1936 Vitaly & Evgeny Abalakov Historic Khan Tengri Ascent & Survival Epic

Russia🏔️ 2 Peaks

Evgeny Abalakov

Evgeny Mikhaylovich Abalakov was born on February 17, 1907, in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia. Like his elder brother Vitaly, Evgeny began climbing on the volcanic cliffs of the Krasnoyarsk Stolby. Possessing extraordinary physical stamina, grace, and an artistic soul, Evgeny graduated from the prestigious Surikov Moscow State Art Institute as a master sculptor, creating monuments that celebrated the heroic human spirit. In 1933, as a key member of the Soviet-German Pamir Expedition, 26-year-old Evgeny accomplished one of the greatest feats in twentieth-century mountaineering. While teammates collapsed from severe altitude sickness and exhaustion on the unmapped slopes of Peak Communism (7,495 m, now Peak Ismail Somoni in Tajikistan), Evgeny pressed on alone into freezing gales. On September 3, 1933, he summited the peak solo, fixing a meteorological radio station on the roof of the Soviet Union. In 1936, Evgeny joined Vitaly on the second ascent of Khan Tengri (7,010 m). When severe frostbite crippled his teammates on the descent, Evgeny shouldered superhuman burdens, breaking trail and carrying injured companions through blizzards down the Inylchek Glacier to safety. During World War II, Evgeny trained Soviet mountain warfare troops in the Caucasus. He tragically passed away in Moscow on March 24, 1948, honored as one of the bravest mountaineers in Soviet history.

Russia🏔️ 2 Peaks

Vitaly Abalakov

Vitaly Mikhaylovich Abalakov was born on January 13, 1906, in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, Russian Empire. Raised near the towering granite spires of the Krasnoyarsk Stolby nature reserve, Vitaly and his younger brother Evgeny developed into formidable rock climbers from boyhood. Trained as a mechanical engineer at the Moscow Mendeleev Institute, Vitaly combined relentless athletic power with an extraordinary inventive mind. In 1934, Vitaly led the first Soviet ascent of Peak Lenin (7,134 m) in the Pamirs. Two years later, in 1936, Vitaly and Evgeny conquered Khan Tengri (7,010 m). On the descent, trapped in a blizzard, the team endured horrific frostbite; Vitaly lost thirteen fingers and toes, as well as part of his foot. Defying doctors who insisted he would never climb again, Vitaly engineered custom prosthetics, orthopedic boots, and training apparatus, returning to the highest levels of Soviet mountaineering. In 1956, at age 50, Vitaly led the triumphant Spartak expedition that achieved the maiden first ascent of Peak Pobeda (7,439 m), the most lethal and northernmost 7,000-metre peak in the world. Vitaly's greatest enduring contribution to global climbing was his invention of the Abalakov Thread (V-thread)—an anchor drilled through solid ice with a tubular screw and threaded with webbing—which remains the universal standard for ice abseiling worldwide. He died on May 26, 1986, universally recognized as a titan of world alpine history.