Czerski Range, 1988. A Czechoslovak expedition climbed in the Czerski Range in eastern Siberia in 1988. (The range was named for a Pole, hence the spelling.) It lies in a remote area with a harsh climate and many unclimbed peaks. The highest, Pobeda (3147 meters, 10,325 feet) was first climbed in 1966 and had been climbed only once since. Access is difficult with marshy tundra and few roads or maps. The Slovaks, led by Pavol Breier, flew to the Yukutian village of Sassyr and then traveled a day by truck to the pathless wilderness. They established Base Camp on the Leker Glacier at 2000 meters. On July 13, 1988, two pairs made the first ascent of P 3075 (10,068 feet), the second highest in the area. Breier and P. Zelina reached the summit via the southeast ridge (UIAAIV) while V. Kinceš and J. Trst’an climbed the 700- meter-high east face (IV and 55° ice). On July 16, Kinces and Trst’an climbed a new route in the center of the 800-meter-high north face of Pobeda (IV, 65° ice). A trekking group accompanying them climbed Pobeda from the south and crossed the Buordakh massif. Both the climbers and trekkers then joined and made an exciting 400-kilometer paddle down the Moma River through uninhabited country to Honuu village at the junction of the Moma and Yandigirka rivers.

JÓzef Nyka, Editor, Taternik, Poland