We took a close look at the top of KazNU
In the zailiyskiy Alatau there is a peak of Al-Farabi KazNU (4361 m). The peak was first climbed in 1951 by a group of climbers led by Kuzma Alexandrov. It is difficult to reach the top of KazNU. Firstly, the road is very far away, and secondly, it is close to the border zone.
About the peak of kaznu in the classification table of routes leading to the mountain peaks of the Zailiyskiy Alatau of the Federation of Mountaineering and rock climbing of the Republic of Kazakhstan (mountain.kz) marked by the 95th serial number (1951). In the table, it indicated the climbing category as 3A. In climbing, this means a higher than average degree of difficulty. For such peaks, a certain climbing training, technique and equipment are required. As a rule, this category is typical for peaks located above 4000 m above sea level. The top relief consists of an icy and snowy slope (25-45°), rocky or mixed (ice-stone) lands, and also belongs to the category of areas at risk of avalanches, Stone Falls. A rope, a carabiner, an ice hammer, toothed iron legs, and insurance systems are mandatory for climbing such a top. Depending on the difficulty, it is necessary to know how to work with a rope and insure yourself. It is also important to have good physical endurance and adapt to the height.
After 1951, we did not find information about those who reached the top of KazNU. But we tried to find out about Kuzma Alexandrov, who was the first to climb the top 74 years ago, who led the climbing team. According to the open source of Kazakhstan climbers (ourrocks.kz Kuzma Yakovlevich was born in Almaty in 1929. In 1953, he was awarded the title of three-time champion of the Soviet Union in the category of climbing, and in 1954-the title of Master of sports. On August 21, 1955, at the peak of victory, he died from a severe frostbite (sport-strana.ru)
Since the name of the peak was given in Soviet times, openstreetmap.org, nakarte.me on the maps you can find the peak of KazNU. To find out the features of the location of the peak of kaznu, we turned to Zhanar Raiymbekova, an employee of the Joint Kazakh-Chinese laboratory of remote sensing technologies and their application at Al – Farabi kaznu. According to the specialist, the peak of kaznu is located on the slide pass between the Glide-Muz and Zhusandyk glaciers in the Zailiyskiy Alatau (coordinate 42°58'58"N 77°13'47"E). On the opposite face lies the Echo glacier and from here the basin of the Echo River begins. The Echo River flows down to the bucket River.
In some years, small water accumulates in the moraine formed during the melting of the Wormwood Glacier in the vicinity of the peak, which turns into a basin lake. As the weather and seasons change, the lake fills up in one year and stretches into the next year. However, due to its very small size, it turned out that the lake was not documented.
On August 15, 2017, I accidentally dropped the top of kaznu from a helicopter during an aerovisual observation by specialists of the state institution "Kazseldenproofs". After this pictures earth.google.com we compared and identified it and published it in the photo album "Farabi universiteti-90" (on page 187), published in 2024 with the support of the rector of Al – Farabi kaznu zh.Tuimebayev. But the moment to admire the peak up close came after seven years. On September 21, the head of the Almaty Aviation Department of the RSE "Kazaviaorman Defense" Bekzat Bayshalov made this dream come true. During the return trip to the territory of the Almaty State nature reserve, a helicopter flew near the peak of kaznu. We managed to take a photo of that moment.
During the photo shooting of the peak, we climbed to a height of 4500 meters on the Mi-8 helicopter of the Kazaviaspas service. The peak is a single pyramidal, surrounded by glaciers, located in the habitat of glaciers that cannot be reached by human feet. And the first snow on the mountain was giving its hue. Although it was warm below, severe frosts were felt here. Still, it was lucky to photograph the top from different angles for a few minutes from the helicopter window. Perhaps this was the group that came closest to the top after 1951. But even if we did not climb to the top, we witnessed the peak from a slight angle. Air operations were performed by qualified specialists led by helicopter commander Arman Dauletbekov, pilot instructor Omirzhan Asangaliyev, co-pilot Serik Kazhagulov, flight operator Molotzhan Duganov, flight mechanic Azamat Sultanbayev. In this context, we would like to express our gratitude to the Almaty Aviation Department of the RSE "Kazaviaormankorg" led by Bekzat Baishalov, who helped us take a photo of the majestic view of the peak of zholai kaznu. It was a historic day that brought kaznu to its peak after 74 years.
Doszhan BALABEKOVICH,
The Department of philosophy senior lecturer
The author who took the pictures
