Ice Climbing Seminars in Norway
A wonderful group of athletic women who learned a little bit more about ice climbing.
One of the highlights of my trip to Norway was teaching over 2 weekends in Rjukan. I met very talented and experienced ice climbers from Scotland and Norway. We all learned a lot and had a blast exploring the frozen waterfalls of the Rjukan area.
The fantastic venue for learning in Rjukan, Norway
The famous tool traverse… working on our footwork and body position for ice chippin’
- Of course we had to try out some drytooling, as well
Siri crushing the stone 😉 like she owned the speed climbing competition at the Rjukan Ice Festival
Oda figuring it out 🙂
It did get hot for a few minutes and we took full advantage of the power of vitamin D
talking about twisting our hips and flicking our wrists
Hanna-Kajsa, a Swedish climbing guide and I, enjoyed working together 🙂
Me, when it wasn’t as warm, getting the rope up
Enjoying the sun, while cleaning the ropes and demonstrating skirt climbing 😉
I taught a lead climbing clinic to Lisa and Debbie from Scotland the previous weekend. We had perfect conditions and climbs for our objectives.
Debbie cruising up a grade 3 at the lower gorge
Lisa has a strong swing and complete confidence in her tools 🙂
This was one of my most favorite trips ever. I was so inspired by the women and the local landscapes of Norway. I know I will be back next year.
Dolomites with Sara and Geoff
Meet Geoff and Sara, a happy couple
I was fortunate to climb with Sara and Geoff in the Dolomites this past September. This trip allowed me to experience the magic of these historical mountains in the eastern Alps.
Bad Timing
Unfortunately, we timed our trip perfectly with some of the worst weather of the summer. Every day, tough decisions were made, but we made the best of it and managed to climb some rocks!
Sport Climbing near Sands in Taufers
Our trip started with a three hour traffic jam on a Saturday morning driving over Brenner Pass from Innsbruck. In the future I will try to get an earlier or much later start. We were chomping at the bit, but by the time we found a crag in the late afternoon, we found it seeping from recent rains.
The next day we awoke to rain and we ended up making a long trip to a dry sport climbing cliff, where we got in a really good workout!
Not my photo, as the day we climbed the 3rd Sella Tower we did not have any blue sky.
Summit of the second sella tower and the famous Messner route
We enjoyed the first half of the Vinatzer route on the 3rd Sella Tower and everyone enjoyed the crux pitch up a finger crack and through a roof, even though it was a little bit moist.
Then I made the tough decision to go down, as the weather wasn’t improving, and I was worried about some technical scrambling on the descent in the rain. So we rappelled from there and found our way into the descent gulley.
arriving at the big ledge before the crux pitch on the Vinatzer route
Getting a bit discouraged with the weather we packed up and headed from Val Gardenia to Cortina. On the way I managed to get a 170 euro speeding ticket for going 11km over the speed limit while trying to pass a dump truck. I was getting passed by locals all the time as I get car sick when I drive fast on windy roads! Nice italian hospitality.
rain on Sass di Stria, we managed to climb the left hand skyline route later in the afternoon, called Hexenstien
When we got to Falzerego Pass it was raining so we headed up the cable car to the top of Lagazuoi
The information in the cable car and for tourist about WWI was fascinating
The tourist book told us to take the cable car up and hike down the tunnels to avoid going against the crowds, but on this rainy day–it wouldn’t of been an issue to hike up the tunnels (which i would of preferred).
Enjoying Italian hospitality at the Rifugio Lagazuoi before descending the mountain
I loved the ledges, trails, paths, tunnels, trenches all initially built in WWI. It was not difficult to imagine what it might of been like
Helmets and headlamps required, i kept bumping my head!
Unfortunately, i am claustrophobic (felt nauseous, and headachey) and I didn’t really enjoy this experience. when there were opportunities to go onto ‘balconies’ or walk outside on exposed terraces, i was very happy.
ahhh, the relief of getting outside, scoping climbs and ski lines : )
In the afternoon, we managed to squeeze in this climb on Hexenstein.
the second to last pitch involves climbing over a chockstone into a rock crevasse, a very cool location on the mountain. These mountains provide lots of natural hiding places.
Savouring one of our few summits on the trip before hiking off through many trenches and walls built in WWI.
The next day we through our hands up in the air and headed to Venice to escape another day of rain and indecision.
In our short time visiting Venice, we did some great sightseeing, but mostly ate and drank wonderful food and wine
And of course we went to find the Glass Blowers on the island of Murano, we missed them, but bought some gorgeous glass jewelry and vases.
The Yellow Edge in the Tre Cime was our next objective. We shared the route with a few other parties. What a spectacular location!
Fun corner climbing for the first couple pitches
Crushing the stone
Shortly after this pitch the route traverses left and up into the final crux dihedral.
We got passed by a local which was also, a classic European experience for us!
We had a good day out at the Cinqui Torri after this and really enjoyed the route called the NW corner on the Torre Barancio.
Superb classic climb on this Torre up the obvious corner in the sun (photo from mountainproject.com)
I want to thank Sara for being so adventurous and strong and trusting me on this trip. I want to thank Geoff for his patience and care of Sara and ability to be supportive through bad weather and help with the details of guiding. I appreciate them both for all the amazing wine and fantastic food we devoured!
givin’er
The Highest Biggest Baddest Mountain in Canada – Mt. Logan 2012
Kenneth, Juho (JS), Juho (JR), Gery and me
Thanks again to Mammut for enabling this incredible journey to the north of Canada, to climb Canada’s most wintery peak: Mt. Logan via the King’s trench. For more information on the Mammut website about the trip and all the individuals involved, please go here.
3 Finn’s, 1 Austrian and a canuck
We embarked on this journey by meeting in Whitehorse on May 23, 2012 at this fine establishment:
Good eats in the Yukon
Where we continued to ‘overeat’ in hopes of burning a few calories on the glacier. We also, supplied ourselves with lots of fuel and a few last minute groceries – the ‘heavy’ food like cheese, butter and expedition bread.
This evening also marks the change in our daily sleep patterns with the midnight sun keeping our energy high until at least 1 am for most of the rest of the trip.
We enjoyed watching a beaver play in the Yukon river after dinner whilst waiting for the sun to set……… we’re still waiting ; )
The next day we were taken in a 15 passenger van to Kluane Lake (courtesy of Up North Adventures) after registering with Parks Canada and getting a safety briefing on the hazards that are exceptional on Mt. Logan, like avalanches, weak snow bridges over crevasses and cornices.
you will never forget a trip to the North
We did get to know the road between Haines Junction and Kluane Lake a bit, as we ended up waiting a week to fly in due to either high winds or white skies.
a visual treat for us on one of our journeys to Haines Junction
We were very lucky during our first week of waiting because most days – it was obvious that we were not going to fly. This allowed us to explore the local environment. We went biking, hiking, fishing, explored the beach of Kluane Lake and used the sauna.
We had a nice day to hike to the top of Sheep Mountain.
Gery and Kenneth on the ascent.
Gery enjoying a steeper ridge on Sheep Mountain
Yes, we ACTUALLY saw LOTS of Dall Sheep on Sheep Mountain, and lots of new baby sheep too.
The amazing beach of Kluane Lake (just outside the Sauna)
During our entire trip we were able to observe the melting of the winter ice off of the lake.
We heard many different birds, but we really enjoyed watching the ravens hassle this Golden Eagle
We all really enjoyed meeting, Duncan (the cook at the research station), who graciously took us fishing…
and Duncan entertained us occasionally for our evening campfires where we made some amazing burgers, and learned the ‘canadian’ way of roasting marshmallows.
If you could stay up late enough, you could see some amazing sunsets (for hours)
We were psyched to meet our pilot Donjek and (my previous pilot) Andy Williams.
Finally, on June 1, on our second try of the day… Donjek managed to get Gery and I into basecamp on the King’s Trench on the Quintino Sella Glacier at 2750m.
Here is a little footage of our flight just before landing….
the glorious east ridge of logan on the flight in
our new home in the snow
Sooo, Gery and I flew in late on June 1, but JR and JS weren’t able to fly in until early on June 3. Kenneth decided that his time was better spent exploring the wilderness of the Yukon and Alaska before his family came to join him later in the month.
We had a nice progression up to King’s col (Camp 2) where we would carry one day and move camp the next day from Base Camp (2750m) to Camp 1 (3260m) to Camp 2 (4105m).
one of the steeper sections of the trip between camp 1 and camp 2 (king’s col)
We missed most of the teams that had flown in and out before we arrived, but we did get to spend a bit of time with Canada West Mountain school owner, Brian Jones and guides, Rich Prohaska and Tyler before they flew out. As well, we met a team of four, mostly from the Kootenays’, who summited (and got a bit of frostbite). The final team we met was from Alberta, when the four of them flew out, we were the only folks left on the mountain.
the carry to camp 3 (JS)
On about the fifth day of ‘work’, we decided to make a carry to camp 3 (4888m), as the weather was good and the next day was forecast to be ‘bad’. This was a difficult decision for JR, as he wasn’t feeling great, he was lower energy and suspected he might be getting sick. He chose to make the carry, and we moved at a very slow pace, but in hindsight, he probably got more sick due to the extra exertion and altitude.
We finally earned our ‘porridge’ and our rest day at King’s Col.
The mighty King’s Peak gave us hours of entertainment at King’s Col
We awoke the next day with the plan of moving to camp 3, if JR was ok. He wasn’t. He felt worse and his pulse oximeter reading was 65, (down from the 80’s). He didn’t feel well enough to ski down either (a common symptom of the man flue). So with our handy dandy sat phone, we managed to coordinate a rescue from King’s col with Parks Canada. (Thanks to Andrew, the park’s rescue specialist)
Due to the altitude and cloud, JR flew out, but without much of his gear. We decided to retrieve the carry from camp 3. This decision was based on the fact that we felt JR might be very sick and need assistance from JS ASAP.
The trip between King’s col and camp 3 is spectacular due to the seracs and King’s Peak. We enjoyed fresh powder skiing, as well. We did have a ‘visitor’ at camp 3. A solo raven, sampled much of our food. (He visited us again at basecamp at the end of the trip)
The following couple days were spent sitting in camp at King’s Col- waiting for weather. During this time, we found out that our dear friend, JR, was okay. Thanks to Dr. Jeff Boyd, we had sent him off with the appropriate anti-biotics and he felt much better back at Kluane lake (after visiting the nursing station in Haines Jct.).
good times reading in the tent
Now, we had the tough decision of what to do next. There were many teams prior to us that waited many days to fly in or out of the Quintino Sella Glacier. Based on fear of missing future engagements, the team decided to head back to basecamp and catch the first available opportunity to fly out.
We didn’t have a great weather forecast in our future and we did have a lot of unused fuel, uneaten food, and JR’s extra gear to get off the mountain, as well.
down we go- with WAY too heavy loads : (
Gery and JS worked together to get 3 sleds full down the mountain whilst navigating in the WHITE!
On the way down we heard an avalanche of ice and snow on the King’s Peak side, it was a tough day with heavy loads while Gery lead us with his GPS back down the mountain.
Back at basecamp and time to break out the ‘backcountry oven’ treats like pizza and brownies
We ended up having to wait a few days back in basecamp. During this time, we exhausted our library (somethings were read twice) and Gery and JS enjoyed some ‘extreme’ couloir skiing close to camp.
Gery treated us to a workout facility in which we could work on our pullups.
JS cranking out a set. ‘Extreme’ couloirs in the background of photo. ; )
Finally, less than eight hours, before our flight out of Whitehorse, we were miraculously whisked out of base camp, by Doug (the heli pilot) and back to Kluane Lake at 10pm. We enjoyed a cold beer while swatting at mosquitoes and packing up our stuff.
Our taxi ( Woody’s Limo +1-867-668-1676 ) arrived after midnight to take us to the Whitehorse airport, where we were just in time for our 6 am flight to Calgary on June 16!
We feel so lucky to of had such an adventure in the wilderness of northern Canada.
We especially want to thank Sian and Lance of Kluane Lake and the Icefields Discovery Tours who enabled the best trip possible and were amazing hosts despite it being possibly the WORST weather in 40 years!
Sian waiting to fly in, too!
Lance, being patient and wise : )
Our pilot Doug
Aguja Guillaumet Squared
I am grateful to Saule Zukauskaite, Arunas Kamandulis, and Gediminas Simutis for this fantastic opportunity to climb in Patagonia. Saule, Aras and Gedas proposed this trip to Mammut for the 150 year project and it was selected. Thanks to Mammut for choosing me to accompany this talented team of young climbers.
For more information on Aguja Guillaumet look here.
We climbed the routes: Brenner-Moschioni 350 m 6b and Comesaña-Fonrouge 350 meters 6b+
The view from my window at my posada, Inlandsis, the day of our departure
Buenos Dias and the waning Luna
Gedas, Saule and Aras... ready to giv'er
definitely 6 tons!
Starting the grind...
We started our march to the promised land on December 12th. We ended up camping in the valley at Piedra del Fraile after taking a load up to Piedra Negra. On December 13, we hiked from the valley at ~500m, changed up our loads at Piedra Negra (~1300m) and continued up to Paso Guillaumet where the rock climbing begins, a few pitches of quality rock climbing gets you to the aesthetic crux pitch.
At Piedre Negra, ready for action
The left summit is Guillaumet
The crux pitch on the Brenner-Moschioni
Saule on perfect alpine granite
loving the shadows and the cracks
Rising to the ridgeline
Looking back at the ridge we climbed
Summit Shot ~2579m
We gratefully summited at 8:30pm after ascending a little over 2000m from the valley.
starting the descent with fantastic views
the shadow of the aguja in the valley below
We rappelled the Guillot couloir into fading light.
Finishing the rappels, back to the Paso Guillaumet for a midnight snack
We arrived back at our tents around 3 am. We spend the next day resting, recovering and sheltering ourselves from the heat and the sun. Climbers say they haven’t seen it be so hot here in previous seasons.
On December 14, we decided to head back up Aguja Guillaumet–to minimize our time on the not so frozen snow. Aras, Gedas and Saule did a great job of leading us up the approach on snow, keeping the momentum on the route and up to the Amy couloir.
Crux Pitch of Comesaña-Fonrouge
Fitzroy group shadow on Pollone
a happy guida
Gedas leading the rappels
the last rappel
Racing down to beat the heat
Gratefully back at the trailhead, without our packs on our backs
crammed into the taxi
Team Lithuania in Patagonia
Gedis, Aras and Saule
Today we went for a 5 pitch rock climb. Bolts, around 5.10 or 6a. Very fun outing. A little bit windy– good training for us to get to know each other and get into thinking about alpine climbing.
Gedis on the 1st pitch
in the rhythm
enjoying the views
the wind picks up
our 1st summit - many more to come ; )
to rescue training...
So after a day of getting to know each other and some rescue review… we are off to the mountains. Tomorrow we will hike into Piedre Negra and hope to climb Guillomet and Aguja Pollone in the next couple days….
Classic Chamonix Climbs with fellow Canucks, Joanna and Tom
get your game face on for the Aiguille du Midi arete
the Cherie Couloir on the triangle du tacul... beside the trois mont route on mont blanc
the crux pitch ~ WI 3-4
Joanna cranking out the crux
Tom is happy not to be under Joanna or any other parties for that matter : )
the last pitch of perfect ice and stone
an impressive glacier and valley far below
riding the Helbronner to the Torino hut, a mountain guide's dream of transportation
Bonjourno Dent du Geante and Torino rifugio
"getting dressed" in the morning
Aiguille de Entrevs ridge traverse from right to left
So many great ridge photos!
Joanna coming to grips with her fear of exposed places! WOW! impressive...
great views from the Helbronner
OUT OF THE MONT BLANC MASSIF AND ONTO THE AIGUILLE ROUGE SIDE OF THE VALLEY TO APPRECIATE WHERE WE HAVE BEEN….
its all about the vistas
Traverse of the Crochues follows the ridge from left to right starting at the 'V' notch
a superb ridge traverse
Next stop... Lac Blanc
the popular Lac Blanc, well worth the hike
sit down, relax, eat and drink: croute, omlette, tart, beer, wine and rose!
a tipsy bumble back to the top of the Index lift
a sweet ride down before the evening storm
High Route from Chamonix to Zermatt
prepping for the glaciers
Great trails in all weather conditions
Amazing wildflowers this year
sometimes the bad weather makes for beautiful waterfalls and fog
The Mont Blanc
A photo story of climbing this prolific mountain from the Cosmiques Hut on the traverse of the three summits.
Mont Blanc from Lac des Cheserys
Early Morning Light on the Tacul du Mont Blanc
Weaving through the seracs on the Tacul du Mont Blanc
Perfect conditions despite the storm
the traverse from the tacul to the maudit
the technical cruxes of the route lie on the Mont Maudit
Pitched climbing on the Maudit
Amazing views of the Aiguille du Midi rising above the clouds
Castles in the Sky
SUMMIT! despite challenging winds, late start and adverse conditions ; )
descending the Gouter ridge
On the way down from the Tete Rousse hut in the morning
Walking the tracks when the train is under repair
On a recent trip, we summitted the Tacul du Mont Blanc under adverse conditions:
Walking out of the Aiguille du Midi requires full concentration
winds on the summit ridge
turn the volume down ; )
climbing to the summit of the tacul
a grateful summit without wind
rush hour on the aiguille du midi
Welcome!
Jen hard at work
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Welcome to my new website for advertising guided trips. Soon many cool adventures will be available for the 2009 summer season… stay tuned!
