On March 28 we went for sport climbing in Noravanq canyon. The sky with heavy clouds couldn't brake our optimism that good weather may come.

We set off at 11 a.m. instead of 9am, so to give the weather some chance to get fair.  Finally the sun rays were noticed somewhere in the sky, however, we got the canyon and started climbing the rout “Kret” it started raining again. Even so… :) we managed to climb the routes “Kaitsak” 20m, and ”Danak” 60m, also.

I would like to warn those who want to climb “Danak” in what follows: there were lots of holds breaking on left crack of the second pitch, though I had climbed it on May 2007, but at that time that part of the rock seemed to be more solid.  And there are also some blocks lying freely on the shelf of the beginning of the third pitch of it. 

 

During both of the times of climbing “Danak”  I have chosen the line left from the crack on the third  pitch at the same time escaping the second bolt. This way you have the deep pendulum chance till you reach the top anchor but your way gets funnier to face climb than climbing by a broken crack.   

Rock and Ice climbing

  • Kids are leading

    On the end of the August Ellen J. Brager wrote me that her 11 years old daughter wants to take rock climbing lessons.

     
  • From Indian Creek to El Capitan, Yosemite. 2017

    It is hard to stop going to Indian Creek and Yosemite once you have experienced that already. There are so many climbs to do and the local climbing culture itself makes you feel like you will be missing something if not to go these places even once in a season.

     
  • Tigranes The Great

       "Tigranes The Great" is my beloved climb on Titanic Rock in Gnishik canyon, Vayots Dzor province of Armenia. I have bolted it in 2018 and climbed it in 2019.

     
  • "Spitak" rescue team’s climbing Noravanq canyon

      With the "Spitak" Rescue Center's young team, we went to further explore the Noravank (Gnishik) canyon.

     

Mountaineering and Backcountry skiing

  • Recce ski-touring on Mt Aragats

    With an aim to explore a new Ski-tour route for Geographic Travel Club Andranik Miribyan, John Clinton and me set off to the village Aragats.

     
  • French Ski-tour in Armenia

    From Feb 25 to March 5, a French group was hosted by Up The Rocks for ski-touring program in Armenia.

     
  • Ski-touring review 2016/17

     Winter 2016/17 was a season for joy and exploration of new ski touring areas and tracks in Armenia and Georgia. 

     
  • "The Awake Path"

       The Armenian Mountaineering and Skiing National School was born as a result of the transformation of Up The Rocks club, on October 1st, 2024. The School's umbrella organization is the Armenian Alpine Club SNGO. 

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