Aconcagua(6962) - Page 23

February, 2. This evening we had a call by satphone from 7 Summit Club guide Max Bogatyrev. He reported that yesterday all members of the 7 Summit Club expedition to Aconcagua successfully reached the summit. On the top of Aconcagua (February 1) were:

Klopack Joseph

Arefiev Andrey

Arefiev Sergey

Zogrobyan Arman

Sadikov Vadim

Sadikov Grigory

Shapovalov Igor

Bogatyrev Maxim - 7 Summits Club Guide

We warmly congratulate them!!!

The New Yew started with the growth of activity.

A record number of 7 Summits Club's expeditions held in January. All of them were successful.

Here's a summary of them:
1. Expedition to the highest point of Africa - Kilimanjaro. Group as a whole has risen to the top.
2. In January There were three expeditions to the highest point of South America - Aconcagua. In two expeditions all participants reached the summit. In the third expedition 11 out of 12 people reached the.
3. New Year's expedition to the highest point of Australia - Kosciuszko. All people reached the top. Also as part of the expedition was an active motor race on New Zealand.
4. Expedition to the volcanoes of Ecuador. The whole team summited the volcanoes Chimborazo and Cotopaxi.
5. Closing of the traditional 7 Summits Club expedition to Antarctica. One group had reached the South Pole, passing more than 100 kilometers. A second group climbed to the highest point in Antarctica - Vinson Massif. And the third group to passed more than 300 km from Base Camp Vinson Massif to sea level.

  Yesterday, the group of 7 Summits Club under the leadership of our guide, Maxim Bogatyrev went to Mendoza. Maxim has sent details of the ascent and a picture  from the summit.

   Acclimatization was held by the scheme BC - Camp 4900 (Canada). The second night was at the Condor 5600. Then we went to rest in the base camp. And after two nights we went into the assault. The weather was variable. One day, an incredible for these places amount of snow has fallen. The level of snow was - on his knee. The team started out at 4 a.m. One hour later, our hands - feet began to freeze. I was forced to give trental to my comrades.  But we keep up a temp. At 1 p.m., the group in dense column reached  the top. Without of Ilya Petrunichev, who heroically came to the 6000. That he was very surprised all. After all, he was ill in the base camp . Local guides say that they never had such a strong team. All at 6000m!

   Ilya was waiting for us in 6000 for two nights. January 16, 2010 on the birthday of the Club Captain Alexander Abramov 7 Summits, we were at the top.

Here are the names of those who that day stood at the top:

Borodkin Peter

Vol'per Vladimir

Zagorskaya Anna

Zamalaev Paul

Kornev Mihail

Kornienko Konstantin

Kornienko Svetlana

Nadvodnyuk Vadim

Turovsky Mikhail

Chmel Catherine

 and guide Bogatyrev Maxim

Our friend and partner Noel Hanna, Northern Ireland based adventure sports trainer and endurance athlete finished his project named 7 SUMMITS TO SEALEVEL. It means climbing Seven summits of the world's highest peaks, followed by seven arduous and top-speed descents to Sea Level. Almost five years, seven continents, thousands of column inches in media coverage - and one goal in sight, a new entry in the Guinness Book of Records.

Noel Hanna, 42 is no stranger to nature's extreme challenges. He has competed in many of the world's most grueling endurance races such as, The Marathon Des Sables, Deathvalley 135, Discovery Eco-challenges and Himalayan 100 miler to name just a few.

For Noel Hanna, a man to whom challenge is a familiar friend, the quest was to go much further than previous expeditions - and add a dimension to the Seven Summits Challenge that would test, push, demand and enthrall: to follow each summit expedition with a race to Sea Level by man-powered means and accompanied by an observer from the Guinness Book of Records.

A seasoned mountaineer and endurance athlete, who is also a consultant advising endurance event organizers on course design and expedition logistics, Noel began his challenge in 2005 from Aconcagua.

In spring 2005 Noel Hanna and his wife Lynn joint an expedition of Everest organized by 7 Summits Club and led by Alex Abramov. Despite a setback on his first ascent Everest in 2005, when an eyesight problem forced him to turn back just one mile from the summit, he has relentlessly pursued.

Next year, again with Alex Abramov, they return to Everest North Face. 21st May 2006 he leave camp 2 at 0130 hrs for summit climb. Arrive at summit at 0945 hrs.

Except of his 7 SUMMITS TO SEALEVEL program Noel and Lynn Hanna joint 7 Summits Club for following project:

2009 Climbed to the summit of Mt.Everest 8848mts ( south side).

2009 Climbed to summit of Mt. Elbrus 5642 mts Russia.

On December 2009 Noel left for a 7 week expedition in Antacrtica with a team of 7 Summits Club. 22th of December 2009.Noel with our guide Victor Bobok has climbed Mt.Vinson 4897 mts After some days in Christmas they started for almost 300 km skiing to the sea at Hercules inlet. It takes 8 days to finish 4th of December in Patriot Hills.

Noel Hanna and his wife Lynn on Elbrus

2006 after Everest

With Nikolay Cherny on Everest 2009

Dec 09/Jan 10 : MOUNT VINSON,

Antarctica

Autumn 2008 : CARSTENSZ PYRAMID,

Australasia, Indonesia

Descent to sea level, Nabire in 11 Days 9 hrs 5 mins

Jul 2007 : ELBRUS,

Europe, Russia

Descent to sea level, the Black Sea in 4 days, 22hrs, 50m.

May 2007 : DENALI,

North America, Alaska

Descent to sea level, the South Pacific Ocean in 10 days, 20 hrs, 30m.

Dec 2006 :KILIMANJARO,

Africa, Tanzania

Descent to sea level, the Indian Ocean in 37hrs, 44m.

May 2006 EVEREST,

Asia, Tibet - Nepal

Descent to sea level, the Bay of Bengal in 16 days, 23hrs, 15m.

Jan 2005 ACONCAGUA,

South America, Argentina

Descent to sea level, the Pacific Ocean in 28hrs, 23m.

Link with UCF:

Noel is linking this final leg of his Guinness Book of Records summit to sea level challenge attempt to his ongoing fundraising for UCF. He will be building on the total raised for the charity by the Personal Everest project.

Noel expedition log onto www.7summits2sealevel.com

Season on Aconcagua  started on 15^th of  November and will run until March, 15. Last month about 700 people visited the area to climb the highest peak of South America, but few have reached the top. It is normal situation for this difficult period,  weather has not been established, strong winds hampered the climbers. One of the climbers died. According  not  confirmed information, this is an American 39 years old, Thai origin, named Michel Nimitsil. Three times he tried to climb the peak alone, and after he succeeded, was lost in the fog, and died, apparently of hypothermia in the upper part "of the Polish route. More than a week his body remained on the mountain, now seems to have descended.

 At this point in Mendoza was visited  by the U.S. Consul. He wondered what kind of control system is here, where nobody knows who goes where and where the documents. While everybody pay good money for permit. Americans make up a large portion of  region visitors  and Consul intends to monitor how their rights are respected. Local leaders were forced to justify that, they say, come from  liberal considerations: pay and be free. This season the number of employees of the National Park has increased significantly, and the work they have many. 16 times per month there were evacuation resque works, usually by helicopter.