Spirin Alexandr

Our most active participant in recent years, Andrey Polyakov, has completed the Seven Volcanoes program! Today, he sent a video and photos from the summit of Ojos del Salado volcano. He completed the climb in 8 hours and 40 minutes with local guide Mario. The South American season is just beginning, and we're already seeing success! Andrey Polyakov occupies a remarkable 69th place on the list of Seven Volcanoes climbers. Russia is increasing its dominance in this program! Congratulations to Andrey! He's already climbed so many mountains, but there are always more to come. So, here's to new summits and achievements!

Day three on Kilimanjaro: from the jungle to the stars! The 7 Summits Club IHO group continues to climb Kilimanjaro, and we are ready to share the latest news from the Marangu route! If yesterday we felt like heroes of an adventure blockbuster, making our way through the humid tropical jungle, today we were in for a radical change of scenery!

We left the kingdom of vines and found ourselves straight... in the heather tales of Scotland! No, really! The landscape changed dramatically: the lush green jungle was left behind, and its place was taken by mysterious heather wastelands with low-growing bushes. The contrast is so sharp that it seems as if overnight we were teleported to another part of the world.

After a productive day, we safely reached the Horombo camp (3780 m), where the long-awaited comfort awaited us! We stayed in cozy wooden houses - there was room to turn around!

And in the evening there was a real holiday: a hearty dinner (the chef of the 7 Summits Club on Kilimanjaro is a magician!) and most importantly - a unique creative evening from our legendary guide, Sergey shared incredible stories of storming Everest and chilling tales from polar expeditions. You sit, drink hot tea, and they tell you how to survive at -50 °. Goosebumps and delight!

But the final chord of this day was ... the sky. Have you ever seen the Milky Way so bright that it seems you can touch it? Here, at an altitude of almost 4000 meters, far from any civilization, the starry sky is a mesmerizing, silent show. Huge, endless and incredibly beautiful. Ahead is a day of acclimatization and new heights! Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Guides Sergey Larin and Alexander Spirin.

Dear subscribers, everything is fine! Don't worry - everything is fine with our group! There was just no connection for a day. In the mountains (and especially in the jungle!) this is normal.

So, our second day of the expedition:

Day 2. That day the route passed through real tropical jungle. Thick greenery, huge ferns, vines, trees reaching into the sky... Sometimes it seemed like we were in a scene from Avatar.

Along the way, we encountered strange bugs and even a couple of curious monkeys. A bright bird similar to a toucan flew by somewhere nearby. The nature here is truly alive and amazing!

The mood is cheerful, everyone feels great - energy is in full swing, eyes are shining!

By evening, we reached the Mandara Hut camp. And once again, the participants were pleasantly surprised by the level of organization and care from the 7 Summits Club: delicious dinner, hot tea, a warm welcome and comfortable overnight stay.

Tomorrow we continue the ascent - wait for new news as soon as there is a connection!

Guides Sergey Larin and Alexander Spirin.

So, our team in full force gathered at the foot of Kilimanjaro. According to the tradition of the 7 Summits Club, the girls were greeted with flowers, the men - with a firm handshake. After checking into cozy rooms, the equipment was checked and gifts were given - everything that would be useful on the route.

But the surprises did not end there - fiery Maasai dances awaited us. The real spirit of Africa! In the evening, over dinner, we talked a lot, joked and even came up with a name for our team. Now we are MHO: Mitochondriacal Rejuvenation!

The adventures begin!

Guides Sergey Larin and assistant Alexander Spirin.

The ascent through the eyes of Alexander Spirin:

January 9. Chile, expedition to Ojos Del Salado. The "Zorros Rojos y otros" team. Today our team climbed the San Francisco volcano, and it was a moment we will never forget. We stood at the summit, where the sky seemed closer, and the ground below disappeared into a dusty haze, leaving us alone with the grandeur of nature. The altitude of just over 6,000 meters was a test for each of us, especially for the four participants, for whom this was an altitude record.

The wind beat in our faces, as if testing our determination, and the dust swirled around in whirlwinds, forcing each breath to be suffered. We walked forward through the cold, fatigue and doubt. Each step was given with effort, but no one gave up. It was a fight with ourselves that we had to win.

When we finally reached the top, I looked at the faces of my comrades in the personal altitude record. They were beaming. It was not just joy - it was the realization that we had conquered not only the volcano, but also our fears, weaknesses and limitations. We hugged, feeling the strength of the team that is always ready to support, even at an altitude of six thousand meters.

The view from the summit was harsh and beautiful at the same time: endless plains, distant mountains, clouds that now seemed so small. This feeling of freedom, pride and unity cannot be expressed in words. It will stay with us forever.

This ascent changed us. Now San Francisco is not just a volcano for us, it is a symbol of strength, faith and perseverance. Tomorrow we are going on vacation. To the town of Copiapo. We deserve it! Leader Lyudmila Korobeshko, assistant leader Alexander Spirin.

The most famous brewer among climbers and the most famous climber among brewers - Daniil Briman, as part of the 7 Summits Club expedition in 2023, climbed to the summit of Mount K2 (Chogori). At the summit, he collected a flask of snow, which he brought to his brewery. Of course, the snow melted, but water was added when boiling the wort for imperial stout beer. We can safely say that Briman Imperial Stout 8611 is the only beer in the world brewed with the addition of snow from the summit of the most dangerous and hard-to-reach eight-thousander on the planet - the "Wild Mountain" K2. Limited edition. There will never be such beer again: Briman said that he will not go to K2 a second time :)

A guide of the 7 Summits Club Alexander Spirin reports from Tanzania:

The morning started at night. A difficult rocky walk, as long as the night itself.  A glowing chain on the slope and pink, predawn, promising something kind, a thin strip anticipating the sunrise.  And we are at Stella point, hugging each other, and then another hour and a half of snuffling to the main peak, a bottle of champagne in honor of the summit and Misha's birthday. And then the descent, long, dusty, tired. And in the evening there was a celebration: climbing and birthday, cake, champagne and the Millennium camp at an altitude of 3700, conversations, stories and great mood. Tired and satisfied, we return home, in parallel we are planning a new travel with the 7 Summits Club!  Guides 2 Alex: Abramov and Spirin.

The guide of the 7 Summits Club Alexander Spirin reports from Tanzania:

It's good that we are cats, the cats thought today, spread their claws and as a beautiful panther in a single rush climbed the most difficult rock of the route - Baranco Wall. After it, there were new up and down, united in one thing: discouraging, breathtaking and heart-pounding views of Kilimanjaro. And all this acquired an even more dizzying coloring thanks to endless stories about cases from mountaineering life, and just the life of our experienced guides. After drowning the crimson African sun in snow-white clouds, we started dinner…

Guides Alex Abramov and Alexander Spirin.

The guide of the 7 Summits Club Alexander Spirin reports from Tanzania:

Our team is called "Wet Cats"! "Wet pussies" are the guides' fantasies! Cats love comfort and beauty, which African nature has offered us in abundance today. It enveloped us with rocky landscapes overgrown with indescribable endemics, mysterious caves and blue "Roerich" mountains in the distance. We walked smoothly, almost like a cat, overcoming difficult stone passages. In the camp, as a bonus, the Tanzanian part of the group organized a local disco, where our cats did not lag behind in joy from the Kilimanjarian dances. The evening was lulled by a romantic sunset. And tomorrow will be a new day…

Alexandra's guides: Abramov and Spirin.

A guide of the 7 Summits Club Alexander Spirin reports from Tanzania:

Hello everyone from Africa!  Today, on the International Mountaineering Day, our program of climbing Kilimanjaro starts. To begin with, we visited two museums.  We spent an unforgettable hour in the snake museum: we saw black, green and other mambas, graceful cobras, beautiful pythons and other dangerous and not very dangerous snakes. As well as crocodiles of different models and turtles, the oldest of which is already a pensioner -75 years old is no joke. After that, we went to a cool museum dedicated to the culture and life of the Masai. It is very informative, especially the initiation of a man into warriors by circumcising his spear.  In the evening, a delicious dinner and congratulations on the mountaineering holiday were waiting for us at the hotel. The guides of the group are two Alexandrs: Abramov and Spirin.