Norway - Ice Climbing
Norway has become one of the most popular venues in recent times for ice climbing. Consistently cold temperatures and steep valley sides form ice readily. The Sogneford cuts deep into the south western seaboard and the many, many valleys that radiate from it hold a lifetime of exploration. This year we are based in Aurland which is equidistant from both Gudvangen and Laerdal (last years venue). Gudvangen hit the news last winter with Robert Jasper's ascent of a 800m ice route which he bolted against local ethics. I've climbed with Tim and Nick this week on featured, steep ice. The ice here seems to form interesting chandeliers and cauliflowers rather than smooth sheets which makes for tenuous but interesting climbing. Those who are used to the busy, overclimbed venue of Rjukan would be wise to drop a grade here and climb conservatively! So far we've climbed two WI5+'s (the Norwegians give very little grade 6!) and a WI5.
Avalanche!
Gudvangen
Ice Window
getting a s...
Storefossen
Storefossen
Comments
Log in or create a user account to comment.