Spain with mixed emotions

Even though it’s the same house, climbing mostly at the same crag Santa Linya, hanging out with the same people and with the days looking quite the same, this season in Spain has been completely different from last season. Trying to live in Spain when your boyfriend is home in Oslo is not easy.

When I first got here in late November I went straight on my long term project, La Novena Puerta (8c+), the route I left unfinished last season. I kind of surprised my self by sending it after less then two weeks on it. Going back on a route that you’ve spent a lot of time and effort on, is sometimes hard. But after training a lot at home before returning back to Spain it felt really good and the route felt a lot easier then I remembered it.

Passing the first bouldery crux on La Novena Puerta (8c+)

End of the second crux section, La Novena Puerta
(Photo: Henning Wang)

It’s a great feeling to send a route after putting lots of work into it. It gives you the right motivation to keep working on pushing your self and your limits, it opens your mind to how good the body can adapt to hard stuff if you just truly want it.

Into the main crux

Sending time! La Novena Puerta
(photo: Henning Wang)

Longing to get home to my boy, I’ve ending up traveling a lot of back and forth during this season in Spain. Exploring the Barcelona airport, like never before and getting phone bills of the makeable kind.

Anyway, after sending La Novena Puerta I’ve found it hard to get motivated to try something even harder. The thought of having to spend many weeks on a route is a thought that usually would just turn me on, but this time it just feels unmotivating. On the bright side this season has been a lesson on what a more aggressive approach has done to my climbing. Redpointing amuerte style, wanting to make short process of hard routes. I guess wanting to get home put things in action.

Down for business, going all in on Aitzol (8c)
(Photo: Henning Wang)

Sending Remeneo (8b+)
(Photo: Manabu Yoneyama)

Once again I’m back in Spain, this time after spending almost a month in Norway. This trip will be the last before returning back home to Oslo for good. I don’t have the ticket home yet, but I guess I will stay here for about 2-4 weeks.

My time in Spain is coming to an end, the remaining time I will spend on trying to finish up some 8c-ish routes I’ve been working, routes I’ve been feeling pretty close on. Routes like Aitzol in Margalef, Open your mind and Aplom pa la Remeno in Santa Linya. I might also check out the new linkup my brother did recently, Analógica Natural Extension (9a) in Santa Linya, but only for future reference :)