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The Iran Mountaineering Federation will host the UIAA's 2008 General Assembly from October 16-18. The central Asian nation has a lot to offer the global mountaineering and climbing community both in summer and winter with hundreds of peaks above 4,000 metres.

"People do mountaineering and climbing all over Iran, these climbs staged from very simple routes and trekking to very technical winter or summer ascents on mountains such as Damavand (5,671m) or Alam-Kouh (4,850 m), which has a 750m vertical granite face, " says Homayun Bakhtiyari, Foreign Secretary of the I. R. Iran Mountaineering Federation. 

Damavand is the highest point of the Islamic Republic of Iran and is climbed by thousands of nationals and foreign climbers throughout the year. This summer it was designated as the country's first National Natural Heritage Site.

"Many global tourists and alpinists consider Damavand the most beautiful conical and unique peak of Asia," says Bakhtiyari. It is situated in the Albourz Range, only 100km from Tehran and 75km from the Caspian sea. The mountain is surrounded by myths and it is said that there is a monster on the summit. Damavand is the national symbol of I.R. Iran and you can find its picture on bank notes, credit cards and bus tickets.

Damavand was first climbed by Iranian geographers in 1900, but after that there were no recorded climbs until 1936. In the 1940s mountaineering in the area increased, new routes were opened and later foreigners started arriving. Damavand is a volcano and the crater has a diameter of about 180 metres. The mountain is estimated to be around two billion years old. The slopes and skirts are filled with volcanic lava and yellowish sulfuric rocks, and there are a number of small volcanic mouths near the peak from which sulfur gases are leaking. "Although Damavand has been dormant for 100,000 years, geologists have not denied it might become active again," says Bakhtiyari.

Damavand has several glaciers, the most important are Dobisel and Sioleeh in the north and Yakhar in the east. It has four main routes and each has a refuge for climbers. "The I. R. Iran Mountaineering Federation is going to build one of world's highest shelters at 4,000 metres on this mountain to provide appropriate facilities for climbers," says Bakhtiyari. The peak is reached by an eight hour trek followed by an eight hour climb.

Other popular climbing areas are Kuh-e-Bisotun, Alam Kouh (4,850 m), Takht-e-Soleiman (4659 m),  and Mt. Saballan (4,800 m). More information about these areas here. The hosts of the UIAA General Assembly hope that the participants will spend time getting to know the country. "When you choose one of the many trekking paths in Iran you cannot only enjoy trekking but also have the opportunity to visit local people and have close contact with Iranian customs and culture," says Bakhtiyari. "The historical monuments of Persepolis, Pasargad, Susa, Hamadan, Kermanshah, Kerman and many other ancient places are incentive enough for visiting Iran," he adds.

Mountain life has always been a part of Iranian culture, but "mountaineering as a sport and outdoor activity seriously started in Iran about 60 years ago," says Bakhtiyari. First practised only by members of the armed forces, mountaineering later became popular among civilians. The first Iranian expeditions to the Himalayas were in the 1970s. Due to the Islamic revolution and the war with Iraq, such expeditions became difficult to organise in the following years, and Iranian mountaineers chose instead to ascend high mountains in their own country. 

In 1994 the I. R. Iran Mountaineering Federation, which had become a member of the UIAA in 1972, organised a five-year programme to climb Mt. Everest, and the goal was reached in 1998. After this followed other Iranian expeditions to many Asian peaks including Mt.Cho-Oyu, Shishapangma, Mt. Makalu and Gasherbrum II. In 2005 the first Muslim Women Expedition successfully climbed Mt. Everest and two Iranian women stood on the top of the world. 

For more information, please read the full presentation of Iran's geography and mountaineering traditions written by  Homayun Bakhtiyari.

For a slide show of Iran's mountain landscapes, please visit our photo gallery page