Damavand 2024

Greetings from Tehran! Yesterday (July 2) the Persian Lions group stood in full force at the top of Damavand! The weather conditions continue to surprise us. It was the third ascent in a row, which took place in difficult conditions, in fog and with strong winds. It should be noted that such weather is unusual for Damavand at this time of the year. And this makes this ascent an even more significant achievement. At the last moment, the exit to the assault was again postponed to 23.00, up to a height of 5,200 m we walked in one group. Then we split into two.  The "fast ones" broke away for half an hour, but stayed at the top to take a general group photo - team spirit, what else can you say! Of course, it was not easy, of course, everyone was tired, but the memory of achieving the goal in such conditions will remain with us for the rest of our lives. We are proud of the Team with a capital letter! Guides Evgeny Fedyunin and Valery Myasoedov.

Greetings from the top of Damavand! The group of the 7 Summits Club "Persian Lions" climbed the summit of the highest volcano in Asia and the highest mountain in Iran! The team is on the descent – details later.

01.07, 5th day. All salam from Iran! The Persian Lions group of the 7 Summits Club went to acclimatization today and is preparing to storm the Damavand peak. For lunch there was a signature buffet and fish, very tasty and satisfying. Now we are resting, we are going to storm at 2.00, hold your fists for us!

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

All salom from Iran! Our group "Persian Lions" on the 4th day of the Damavand climbing program went up to the 4250m assault camp. The weather, ugh-ugh-ugh, pleased me and the pace was good, we got up in 5 hours. There is practically no one in the refuge yet, which cannot but please, peace and quiet, without fuss around.

The hot soup brought us to our senses after trekking, now we are resting and waiting for a delicious dinner, the menu of which will definitely be a surprise for the group.

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

29.06, 3rd day. All salom from Iran! Our group "Persian Lions" of the 7 Summits Club continues its acclimatization! Today we practically had a day of rest, after yesterday's mountain Tochal climb. A certain tradition is developing. We started the morning with a high-altitude exercise and an excellent national breakfast.

We slowly descended by cable car to Tehran and drove to the foot of Damavand. Already, almost in the native restaurant "Adam and Eve", we had lunch with a lot of kebabs.  It's very tasty, it's pointless to write, you need to try!

We received climbing permits from the local Mountaineering Federation and came to the Larijan thermal springs resort. This is "real mountaineering": kebabs, springs, swimming!

Dinner, as always, at the local wonderful kebab shop with seven types of kebabs. The real work begins tomorrow, we will climb to the hut of the assault camp at an altitude of 4250m.

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

Breaking news from Iran! This morning, our participant Roman from the Third Mountain group, together with our Iranian guide, climbed Damavand. On the eve of the assault, Roman had a high fever, and he did not go up with the main group. However, he decided not to leave the summit "for later" and successfully completed the program! Well done! Congratulations! Guides Evgeny Fedyunin and Valery Myasoedov.

28.06, the 2nd day of the trip. All salom from Iran! Our new group on the Damavand climbing program "Persian Lions" went up to the Tochal 3500m hotel for initial acclimatization. After lunch kebabs, we climbed the peak of the same name Tochal 3964m. By tradition, after trekking, we held a stretching session and are now enjoying a high-altitude rest.

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

Salom from Iran! The third group of the Damavand season arrived in Tehran early yesterday morning. A short transfer and we are already at Espinas Palace, the best hotel in Tehran at the foot of the Elburs mountain range. After rest and breakfast, we traditionally went on a city tour. We visited the Golestan Palace, learned a lot of interesting things about the reign of the Qajar dynasty from our Iranian guide Pasha. During the tour, there were many diverse questions on political and economic topics, which Pasha adequately coped with. We have an inquisitive group!

 Lunch at the national restaurant, where the main dish is "dizi", was appreciated by everyone. And a welcome dinner at the Milod Tower with a panorama of evening Tehran completed the first day of immersion in this incredible colorful culture of Iran. We decided to be called "'Persian lions", which shows the most determined attitude to the climb.

Guides Evgeny Fedyunin and Valery Myasoedov.

All salom from Iran! Our group "Third Mountain" yesterday celebrated its successful ascent on the summit of Damavand volcano (5671m) in the wonderful Diba restaurant! A solemn awarding ceremony was held for the participants! Many kind words have been said to each other! The group has rallied as much as possible, everyone is ready for new climbs.

Early this morning, half of the group flew home, the other half to Shiraz, where they will continue their cultural excursion program around the country. We wish them bright impressions!

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

Greetings from Iran from the group "Third Mountain"! We are already in Tehran! For many, it was the third mountain in a row, and we are glad that the name of the group justified itself. Yesterday, at about 7.30, the "Third Mountain" in two subgroups, almost in full force, went to the top of Damavand with an interval of 15 minutes. Unfortunately, one participant reached only 5200 m. In total, 13 of the 14 participants reached the top. Why is it so early at 7.30, the question arises. We had to accept the challenge of bad weather, which settled in the Damavand area for several days. We had to make a choice between a bad forecast and a very bad one. The collective decision of the guides was to go out in two subgroups at 21.00 and 23.00. A very non-standard plan, but it justified itself. Through snow and wind in difficult conditions, for the first time in our many years of experience, we made this ascent. Our participants showed incredible courage and perseverance. We will always remember their desire and will to reach the top and set an example for our future bands. Photos and videos convincingly show this. Guides Evgeny Fedyunin and Valery Myasoedov.

Greetings from Iran, from the assault camp on the slopes of Demavend! Our group "The Third Mountain" went to the final acclimatization rotation today and is now preparing to storm the summit. The ascent takes place in difficult weather conditions. They plan is to start in two groups. The ascent will start earlier than usual in order to catch the maximum weather window.

Fingers crossed and good luck!

2.06, 3rd day.  All salom from Iran!  The group of the 7 Summits Club "Third Mountain" continues its acclimatization program before climbing Damavand.  After a morning high-altitude exercise and an excellent breakfast, we went down by cable car to Tehran and rode by comfortable minibusus to the foot of Damavand.

On the way, we had lunch at our favorite Adam and Eve restaurant, tasting delicious kebabs and fresh salads. Then we visited the House of the Iranian Mountaineering Federation and issued the necessary permits for climbing Damavand.  On the way to Larijan, a local thermal spring resort, we stopped at the poppy meadow for a branded local photo shoot.

After staying at the hotel, we visited the pool with thermal waters and enjoyed seven types of kebabs at dinner in the local kebab shop, everything is very cool!

Well-fed and satisfied, we took an evening walk around Larijan, and then went to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a hard day - climbing to the assault camp at 4200m.

Take care of yourself!

See you in the mountains!

All the weather and good luck!

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

All salam from Iran! Today, our group called "The Third Mountain" went up to the Tochal ski resort to the alpine hotel of the same name – Tochal.  To a height of 3500m, for primary acclimatization.

The ascent was not difficult, as we used the "technical support" of the local cable car.

After lunch, the weather began to deteriorate, and we decided not to waste time and instead of the Shah Neshin mountain (3800m) go straight to the Peak of Tochal - 3964m. We managed, before the thunderstorm, which came as soon as we entered the hotel.

We went in “pole-pole”, in a very comfortable aerobic mode! After trekking, we did stretching and rest on the eve of dinner.

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

Greetings to all from Iran! A new group of the 7 Summits Club has arrived in Tehran to climb the highest volcano in Asia, Mount Damavand 5671m.

Today there was a sightseeing tour of the city with a visit to the mirrored halls of the Golestan Palace and lunch at a restaurant located in the ancient building of the first Tehran bank.

And in the evening, we had a welcome dinner in the panoramic restaurant of the Milad TV tower at an altitude of 280 meters. We met and discussed the name of our group.

Guides Valery Myasoedov and Evgeny Fedyunin.

Valery Myasoedov, the guide of the 7 Summits Club, reports from Iran:

 Salom from Iran! Yesterday, the group "Three by three" in full force made an ascent on the summit of Damavand.  In my memory, the most difficult climb, the most difficult weather conditions, all the most unusual… We went out to storm at 23.00, whereas before, all our groups went out at 4-5 in the morning. This was due to the thunderstorm front, which has been steadily covering the Damavand area for the past few days in the afternoon. Safety is always a priority for us, wherever it is, on any mountain. We spent more than a day on our feet, just a couple of hours of rest after dinner, the participants showed a full understanding of the situation and the mood to achieve the goal. As a result, at 6.45 am we were all standing at the top, very tired, but also very happy from this moment of being on the highest volcano in Asia. After almost 8 hours of work in difficult conditions, the snow was knee-deep in places, it was completely uncharacteristic for the June Damavand, in fact, it was like a winter ascent. The indomitable character and willpower of the band members are admired. The guys are great fellows, real fighters! Now we are already in Tehran, resting and recovering. There will be a gala dinner and an award ceremony in the evening.

Valery Myasoedov, the guide of the 7 Summits Club, reports from Iran:

Greetings from Iran! The group "Three by three" continues its climbing program on Damavand. Today was the third day, which we tentatively called Kebab Day the day before. Great name, fully justified. After breakfast at the Tochal Mountain Hotel, we took a cable car down to Tehran and started moving to the foot of Damavand. On the way, we had lunch planned at our favorite Adam and Eve restaurant. A non-Muslim name, say, but nevertheless…  And they also started celebrating Kebab Day there. Lamb on a bone, lamb kebab, several fresh salads and snacks with beer and doug, milk drink. A great start!

   Later we stopped at the House of the Iranian Mountaineering Federation to apply for permits. And how they would have been decorated. But, in fact, they did not get their hands on it, since the big boss was not in the office. We left copies of our passports, paid for them, and were formally given the go-ahead to move on. Thanks to the time saved, we then drove to the poppy meadow. We spent an hour there. This is some kind of poppy paradise... Look at the photo and you will understand.

Next, we reached Larijan, a hotel with thermal springs. We settled in, took a walk, rested, and finished the Kebab Day at a local kebab shop. Liver kebab, pork fat kebab, bone kebab were insanely tender and delicious, they even asked for an addition. Well-fed and satisfied, we took an evening walk around Larijan and went to bed. Tomorrow is a hard day, climbing to the camp at 4,200 m.

Valery Myasoedov, a guide of the 7 Summits Club, reports from Iran:

Salome from Iran from a group called "Three by three"! We have three participants with climbing experience, and three are beginners, hence the name. More experienced people share their experience with beginners, and guides also take an active part in this. Today, on the second day of the program, we took the cable car to the Tochal Hotel, located at 3,500 m. It is such an oasis of comfort in the middle of rocky and snow-covered slopes.

The weather is trying to nightmare us, but for now we are skillfully avoiding a meeting with a thunderstorm front that has surrounded Tehran and the surrounding area. For this reason, we went to the summit of Tochal, 3964 m, right after lunch. The right decision! In Tehran, as they say in Russia, there was a mega-downpour, but not a drop fell on the rocks during the ascent. We climbed at a good pace. We spent an hour at the top, had an interesting time, played the Ninja Strike game, this is a new game idea of our guide Hamid. It was a lot of fun!

We went down to the hotel, had a delicious dinner, now we are relaxing in the lobby, playing board games and waiting for the start of the European Football Championship. We hope we have enough strength at least for the first half.

Valery Myasoedov, a guide of the 7 Summits Club, reports from Iran:
Greetings from Iran! A new season has started on Damavand! Hurray! How we've been waiting for this!.. The first group arrived yesterday, the visa was processed quickly, and in less than an hour we were at the hotel. Almost 5 whole hours of rest after a night flight were very useful. Tehran greeted us with a heat of +38, but this is normal for this time of year, we were ready for it. On the first day of the program, as always, we have a sightseeing tour of the city and lunch at a restaurant located in an ancient building where the first Tehran bank once stood. Traditionally, they tried "dizi sangi", a dish in a pot with mutton and vegetables. We haven't had time to get hungry yet after a hearty breakfast at the hotel, however, we got an idea about the peculiarities of cooking this dish and Iranian cuisine in general.

Then, accompanied by our guide, the magnificent Mariam, we proceeded to the Golestan Palace, where we examined numerous expositions and artifacts of the Qajar and Pahlavi dynasties. We are very lucky that Mariam is our city guide again this season, she is already our mascot, sets a good positive mood for the whole program. In the evening, a welcome dinner was held in the panoramic restaurant of the Milod TV tower at an altitude of 280 m. We got to know each other better and came up with the name of our group. We are now called "Three by Three". Why? I will explain in the next news. Today we are going up to the alpine hotel Tochal for acclimatization.

Artyom Rostovtsev, a guide of the 7 Summits Club, reports from Iran:

 Hello to the 7 Summits Club! A ski-touring expedition to Asia's highest volcano, Mount Demavend, has ended. The weather has repelled our attempt at climbing, but we will be back. The team is already going home today. Yesterday we spent time on tours of Tehran, mostly wandering around the Grand Bazaar. And in the evening, at a gala dinner, we celebrated our successes and gained invaluable experience.

Artem Rostovtsev, a guide of the 7 Summits Club, reports from Iran:

 Greetings from Iran from the ski-tour team of on Demavend! Today was the most important day of our trip - we went out early in the morning to storm the summit. The weather forecast showed some kind of small window with a decrease in wind strength. So it was, but only for an hour. And then the storm started. They retreated at about an altitude of 5150m. There is a reserve day tomorrow, but perhaps not - the wind is 95km/h in the forecast. But none of the participants were upset, it was interesting and there is a reason to return.