Fourteen routes on the North Face of Svobodnaya Koreya peak.

Compiled by Maxim Kostrov (Mountain.RU)

"Svobodnaya Koreya" (Free Korea) peak is a pearl of Aksai ravine (Tien Shan, Kirghiz ridge). There are about 14 routes on its North Face. Many of them compete with the hardest routes of Tien Shan, Alps and the Caucasus.

A survey of Kirghiz ridge, where the peak is located, may be found in Alexei Abramov's article "West Tien Shan". It is supplied with the map of the region.

A list of routes:
1. Left "triangle" of the North Face, grade 5B (mixed), V. Balezin, 1991.
2. Left buttress of the North Face, grade 5B (mixed), A. Shvab, 1982.
3. The North Face of the East Ridge, grade 6A (mixed), B. Studenin, 1966.
4. The North Face of the East Ridge, grade 6A (mixed), A. Kustovski, 1969.
5. The North Face, grade 6A (mixed), S. Semiletkin, 1988.
This route had been rated as 6B up to 1999. It is considered to be the most complicated (with respect to technique) on the North Face of Free Korea.
6. The centre of the North Face, grade 6A (mixed), Yu. Popenko, 1975.
It is considered to be the "easiest" 6-rated route on the face of Free Korea.
Beta of the route:
Altitude difference: 1020m.
Length of 5-6-rated sections: about 600m.
Average steepness: 72 degrees.
Average ascent time: two days.
Examples of ascent terms: SAVO (army team), 1986: 27.5 hours (active part of the route, with camping). Karaganda team, 1986: 33 hours (active part of the route, with camping). MVO (army team), 1987: 29 hours (active part of the route, with camping).
Customary place for a bivy is on the ledge in the centre of the face, under the ceiling. Crux starts from the ledge.
This route, as mos t of 6-rated routes on Free Korea, faces a rockfall danger in summer.
7. The centre of the North Face, grade 6A (mixed), V. Bezzubkin, 1969.
8. The right part of the North Face, grade 6A (mixed), A. Ruchkin, 1997.
9. The right ridge of the North Face, grade 5B (mixed), L. Myshlyaev, 1961.
The team of the renowned Soviet climber Lev Myshlyaev was the first group, which "broke open" the North Face of Free Korea. Concerning the technique, it's a very hard 5B grade route.
10. The "triangle" of the North Face, grade 5B (mixed), B. Bagaev, 1974.
11. The couloir of the North Face, grade 5B (ice, snow), G. Barber, 1976.
Americans G. Barber and D. Lowe have solo climbed their routes.
12. The centre of the Northwest face, grade 5B (mixed), V. Balezin, 1994.
13. The Northwest face, grade 5A (mixed), G. Andreev, 1959.
14. The couloir of the Northwest face, grade 5A (mixed), D. Lowe, 1976.
Main dangers of the route:
There are sectors of high rockfall danger, which are situated in the first third and in the centre of ice couloir. Rockfalls intensity is low, but they are racing on a steep ice. In the first third of the couloir it is recommended to sheer to the left (under the rocks), though a grade of the slope in the centre is lower. Bergschrund should be passed there too. There exist segments of lolly ice on the way, where it is very difficult to provide a secure belay with ice-screws.
Technical account of the route:
Crux consists of first three pitches after the bergschrund. There occur ice fragments, which are uncertain for a secure belay.
Onwards the couloir flattens out to 40 degrees and retains approximately this slope up to the ridge. Further, the route goes along the ridge to the pre-summit tower, passing round gendarmes.
First gendarme en route requires piton belay. Onwards the belay should be synchronous and sometimes by turns.
Rocks are of app. 2nd-3rd grade. Gendarmes of the ridge generally are passed from the right. Pre-summit tower is a rock monolith, dissected with a large number of cracks. There are a lot of foot- and handholds. The climbing isn't hard; it's about a third grade. The summit itself is apparent.
This is the easiest route on the face of Free Korea. It's often used for a descent.

Simagin peak is to the left of Free Korea peak. The route to it is marked with "S" on the photo: by the right arm of the North buttress (5b grade, mixed, I. Polevoy, 1969).

translation by Petr V. Sergeev