From 2024, the memories of Valhalla will linger longest. For the year preceding our Norway trip it was never far from my thoughts. In my mind it became more than just a rock climb.
I tried to prepare well. We did a ātraining campā in Madrid which was going well until I broke my toe 2 weeks before the trip (actually @weebitwindy broke it but thatās another storyš ). Once I could put a climbing shoe on literally the first thing I did was jumar up a fixed rope and see if I could start working the Valhalla crux.
Other set backs included a severe case of old man back - which left me unable to put my own pants on, old man knee - which left me unable to bend my right leg for a while and declaring Iād never kneebar again (I did) and finally, right when I was starting to feel close the the route, the weather crapped out Norwegian style. That is, it went hot, humid and completely still, which strangely enough meant we couldnāt climb for a week - the whole cave was wet from condensation.
It felt like everything was against me but mostly I was ok with it. I went to Norway to try and do the hardest route of my life and in a way it made sense that it wouldnāt give up easily. I was ok with failing on it and I wasnāt interested in a consolation prize and never felt a need to climb on other routes.
Finally the wind and rain returned, and with them the good conditions. And it was amazing to take advantage of these. On the first good day @leo.boe did Valhalla, I followed the next day, then @ibbertsonjosh and a few days later @nils__siegel .
In the end sharing the experience with these guys was the best part. The fact that Iād left school before any of them were born, only came up when I was trying to explain to them what injuries areš¤¦.
š·@mtnz.adri š
Iāve always been a sucker for lines, and itās hard to imagine one better than this. A recent @dani_andrada_climb addition that takes the huge cave, splitting weakness, climbing the entire depth of the Cova Negra. 50m+ of horizontal!! How good!!
We spent a week in Montanejos on the way back from Andalusia in late February after hearing whispers that it might be the only dry rock in Spain, and we were not disappointed. The recent work of Dani, @jlpalao_primo and @jonatan_flor among others, is turning the Cova into an amazing destination.
Trio Monstruos, Cova Negra 8c, 60m (but you only need 70m of rope!!)
Winter in Andalusia!
Iāve heard a few people say this is the wettest winter theyāve experienced in Spain.
So our plans for a winter at Villanueva del Rosario were thwarted by what Iāve heard a few people describe as the wettest winter they can remember, but this gave us the opportunity to check out the awesome crag at OtiƱar near Jaen.
I picked up a frustrating shoulder injury in October which forced my longest break from climbing in 4 years but OtiƱar was perfect for getting back into the swing of things with a bunch of steep jugging.
Iāve done A LOT of projecting in the last few years so it was a nice change (doctorās orders - Chris at @Moveclinic ) to do a bit of volume for a change and climb a bunch of routes in a go or two. By mid January I felt able to push a bit harder on the shoulder and so it was pleasing to combine that with some advanced drying tactics and a decent chunk of luck to get up a couple of classic slightly harder ones too.
Injuries suck. Iām still having difficulty with the shoulder which is a stark reminder to me how lucky Iāve been for the last few years to avoid any major injuries, but also a reminder to maintain the strength/stability training off the wall, which is really easy to let slip when climbing outside most of the time.
1. OtiƱar
2. āSex After Climbā 8c
3. Source of fleas
4. Local climber
5. @weebitwindy last move of āLagunas Mentalesā 8a+\b
6. āIn case of plague we recommend not to climbā
7. Late stage shoulder rehab āMomento Payasoā 8b+
8 - 14 The southā¦
2 months, one routeā¦Uncut of Kerrin doing the crux start boulders of Nordic Flower in Flatanger last month.
After 8 weeks of full commitment, this was the first time she linked both boulders.
And then she took it to the top - an hour of physicality away!
It was one of the most impressive feats Iāve witnessed in rock climbing.
Flatanger 25 - chronological order
1. @iris_matamoros Nordic Flower
2. @weebitwindy more gatherer than hunter
3. š§ļø= good conditions. Seriously
4. Hunter?
5. Equipo de EspaƱa
6. @urimaraver saving the lure from my first castš«£
7. Equipo la casa
8. Cheating. Standard
9. It stopped raining once the Spanish left
10. Really
11. And the Britās arrived
12. āļø=less good conditions.
13. But letās you see the northern lights
14. @weebitwindy - 2 months, 1 route but āļøāļøāļøāļøāļø
15. Basking in it
16. Autumn vibes
17. - 19. Not shit
20. @ibbertsonjosh
Thanks to everyone for the good times sharing the cave. You know who you areāļø
Another one from 2024. This is the bizarre crux sequence of Brunhilde (8c).
Itās perhaps the most technical, but least physical of the 8cās Iāve done in Flatanger. Would be hard to replicate on a Moonboard. Another classic bolted by @ogsaa_knelaas and FAād by @adam.ondra .
Soundtrack š¢ this time courtesy of Nils & @domen_skofic š
Everyone climbing in Flatanger knows āthe railā, either from personal experience or watching others battle it.
This amazing, slopey feature is the finish of several routes. For the easier ones like Troll hammer or Nordic plumber, itās the physical crux and for the harder ones like Thors hammer & Valhalla, itās more of a mental hurdle - an opportunity to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
This was video is from last year - finishing Valhalla - when I felt pretty fit and had it under control, but I did Troll hammer the other day and it was a very different story - the whole thing was a fight and I nearly fell from the final jugs.
Pumped today, fit tomorrow?š š¤
@jorge.diazrullo with the video and amazing soundtrack š¢š
Hard routes, easy access.
El Museo sector in Rodellar š
@lasportivaaustralia
#climbing #lasportiva #laspo #weareclimbers #foryourmountain #solution #rodellar #elmuseo
Some highlights from doing the new one from @gonzalo_larrocha in the Santa Linya cave last month..
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Rollito Gonzalo exists Rollito Sharma after its crux and finishes at the Fabela chain. A modern classic šš«”
