The Pamirs (from Persian "the roof of the world") is a vast mountain region in Central Asia, where branches of the greatest ridges of the Asian continent Hindu Kush, Kunlun, Tien-Shan come together. Peaks of the Pamirs are the second highest, surpassed in height only by those of the Himalaya and the Karakorum. Unmatched in the world. The Pamirs' highest peak is Somani Peak (Peak Communism) 7,495m. In 1999, by order of the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan, Peak Communism was renamed Somani Peak, in honor of the founder of the Tajik statehood.

This was not its first name change. The first ever successful ascent in 1933 was celebrated on Peak Stalin, in honor of the then leader of the USSR. But in 1962 it was renamed "Peak Communism", as it was the highest point in the USSR. Not a climber in the world who is not familiar with that name and conquering this giant is still considered a highly prestigious feat. But let us take a look back at the first ascent on September 3, 1933, under the leadership of N. Gorbunov after an unprecedented 80 day expedition full of hardship and tragedies. Six people reached a height of 6,900m, and only one of them, E. Abalakov, made it to the summit. Two members of the expedition perished on the sheer cliffs.

Geographically, Somani Peak is in the northwest Pamirs, where two ranges converge. From this monumental massif spring three tremendous glaciers, Fortambek, Bivuachny, Garmo and not far from here starts the longest mountain glacier in the world, the Fedchenko glacier with a length of 71km. The Major Pamir Firn plateau on the slopes of Somani Peak at the height of 6,000m, stretching over a surface of 30km2 is referred to as a "geographical wonder".

A 2h helicopter flight out of the heat of Dushanbe sets the climbers down on base camp on the picturesque Moskvin meadow (4,200m), a green oasis between the Moskvin and Walter glaciers. This brisk transfer into the realm of eternal snow has brought more than one experienced and hardened climbers down with mountain sickness during the first few days of acclimatizing.

More than 30 routes lead to the top with the most challenging starting from the Belyaev glacier straight up a 2km vertical wall. The classic and less dramatic and demanding route follows the western slope and was named the Borodkin verge in 1968 in honour of Yu. Borodkin, the first explorer. Not that it is considered exactly easy, the passage takes 59 days and involves crossing several passes, wild waters and the Fortambek glacier.

The base camp on Somani Peak is among the most comfortable and luxurious high-altitude camps in the world. A spacious log cabin with an original design featuring a glass pavilion accommodates up to 70 people. Through the bay windows, before your very eyes, the enticing trapezoidal summit is seen in full view. The water in the showers and the kitchen is heated by helio-plants; in the evening a diesel generator provides enough electricity to keep the sauna going and to charge camera batteries. Connection with the rest of the world is maintained via two-way radio; and by way of a satellite phone one could even get internet access.

Climbers are generally unpretentious and undemanding guests; but after mountaineering, it is such a pleasure to indulge oneself with the benefits of civilization in the heartland of the Pamirs: to have a cold beer at the bar, to enjoy an appetizing snack or to watch a video. The camp was founded by Vladimir Mashkov, a well-known climber and scientist. Each year, ever more climbers from all over the world come here to challenge the Pamir giant; that is why the meadow is teeming with multi-colored tents and buzzing with multilingual speech. It is possible to meet here Americans and Japanese, Czechs and Poles, Scandinavians and Baltic states citizens, Germans and Frenchmen, Taiwanese and Iranians, and even Australians and New Zealanders. "The fair sex" does not lag behind and can even outclass many a male climber. The very first woman to reach the top of Somani Peak in 1969, was Larissa Agranovskaya nicknamed "snow leopard". She has climbed all four 7000ers in the former USSR.

With a successful ascent to Somani Peak under their belt and under ideal conditions, many climbers opt for seconds and tackle Peak Eugenia Korzhenevskaya, a mere 20km away and number 3 among the 7000ers of the Pamirs. What a fantastic achievement to look back on.