tirsdag 9. juli 2013

Summertime in beautiful Flatanger and Fosen :D

Our two week summertrip was spent at Flatanger and Fosen! This area is the best of two worlds - high quality boulders and routes, all within an hour drive. 

After a 10 hours drive from Oslo we (my boyfriend Kenneth and I) arrived to a charming old cottage we rented, just by the Sea, with a beautiful view in quiet and relaxing surroundings… and only a 2 min drive from the notorious cave of Flatanger :D


Welcome to Flatanger!
We changed between bouldering and route climbing and some days we even did both. We would then start the day with some bouldering and end it with some routes in the cave.

A day in Vingsand

Harbak in the sun :)


Even though we were surrounded by world-class bouldering, my eyes were set on the cave.

I had only climbed in Flatanger for a weekend previous to this trip. But already then I knew I had to come back for a longer time soon. I was captured by some of the classic, yet newly established routes. Nordic Flower was one of them. The route starts far inside the cave and goes out the overhang for the entire time. It has two anchors, the first after 35 meters and the extension (the full link) adds another 10 ish meters.


"Nordic flower"


After working the moves and finding the right beta, it only took me something like four redpoint attempt to send it. Really happy to rap that one up! So close to pump out in the very top, clipping the anchors felt so hard with the massive rope drag. As we didn’t have that much time, I will be back for the extension next trip (don’t know when yet), really psyched on this route. It has a bouldery start then continuously pumpy steep climbing on good holds, with semi crux in between. It has a nice flow.. and makes you really exhausted ☺

I of course tried some other routes. Did two very nice 8a’s “Flaggermusmannen” and “Litt på kanten” and also a beautiful 7c named “Eventyrblanding”.  The very last day I also went through “Muy Verdes” 8c+. Super nice bouldery route! Felt hard, but for sure want to get back on it when we come back ☺


Great end of a great trip when my MAN sent a really tricky hard boulder “Baboonmasters egde” 8A on our last day! Oh yes!
Baboonmasters egde (8A) going down

fredag 22. februar 2013

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 :)