{"id":3801,"date":"2026-07-29T06:25:48","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T03:25:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zabugorshiki.com\/en\/climbing-grades-explained\/"},"modified":"2026-07-29T06:25:48","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T03:25:48","slug":"climbing-grades-explained","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zabugorshiki.com\/en\/climbing-grades-explained\/","title":{"rendered":"Climbing Grades Explained: the 1A-6B Alpine System"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Almaty is one of very few two-million cities on earth where genuine alpine summits start 40-50 minutes from downtown. The Maloalmatinskoe gorge above Shymbulak is the local training ground for mountaineers and climbers, with everything from walk-up peaks to world-class walls. To read any route description here, you need to understand one thing first: the grading system. This guide explains the 1A-6B alpine scale used across Kazakhstan and the former USSR – with real local routes as examples – and how the French sport-climbing scale differs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two systems, two different questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Alpine grades (1A-6B) rate the whole route<\/em>: length, terrain, weather exposure, hazards, autonomy. Sport-climbing grades (the French 3a-9b+ scale) rate only the technical difficulty of the climbing itself. A short, safe 6a sport route and a 6A alpine route share nothing but a symbol – the second one is a multi-day undertaking for professionals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The alpine scale, grade by grade<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1A-1B: the entry level<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

1A<\/strong> is walking terrain with scree and easy glacier – trekking to the Tuyuk-Su pass or Titov Peak<\/a> belong here. What you need: fitness and confident footwork on rock and scree. 1B<\/strong> adds snow and ice slopes to 30\u00b0 and short rock steps – Amangeldy from the west, Pioneer<\/a>, Molodezhnaya<\/a>. Here ice axe and crampon skills become mandatory: the group moves roped, with running or pitched belays off terrain features, cams and nuts on the steep bits. From 1B up, “hiking experience” stops being enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2A-2B: basic technical climbing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

2A<\/strong> brings ice to 30-40\u00b0 and modest rock – Amangeldy (3,999 m)<\/a> by the south-west ridge, Abay<\/a> by the south ridge. In photos a 1B and a 2A can look identical; on the mountain the difference is enormous – in length, time and technical demand. 2B<\/strong> raises it again: ice and snow to 45\u00b0, rock sections from 20 m – Oktyabrenok<\/a> by the north-west ridge. Now you need solid rope work, self-arrest that actually works, and climbing around French 4b-5a. Nobody goes onto a 2B unroped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3A-4B: advanced<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

3A-3B<\/strong> mean steep ice lines and serious rock walls – Komsomol<\/a> by the north ridge is the local reference, with 4-5 hours of sustained technical ground. 4A-4B<\/strong> add tall technical walls and mixed terrain – Oktyabrenok’s Central Bastion – with 5-6 hours of hard climbing, steep difficult ice, and rock at French 6a and up. Advanced ice-tool and gear-placement skills are assumed, not taught.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5A-6B: professional<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

World-class routes: vertical walls, hard ice, nights on the face, aid climbing. Tuyuk-Su has a handful – the Khrishatogo central-west face goes at 5A (the peak itself has an easier route<\/a> for mortals). These demand everything a climber can have, from elite movement skills to deep theoretical and practical knowledge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The scale at a glance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Grade<\/th>Terrain<\/th>Almaty example<\/th>Required skills<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
1A<\/strong><\/td>Walking, scree, easy glacier<\/td>Tuyuk-Su pass trek, Titov Peak<\/td>Fitness, scree footwork<\/td><\/tr>\n
1B<\/strong><\/td>Snow\/ice to 30\u00b0, rock steps to 20 m<\/td>Amangeldy (west), Pioneer, Molodezhnaya<\/td>Ice axe, crampons, roped travel<\/td><\/tr>\n
2A<\/strong><\/td>Ice 30-40\u00b0, small rock sections<\/td>Amangeldy SW ridge, Abay S ridge<\/td>Belay technique, confident cramponing<\/td><\/tr>\n
2B<\/strong><\/td>Ice\/snow to 45\u00b0, rock 20+ m<\/td>Oktyabrenok NW ridge<\/td>Rope work, self-arrest, climbs 4b-5a<\/td><\/tr>\n
3A-3B<\/strong><\/td>Steep ice, walls to 50 m<\/td>Komsomol N ridge<\/td>Advanced climbing, 4-5 h technical<\/td><\/tr>\n
4A-4B<\/strong><\/td>Tall walls, mixed terrain<\/td>Oktyabrenok Central Bastion<\/td>Ice tools, gear placement, rock 6a+, 5-6 h technical<\/td><\/tr>\n
5A-6B<\/strong><\/td>Vertical walls, aid, bivouacs<\/td>Khrishatogo CW face (5A)<\/td>Everything, at a professional level<\/td><\/tr>\n<\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

How routes are climbed<\/h2>\n\n\n\n