Six days later, on the advice of Stepan Khojiants, the village chief of Akhuri, the ascent was attempted from the northwest side. After reaching an elevation of , they turned back because they did not reach the summit before sundown. Accompanied by Abovian, two Russian soldiers, and two Armenian villagers, Parrot reached the summit on the third attempt at 3:15 p.m. on 9 October 1829. Abovian dug a hole in the ice and erected a wooden cross facing north. He picked up a chunk of ice from the summit and carried it down with him in a bottle, considering the water holy. On 8 November, Parrot and Abovian climbed up Lesser Ararat. Parrot was impressed with Abovian's thirst for knowledge and, after the expedition, arranged for a Russian state scholarship for Abovian to study at the University of Dorpat in 1830.