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Friday, July 22nd, 2011

Denali adventure part 6 – Good times in Alaska and skiing in the Chugach Mountains

Denali seen from Talkeetna

The next day we skied all the way down to BC. On the way down we got surprised how much snow that had melted during the weeks we had spent in ABC. Nothing seemed to be in really good shape and to be able to climb the good stuff one had to climb at night. We didn’t feel up for more high objective risks or more rock n rolling so we put ourselves on the waiting list to fly out to civilisation. But it turned out to be harder than expected. Just when we got up in the air the next day we had to turn around and go back to BC as the clouds had completely filled all the ways out. The pilots obviously have to see where they are going so with no visibility there are no flying.

So we just had to spend two days in BC finishing every drop of alcohol we had left and hanging out with all our new and old friends. We where not really complaining, but non the less it was really nice to eventually get on that plane and get back in Talkeetna. The first thing we did was to take a shower and then next on the list was eating dinner. We met the North Face team that was just about to fly out to Denali and had dinner with them and when they left for packing we kept on going to the next restaurant for a second dinner.

We spent three days (and long nights) in Talkeetna before we left with Lisa and Greg to go to their friend Kramer’s compound in the middle of no where. We spent two days there and then we kept on going for Girdwood and the Chugash Mountains. Our team was made up of me and Magnus, Greg and Heidi Adamson and the goal was to find some good skiing in the coastal mountains.

So what we did was to just drive along the way and pick the most beautiful mountain we could find and then ski it. With that combined with Greg’s local knowledge we ended up at the foot of a mountain called Mt Byron. It turned out to be a great and long ski in perfect spring conditions. Ok, maybe a bit warm, but nothing some ski cutting couldn’t handle. We ended up having a blast and it was with mixed feelings we left for Anchorage the next day and said good bye to Heidi and Greg. We still had one more night in this town before we jumped on our flights back to Europe

All in all we had a wonderful Alaska adventure. We got to fulfil all our small everyday goals, but more important we had a beautiful time together, we met really cool people and it felt like we got the full Alaskan experience.

Skiing down with heavy sledges

Rice porridge in BC

Team Iceland

Trying to fly out the 1st time

Our pilot

The master Greg Collins

Seth and Lisa

Greg and myself

The Magnus!

Alaskan wilderness

Dinner with the North Face team

Lisa, Greg and Seth

Happy climbing friends

Road trippin

At Kramer’s compound

Gypsy skiers lifestyle

In Alaska, thats a small car

Alyaska

Approaching Mt Byron

Greg showing us some great ski-mountaineering skills

Anything is easy after a few weeks on Denali

Greg skiing

And Magnus

Greg, Heidi and Magnus

Alaskan icebergs

The mythic bar

Finally back in Europe… Chamonix mountains from the plane window.. Mt Blanc on the right

And the Eiger Nordwand

Thursday, July 21st, 2011

Denali adventures Part 5 – Skiing the Messner Couloir

The most classic ski descent on Denali must be the Messner Couloir above ABC. The 1500 vertical meter couloir could be the Gervasutti (the most classical easy steep ski in Chamonix) of North America and it’s often the objective for skiers coming to Denali. I really wanted to ski this classic and I knew I would never come back to Denali just to ski this single couloir so I went for it on the second day after we where back from Cassin.

The weather was not very good, with strong winds and fair visibility. But on the other hand it’s a couloir and the navigation was easy and the snow stable. It took me about 5 hours to climb the couloir, but then again I was exhausted long before I started. Most of the couloir was filled with knee-deep snow making the tracking hard work. At the upper parts the wind was really strong and it was cold. I climbed up to the top of the couloir close to the Football field, but I did not go all the way to the summit because the weather was really bad and I was just after the couloir not a third summit ascent.

It felt refreshing standing at the top of the couloir in the storm and it was with a smile that I took of with the first turns down my last ski on Denali. The skiing was not perfect with a bit of powder here, a bit of stratugis there, but I enjoyed every bit of it. At one point I ended up on blue ice, but I just dug my axes in, put my crampons on and down climbed 15 meters before I kept on skiing.

At the end I traversed the schrund, took my rope and extra clothes that I had left there on the way up and cruised down in the fog all the way down to camp.

It was a nice and easy solo adventure without too much pulse, but I could definitely feel that my body had had enough of this strain. Eating dinner that night I felt like the Denali mission was accomplished and that it now was time to get down to enjoy the thick air.

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

Denali adventure part 4 – The Cassin Ridge

When I got back from the south face adventure I was really tired. But on Denali the time is always ticking and the weather windows can be short and sparse. The biggest reason people fail on their objectives is that they run out of time and I did not want this to happen to us. I had already done what I came there for, but I also wanted Magnus to get his objective done so I tried to rest as well as I could.

The forecast foresaid a four day weather window before a low pressure and I needed to get my rest pulse down to at least be able to perform on 80% of my potential. On my rest day in camp my rest pulse where around 85-90, and even though we where on high altitude that meant I was really over trained.

So I could have waited for my body to be at its strongest and missed the window, or I could rest as hard as I could for one day and then go for it on the next. I chose the later. So after sleeping in on the second day in camp Magnus and myself took of in the afternoon towards the West Rib to approach the route via the Seattle Ramp.

After less than an hour we reached the rib, but we where greeted with really strong winds from the east and dark clouds coming in. What was supposed to be a high pressure seemed to be something else. I was tired and the weather was anything but perfect so we sat down up there to gather ourselves and see if it was going to improve.

An hour later nothing had changed. But then we thought that at least we can start down the big glaciated ramp and then walk back up if it didn’t feel good further down. I went first with the map in my hand focusing on my altimeter on my wrist and the next few meters ahead to not walk in to one of the monster crevasses. The visibility was almost zero and at times it was even hard to see each other in the fog. The navigation however was pretty straight forward so we slowly descended the big glacier, but what would have taken 2 h in good weather took 6h in the clouds. We also stopped two times to talk the fairly bold decision trough, to keep on going or not, when we got under the big seracs. Once we where under them it would have been a very bad idea to turn back and expose ourselves for hours under these objective dangers.

My altimeter told me the pressure was not changing, the forecast was really good and warm, and we both had a good feeling for the situation we where in. Its funny how the mind games play such an important role in the mountains. Just because we had a bit of a whiteout we where thinking about retreating. Didn’t we learn simple navigation in first grade? We kept at it, now with stronger determination as ever, we where going to climb this route.

After plenty of down climbing and crevasse hopping we found ourselves in the basin where the route started. Our next objective was to find the initial Japanese couloir as we where under the clouds and everything above us where just white. As we where melting snow at the bergschrund we tried to count formations from the guidebook, to read contour lines on the map and to meditate on the problem (just kidding), but in the end we just had to make a guess.

Of we went up in to the unknown. I had the first lead and as we where planning to climb everything on running belays I wanted to climb the 300-meter icy couloir in one go. Entering the couloir I found pitons and old fixed lines and finally we where sure we where on the right track. As planned I climbed the couloir in one go, just placing a Ropeman after the crux pitch. The calves where burning on the black ice, but in an hour or so we where past the couloir and up on the ridge. Arriving at the first rock crux we where above the clouds and Magnus took over the lead. The views where magical and it felt great moving steadily up the mountain.

Magnus took us up past the razorblade arête and then I kept on going past the first rock band after we had brewed up for a second time. The climbing was really fun with no really hard sections so we where able to keep on moving the whole time. Just before the top of the rock band we got passed by our British friends Jonathan Griffith and Will Sims, who had started e few hours after us from camp and had followed our tracks. They would later break the speed record (top to bottom) in 14,something hours.

We kept on moving at a steady pace, but at the top of the rock band we found a perfect bivy spot and Magnus told me this is it for the day. I felt strong the first day, but as we would see the roles, as always in the mountains, would change.

The night was clear and relatively warm and we slept well without freezing too much. Eating, sleeping, brewing up and eating again took us 9 hours and then we where of again.

Magnus took us past most of the second rock band before I finished with the last cruxes and then we only had the slough left. The great big slough of the Cassin Ridge – 1000+ meters of snow climbing to the summit of the highest mountain in North America.

Most people that have climbed the route remember the last slough with a tormented smile. One has already climbed 1500+ meters of fairly technical climbing on altitude and then gets a bit of a smash in the face. I started of feeling strong, but about half way up Magnus had to take over and lead us up to the summit. We where both exhausted and on the last few hundred meters we walked a few steps before we lied down on our axes resting for half a minute, repeating this procedure for what seemed like ages. But as we kept at it we finally ended up on the shoulder just a couple of hundred meters from the summit.

Magnus had arrived ten minutes before me and as I got up and lied down on my backpack I gasped out; “lets finish this”! Most parties seems to descend from the shoulder ignoring the summit, but in strict climbing ethic we knew we had to get up there to be true to ourselves. If we had suffered for the last few hours, we might as well suffer a bit longer. And as always suffering in the mountains are relative. We thought we where slower than ever in the end, but we where still almost running past the line of down balls struggling up from the normal route.

Arriving at the summit for the second time in a week we hugged took a photo and then started the decent. Luckily enough the descent from Denali is dead easy and 2,5 hours later we where back in camp finishing a 33 h round trip with a 9 h bivy included. I will always remember the descent though, as I had developed trench foot in my warm mountaineering boots, every step down the mountain felt like I was walking on needles. Magnus wanted to stop and brew up, but I just wanted to end my suffering so I kept at it letting him catch up further down.

The next day I could not walk on my feet and we where both spending most of the day in the tent – happy to have got everything we came there to do.

The low pressure had come in and we planned to get down to base camp to maybe do some ski touring or climbing at lover altitude. But even though my feet where hurting and I was more tired than ever I knew I just had one more thing to do before I could leave – The Messner Couloir.

On the way up towards the Rib

Down climbing the Seattle ramp

Walking around in the fog

Looking back at the Seattle Ramp

Magnus brewing up

Looking down the Japanese couloir

Looking down from the top of the Japanese couloir

Magnus with Cassin ledge in the background

Magnus on the first rock crux

On the Razorblade Arete

Mt Foraker with a hat

First rock band

Jon and Will

On the summit of Denali

Walking down

In camp afterwards, Magnus are telling the stories!

The Chamonix crew: Jon, Will, Nils, Myself, Colin and Magnus!

Monday, July 18th, 2011

Storpillaren

Yesterday I climbed Storpillaren together with Sanna Boris Matsson. It is one of the bigger test pieces in Lofoten and a great and sustained climb on good rock. We didn’t manage to climb it completely free, but had a fun day non the less, where in no stress, went all the way up to the summit of Vågakallen and where back to the car in less than 14 hours.

Thanks Sanna for a good cragging day!

On the approach

The beautiful granite pillar

A bit of bush-whacking

The approach ledges

Sanna belaying the first pitch

Looking up at the start of the climb

Sanna following on the second pitch (6-)

And the third (7-)

Sanna leading the crux pitch (7)

The view from Storhylla

Sanna is always happy

Myself hanging out on a belay

Sanna leading another pitch (7-)

On the upper ridge

Sanna climbing on the grassy walk of shame. Above one can see the seldom climbed arete that is a bit bold. If you fall on the crux you will fall at least 20m in to a ledge. I went up to have a look but didn’t think it was worth the candle and climbed back to the belay. If one doesn’t climb the arete one get some “muggy” grade 5 grass climbing instead.

Sanna at the top of Storpillaren

Sanna on her way to the summit of Vågakallen with Henningsvaer in the background.

Myself and Sanna at the summit of Vågakallen in the midnight sun

Sanna, forever happy…

Sanna walking down the south face of Vågakallen

Monday, July 18th, 2011

Living and working in Paradise

The last weeks I have been working and climbing lots. Here are a few glimpses from my everyday summer life…

Guiding on the classic Only Blueberries

With a photographer…

A climbing course day in Paradise (its actually the name) with Nord Norsk Klattreskole (www.nordnorskklatreskole.no)

Lead guide Jonas Dahlstrup at NNKS

Lead climbing training with the climbing course at Gandalf

Guiding on Svolvaergeita

with happy clients on the top

Presten at midnight

Sanna Böris Matsson on Presten the day before we climbed Storpillaren. We had never climbed together before so we thought it might be a good idea to stroll up the Priest in 2,5h…

A climber struggling up the most famous pitch (Slanting corner 6) on the most famous route (Vestpillaren) on the most famous crag (Presten) in Lofoten.

Sanna at the top of Presten

A Sea Eagle

Friday, July 8th, 2011

Pillaren (Point 713)

I’m not very good at bringing my camera it seems like here in Lofoten, but the other day I went out on a long cruise climb with my American friend Seth hobby. We set out to climb Celebrian (6-) on Pillaren in Djupfjord and had a really nice day in good company and stellar weather.