4 October 2007 K2 Denis and Serguey. The duo is in the Base Camp. Denis wrote that they started from C4 via Japanese couloir, reached the top on 5-30 pm. and descended to C4 on about 2 am and began the descent further on 6 am

3 October 2007 Boris Korshunov (72) summited Cho Oyu yesterday on 4 p.m. solo. He left Camp 2 at 7100 on 9 a.m. and planned to reach Camp 3 at 7500, but didn't find his tent there and decided to climb further, so he started from C3 on midday, and summited on 4 p.m. Today he descended to ABC. (www.7summits.ru)

3 October 2007 K2 Denis and Serguey. SMS from Denis, 4-40 p.m. (Moscow time): We are on the glacier, in the tent. All's OK. Tomorrow we'll try to return to BC.

SUMMIT!!! SMS from Denis, 5-30 a.m. Moscow time: We're in C4, begin the descent. Yesterday we reached the top.

Congratulations for this great duo!

1 October 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. 2 p.m. Moscow time. Karl Gabl from Austria give me the weather forecast for K2:
the meteorological model shows nearly continous mostly light snowfall in the next days till Saturday. The wind situation: In the night to Tuesday windspeed up to 100 km/h and also the whole following week till Friday
stormy conditions prevail. The average windspeed is around 80 /km/h on Top of K2 (mostly direction Southwest). In 7000 m wind should be around 40 to 50 km/h.

October, 1 SMS from Denis, 0-30 p.m. Moscow time: We're in Camp 4. The weather's very bad, no visibility. If the weather'll give us the chance, we'll go up tomorrow.

September, 30 SMS from Denis, 3-00 p.m. Moscow time: We reached Camp 3. The weather's clear, windy, cold. We feel fine.

September, 29 SMS from Denis, 2-00 p.m. Moscow time: We have to finish our ambicious plan: we can't reach K2 North Ridge due to avalanche danger. We decided to climb normal route. The weather's very bad. We reached Camp 2.

September, 28 SMS from Denis, 2-00 p.m. Moscow time: The weather's bad, avalanches on K2 North Face, too dangerous. We'll wait here 2 days, then will try to cross to the normal route (NW ridge, Japanese) because
we wouldn't reach that route from the BC in such deep snow.

September, 28 SMS from Denis, 12-00 a.m. Moscow time: Is there the weather improving in nearest days?
We're in so bad conditions here - it's horrible... It looks like this blizzard finish only in Spring...

September, 28 SMS from Denis, 8-00 a.m. Moscow time: the snow blizzard began today night, no visibility now,
avalanches are falling from the North Face. We're obliged to wait 1-2 days. We're chronically unsuccess in this expedition...

27 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey.
SMS from Denis, 5-40 pm Moscow time: We will start tomorrow. There will be no messages and sms from us during 10 days/ we'll leave our thuraya phone here, on the glacier. We feel well.

SMS from Denis, 2-40 pm Moscow time: we are under the beginning of our route. Waiting the affordable weather, but... here's real winter. But we hope for a chance for our new route...

24 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. SMS from Denis, 5-30 p.m. (Moscow time): "Hi, we are burning down fires, hearing "The voice of Russia" by radio. The weather is bit better today. We decided to fight. We'll leave the base camp the day after tomorrow, and will go up to the foot of the mountain. Food, gas, health - all is OK".

Photo: red line - the route which Denis and Serguey will begin to climb tomorrow

23 September 2007 SMS from Denis, 6-15 a.m. Moscow time: "My mother's birthday! I want a holiday! Eagles returned here again. Samoilov is sewing, eating, sleeping. The temperature was -30C, but we expect more extremal. I tired to sit in the base camp. Strong wind, low visibility, cold, rain, boredom... I feel as a caged animal. I think, it won't finish soon".

19 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. SMS from Denis, 3-30 p.m. (Moscow time): We're resting well. The trees became yellow, the birds have left this place. Jan Schnidrig came to our Base Camp (he did the first climb on Gasherbrum II with Ueli Stick) Our cook is cooking tasty. I'll begin my trainings tomorrow. Serguey is reparing his old mittens. Our cook suggests us to try the Chinese vine, Jan suggests beer, but we refused, because are "alcogolized" by 8000 m yet... Today we finally choosed the line of our future route.

17 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. Acclimatization is completed. Denis and Serguey are at 4700 - as they sms-ed on 8 p.m. today. Tomorrow they'll descend to the Base Camp - to rest, to eat, to drink, to prepare to the new route. Samoilov feels better, he's already about full recovered after his bronchitis.

16 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. Acclimatization on Japanese route. SMS from Denis 15-00 (Moscow time): "We reached 8300, but there was very dangerous avalanche prone snow, so we turned back. Now we're in C4. All's OKl" Two days earlier Denis and Serguey climbed to C3. "The weather's good, we see Nanga, Latoks, Pamir...The world as on a palm! But it's more snow than were two weeks ago when Kazakhs climbed". Guys have to complete their acclimatization, then rest about 5 days before start to new route. But the weather forecast shows very bad weather after Sep, 19. On Saturday Denis and Serguey reached Camp 4. In the evening they went up to look at the couloir which led to the summit, find the way to the glacier and decided to start on 5 a.m. for the summit attempt - as Denis wrote in SMS on 7 pm when the duo returned back to the C4 tent. He added, that they're afraid of cold, because didn't plan summit bid when left BC and haven't enough warm clothes for it.

13 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. SMS from Denis 17-00 (Moscow time): "Wow! We congratulate Semjon and Roman, and also both Sergueys (Elbrus Race winners - ed. note). We're in C2, feel excellent. We have found our deposit, drink a lot of water, eat a lot of food. Greetings to all". 

12 September 2007 Elbrus Race 2007.

Organizers: www.Russianclimb.com and Top Sport Travel (www.sklon.ru) The results:

"Extreme" class (Azau (2400) - West Top (5642). 4 climbers started, 2 of them reached the top. Semjon Dvornichenko (Kyrgyzstan) - 4 hours 18 minutes.

Serguey Surmonin (Russia) 6 hours 14 minutes (he run 6 hours 22 minutes last year)

"Classics" class (Bochki (3700) - West Top (5642): 12 climbers started

Winners are: Roman Gubanov (Russia) 2 hours 51 min (1), Seliverstov Serguey (Kyrgyzstan)2 hours 53 min (2), Fursov Serguey 3 hours 14 min (3)

12 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. 12 September 2007 SMS from Denis 11-00 (Мoscow time): The second day the weather's good. But here's a lot of snow (waist-deep), avalanches. We reached C1 via normal route and are planning to climb further. We're very tired.

10 September 2007 SMS from Denis 11-00 (Almaty time): We have food and gas for 4 days, and deposit in C2. But it's a problem that all our clothes is wet.

9 September 2007 SMS from Denis 11-00 (Мoscow time): Serguey is fine already, he recovered. We're under K2 at 5200, the weather is bad, there's half-meter fresh snow layer on the glacier , avalanche danger. We're waiting to continue our acclimatization.

5 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. SMS from Denis: we're in BC. Serguey tries to treat his illness, we both are brave and hope to climb K2 . There're warm in BC, we eat apples, meat, see films together with Kazakhs team, wash our clothes. I'm very thankful for SIVERA company for the warm. comfortable and light weight equipment.

3 September 2007 K2 North Ridge. Denis and Serguey. SMS from Denis: yesterday we climbed till 6600 (our acclimatization push along NW ridge). Two days ago we have met Bogomolov and Puchinin - they were descending to BC. Today Serguey Samoilov felt ill - abscess bronchitis. He doesn't understand how he has cought the infection... We descended to the glacier, and will try to treat him, but we're not sure about further climb.

2 September 2007 K2 NW ridge Kazakhstan expedition.Radio contact 10.00 (Almaty time) Vassily Pivtsov and Maxut Zhumayev are descending - three nights at 8400, the last without the stove, chest=deep snow. difficult rocks... K2 appeared stronger than climbers, in spite they did their best...

1 September 2007 K2 NW ridge Kazakhstan expedition.Radio contact 10.00 (Almaty time) Vassily Pivtsov and Maxut Zhumayev pitched the tent at 8400, fixed 200 m above it.