Sunday, July 19, 2015

Random scramblings

Life really gets simple when the sole question is what rock to climb.
Even more so when the goal is just to go out and be challenged.
Numbers and grades have burdened my climbing character enough earlier.

This is not a cliche statement about enjoying climbing over chasing grades, 
I'm just psyched on how natural it has become to scale rock.

Few days ago I did a one-armer, I think this was my second time ever, with no specific training and after only climbing rock for months. Historical moment, indeed.

Pockety Frankenjura, best limestone slabs of the Slovenian Alps, some quality 3D tufa climbing in Osp, all mixed up. Tomorrow I'm off for the pinnacle of what mother Earth has molded, forged in millions of years deep beneath its crust. The granite life continues!
teamed up with mr. Kruder yesterday for an attempt in Last minute. It's massive, 6 long, varied pitches of unrelenting, hard climbing. we checked it out well and syked to get back on it. lots of pump and burning legs for one day!

Kruder on the first, bouldery 8a+ pitch. 7.45 AM, it felt unreal to be crimping that early
HA! So this is the secret to why he's so strong - but what's inside?
well, they say everything in our Alps is chossy.  (unfair tho because the route is tremendous!)

first blood on mountain climbing for me, with Janez being a great menthor. we eyed up this pretty pillar and did Cvetje v jeseni, 7b. The climbing was phenomenal.

cruxy in the start of the 7b pitch

rocking up the final bits of the hard pitch. the quality of rock, the climbing and the exposure make the killer approach worth it. Rock climbing is easy, but mountains are hard and demanding (paraphrased from Patxi Usobiaga). It was all bolted (though runout) so no pitons for me so far!

yes, yes, the summit! Quick now, I'm cold, let's get off this thing!

having fun on the radiator style, water carved easy lower pitches
feeling pretty beat up after my first climb in the Alps. That guy behind is smiling, he does a lot of it (but right now he is in Pakistan). Good luck dude!
spent two weeks in the Frankenjura with the youth team from PCL, and what a blast it was. Look out for the video series! Here I'm doing the uber-classic Sautanz (IX-).
feeling a bit dark and grainy in there but the route I'm doing is stunningly good, so much of fun movement packed into 10 metres of climbing. That is why I like Frankenjura so much. Spiderman (X-) in Grune Holle.

Osp from a month ago. There's always routes to be done in the cave... had a good onsight attempt in the new classic Helihopter v omaki (8b). It's really fun if you haven't done any steep tufa climbing in a while. But it gets old soon...

a visit to Osp. it's nice to see it in full green. had a fun time doing some multipitches and chilling by the fire with the PCL/DRPK crew. I'm going to miss you next year!

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