Damavand 2024

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.

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

 Hello 7 Summits Club! The skitur Damavand expedition continues. We spent the second day in the vicinity of the Tochal ski resort. We caught good weather again in the afternoon, walked the species ring through the nearest ridge. And after dark, we checked our readiness for a night out on the Demavend - we went to the top of the Mount Tochal. Caught wind gusts up to 60km/h. As a result, we are ready to start climbing Damavand.

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

 Ski-tour expedition on Damavand. We had the first active day of the expedition. Already in the mountains. In the morning, we had a little skiing at pistes of the resort. And after lunch we climbed on ski the nearest peak.

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

Greetings to the 7 Summits Club from Iran! We are opening the climbing season on Demavend.  We coped with the first task - we arrived and walked around Tehran. The palace, the national museum, a TV tower with a rotating restaurant. And now let's go to the mountains. By the way, on skis, we still have a ski expedition to Demavend!