[SUBW-A] Tajikistan peak bagging Jun-Jul 2009

[Ashley Burke]

Hi,

I'm starting to look into the possibility of heading to Central Asia in the
middle of this year for some peak bagging. By this I mean a 2-3 week trip to
climb three 5000m peaks in the Fan mountains in Tajikistan, near the border
with Uzbekistan.

The dates of the trip will be approximately 25 Jun-11 Jul 2009.

The trip would be run by a Moscow based company and I have already contacted
the company and progressed to the point where I am now putting this trip to
this email list to canvas interest. Here is the web presence of this company
and the trip:

http://fanyvertical.ru/en/rest/1194520198/1196857147.htm

I would classify the trip as mountaineering, but not very technical. Ice axe
and crampons will be used to travel on snow and glaciers, and ropes will be
used at times for glacier travel and there are a few places where we will be
fixing ropes and climbing in pitches up ice slopes of around 35 degrees.

The geopolitics of the area presents some challenges in the form of
transport, organisation and visa requirements.

It's kind of a once in a lifetime trip. This area is a fascinating part of
the world and likely a spectacular and exciting experience.

So for anyone interested, below are the prerequisites, all mandatory:

- You should be fit and prepared for a challenging trip.
- You should have confidence and experience in use of ropes. Minimum
experience would be canyoning or rock climbing specifically including
knowledge of prussiking and belaying.
- You should be travel savvy as this is not a part of the world for
beginners.
- You would need to have done trips with me before.

The cost of the trip is not yet known but it will not be cheap.

I'm not going to "lead" the trip in the manner typical of your average
weekend in the Blue Mountains. Everyone on the trip will be expected to make
an equal contribution to its success.

With this in mind, contact me if interested.

Ashley Burke
Email: aburke at ozemail.com.au
Web page: http://members.ozemail.com.au/~aburke