very cold. Night temps were in the teens and day time in the 70's and 80'sF. It was boiling on the glacier in the midday sun.

Q: Did you use bottled oxygen?
A: No, supplemental oxygen is usually only used above 26,300'.

Q: Would you climb Elbrus again?
A: Probably not. The climb was interesting but not very challenging. It was being in Russia that made Elbrus interesting.

Bottom Line