tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54892965974576767292024-03-27T23:02:21.762-07:00Between hangovers and overhangsclimbing talesGedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-51075437396158280472023-01-03T09:47:00.009-08:002023-02-07T05:08:39.602-08:00Western Nepal, first ascent of Lukeko Baref 6122mDid you know that "Himalaya" means the "abode of the snow" in Sanskrit? Fittingly, this fall there was too much snow in the Himalaya. Our dreams of steep faces plastered with sticky neve were buried by massive amount of fresh snow. What followed was an epic in trail breaking and an exercise in teamwork.It all started a few years ago as we realized that the Academic Alpine Club Zurich is about to Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-59985326108777197022022-07-05T14:01:00.004-07:002022-07-05T14:02:55.364-07:00Grandes Jorasses North Face. TwiceI pulled out my jacket from the backpack and set it up as a little tent above my head. It was a minor respite. The spindrift prevented sleep until early morning. In a few hours we were going to get out of our sleeping bags and start climbing but the falling snowflakes planted seeds of doubts in my head. I had approached the Grandes Jorasses north face three times already and had to walk out Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-19408540141178005292021-10-06T11:27:00.004-07:002021-11-01T12:51:03.007-07:00Piz Polaschin. Once upon a time on JulierAs we were skinning up from the Julier pass towards a beautiful rocky face of Piz Polaschin, my backpack was huge. Mainly, because I packed a pair of boots that are meant for climbing the 8000 meter peaks in the greater ranges. The plan was to test equipment and train for a fall trip to the Himalaya. While the expedition evaporated into the ether of Covid-19 uncertainty, our climb turned out to Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-5142730301041955252020-10-23T07:01:00.014-07:002020-10-23T11:17:02.920-07:00Dru North FaceBefore Pierre Allain and Raymond Leininger climbed the north face of the Dru for the first time, their training was on the boulders of Fontainebleau. My plan was to copy their approachCyrill on the summit of Petit Dru.With this in mind, evenings were spent in the forest, doing circuits and trying to become a "Bleausard". My partner in crime was also trying to emulate climbers from the past, in Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-45923433444225537892020-08-23T13:36:00.005-07:002020-08-31T07:40:40.641-07:00Granite Rematches: Inox, Grand Capucin and Chandelle du TaculOftentimes the climbs you remember most vividly are not the ones you succeed on, but rather the ones where you come short. I often catch myself talking about an unclimbed peak in the Revelations that Frieder I and could not climb despite three attempts. I still daydream what it would be like to go back there.At the same time, having failed on routes - they become easy choices for planning the Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-6800577409688570342020-01-30T06:05:00.001-08:002020-01-31T01:50:58.874-08:00Climbing in Oman
With a few hours left until the
new year, we were preparing our dinner and sorting out the food. The mood was
vibrant with us whistling cheerful tunes and sharing smiles. But then it hit us
– we had neither forks, nor spoons, nor any other utensils to eat our gourmet
meal. And it wouldn’t be so easy to get them now since we were bivying on a
midway ledge up the Jebel Misht – perhaps the Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-59094975312555698422019-11-18T11:49:00.000-08:002020-05-29T06:23:29.492-07:00North Face of Piz Badile and the Fridge-Trip
The weather was meant to be good for the next few days when I rolled into the Bergamo Airport. Waiting for my friend to land, I was hoping that we could finally try to climb the famous Voie Cassin on the northeast face of the Badile peak - a plan we had hatched almost a decade ago.
Vytas and I go back a long way. We grew up in the same town and we started climbing together in high Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-61493386828089388352019-08-24T01:40:00.001-07:002019-08-28T06:59:33.848-07:00Brandler-Hase, Cima Grande di Lavaredo
When Saule was a kid, she visited the Dolomites and after
seeing the Tre Cime decided that she was into climbing. Twenty years later she
finally went up the north face of the Cima Grande and I got to tag along.
Saules family back in the day
Saules family these days.
We chose the Brandler-Hase route, which goes pretty much
straight up the center Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-69286069613638181832019-08-16T00:37:00.001-07:002019-08-28T04:48:25.997-07:00California Dream, Pointe 3038 de Trélaporte
What happens when a Guru of alpine granite combines forces with a world champion in sport climbing? When I saw the names of Michel Piola and Romain Desgrange in the guidebook, my interest was picked. Many enthusiastic reports of the quality and the beauty of the climb cemented it further, we had to check it out ourselves!
The classy white Dacia rolled into the valley as Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-57340363754378577882018-03-17T11:45:00.001-07:002018-03-17T11:45:40.053-07:00Joshua Tree
No wonder I couldn't find a camping spot in Joshua Tree
National Park – the landscape in gorgeous. As it turns out, the climbing is
pretty awesome too.
Always on the radar – never on the way. Jtree has been a
place I wanted to visit for many years, but never got round to it. This spring,
however, I had a few days to spare before a conference in LA. Needless to say,
I finally made it.
Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-33840678620555686752018-02-18T07:32:00.002-08:002018-02-18T07:33:05.620-08:00El Chorro
For some people the new year started by getting snowed in at ski resorts. We decided to go south and visit Andalusia's limestone cliffs.
We spent two weeks hanging out with a bunch of friends, old and new, trying some cool routes and enjoying the first rocktrip as a family of three. El Chorro fit the bill perfectly - short access, world class climbing in the grade range we were after and - for Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-19083101468232708582018-01-22T04:05:00.000-08:002018-01-22T04:05:00.654-08:00Stotzigen Firsten
Even an easy skitour can pack a punch. When Frieder and I went for perhaps the most popular mountain in the country we were thinking about a few hours workout. It turned out to be better than expected and way more interesting.
First, Realp region was the only place that weekend that had good snow and safe conditions. While we though we were smart to go there, so did another half a million Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-24330046655775588072017-06-25T01:32:00.003-07:002021-06-18T07:39:28.979-07:00Granite and Snow in the Revelation Mountains
Flying over the Alaska range in a small plane was spectacular.
Landing roller-coaster style on a beautiful glacier was even better. Seeing a
bunch of unclimbed walls and peaks around got us dizzy. I was already content
with the trip and it was just the beginning.
After landing on the south fork of the Fish glacier, we spent a few hours digging serious
trenches, since we read many scary Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-18301032862713299992017-03-24T15:16:00.002-07:002017-05-07T06:47:17.180-07:00Hot Ice and Cold Rock
Having spent the previous winter in the southern hemisphere, I was keen to enjoy the ice offerings this year. To make it more interesting we added a few moves on the rock.
To get the skills back, we went to the ultra-classic Haizahne climb in Kandersteg. It turned out that we had to make a few mixed moves to get to the teeth.
Spicy teeth
Since scratching the rock with Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-33184631048879438482017-03-03T12:34:00.000-08:002017-03-03T12:36:14.839-08:00Aiguille d'Argentière
Eager to get some acclimatization, we went to Argentiere basin for a weekend. In addition to pretty good snow, we got to do some sunbathing and climb a few pitches of ice.
After taking a lift up the Grands Montets, we skinned/climbed the classic Glacier du Milieu route to get to Aiguille d'Argentière.
We stayed overnight in the winter-room of the hut and made an attempt up Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-26234506805799122792017-01-31T12:56:00.002-08:002017-01-31T13:01:59.611-08:00Chulilla
Every-time I go to Spain, I am stunned by the quality and the quantity of bolted limestone. Whether you go to Siurana or Rodellar, there is usually a common theme - an old town, tucked away in a spectacular valley with miles of orange rock stretching in all direction. This time we went to Chulilla - a medieval town with a buzzing climbing scene and we even got to stay in a house build centuries Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-75230185917427691102016-12-08T11:24:00.004-08:002016-12-08T11:25:36.136-08:00Moules-frites and golden granite in Corsica
''Is that white mark a tick or a birdshit? '' I heard Saule
say in the middle of a pumpy pitch.
Gozzi
We were near the top of a fun route on a cliff called Gozzi, which is right next to the port town of Ajaccio. With the Mediterranean sea in the background, this was an enjoyable All-saints holiday climbing trip. Had a swim in the morning and were now climbing the beautifully sculpted Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-85233726945286182252016-11-25T12:25:00.001-08:002016-11-25T13:20:08.890-08:00Wetterhorn
Ever since the first ascent of Wetterhorn in 1844, the imposing mountain rising up from Grindelwald has captured the imagination of mountaineers. Almost two centuries later, we had a pleasure to climb the ridges and slopes of Wetterhorn on a clear summer day.
Even though we enjoyed the luxury of sleeping in the
well-furbished Glecksteinhutte and had an excellent dinner there, the climbGedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-16705522447964390332016-08-29T12:02:00.004-07:002016-08-29T12:04:30.158-07:00Salbit Westgrat
Climbing the West Ridge of Salbit has always been in the
plans. Finally, we got round to it. Well, it didn't let us down - a long day climbing
along beautiful granite spine was pretty impressive.
Zoom in to see us. Thanks to Andreas Höfer
Another one to be zoomed in to
The slog down
Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-35596673246632503682016-04-28T05:16:00.001-07:002016-04-28T05:22:40.573-07:00Long night on Midi-Plan ridge and a sunny afternoon in Foehnmauer
It is probably quite a general law of life that when you
don’t take something seriously enough, it gets you. Frieder and I (re)learned
it one more time after climbing Le Fil a Plomb on Rognon du plan.
Saule on a day we chose to be wiser
We took an early bin to the mid station of Midi and started
approaching the route. Since we were on skis and I always fuss with them for some time, it Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-44882721285484585372016-03-19T20:42:00.000-07:002016-03-19T20:43:04.389-07:00Snow
Having escaped the winter this time, it was very enjoyable to put in a few turns upon returning to the northern hemisphere.
First off, Karen ran AACZ trip to Rotondohutte. Weather was mediocre, but the snow was fantastic. With Frieder and Moritz making the track uphill, we had a very pleasant tour from Uri to Valais.
Powder Hounds
Another chance to get some skiing inGedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-51846252666984097012016-02-02T08:16:00.003-08:002016-02-05T05:02:37.608-08:00Patagonia
The internet in El Chalten hasn’t really improved all that
much in the four years that passed since our last trip there. Hence the post
comes later as I am trying to resist the temptation of watching the latest
offers from the in-flight entertainment system.
Well, the mountains haven’t gotten any smaller since the
last time either. When we were here in 2011-12, we were unfit and
Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-39107001693328225112015-10-04T04:28:00.005-07:002015-10-04T04:37:48.469-07:00The Playgrounds
With no long trips this year, we have been trying to make the most of the weekends and short escapes. We haven't done any big faces but been having good fun playing around on our mini-adventures. A few snaps below from the last month.
Gozo. The most famous arch of the island.
Saule and I spent a week in Gozo island trying to sample some of the food and swimming there. We also did some Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-23481081941813355742015-08-09T09:12:00.000-07:002015-08-09T09:40:21.289-07:00Kamasutra, Klausenpass
When our plans to check out the Wendenstöcke dwindled away, Cyrill immediately came up with an alternative. Something closer and shorter, but with good quality limestone and fun climbing. Sounded great, but when he mentioned Klausenpass, I was a bit skeptical, since last time I was there, the rock was loose and slabby. Being a local though, he knew the goods and we went to climb the Kamasutra, Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5489296597457676729.post-74909990970085414262015-08-03T06:20:00.002-07:002015-08-03T06:24:30.376-07:00Churfirsten. Zuestoll South Face
Having driven past Churfirsten so many times, we finally managed to try and climb something on them. We went for Zuestoll, which is said to have the best rock and weren't disappointed. We climbed a rather recent route Solitaire. Scenic approach, airy traverse into the wall and good climbing made for an excellent day.
Approach
The locals
South face of the Gedashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11258109655236407256noreply@blogger.com0