Hardwear Sessions

Our plan was to go to a few different regions to climb. We planned to climb in Hemsedal and in Rjukan. Trying to stay at higher elevations, because it was forecasted to rain down low. The rain damped our plans for fjord climbing. The locations we were looking at were in good condition. The classic lines were in good shape, making the tick list long. To sweeten the plan even further, Seth arranged low cost housing options in each town as well. The business plan was made and it forecasted 12 days of good times and great climbing.

We packed up Seth's four-wheel drive turbo van with two complete ice and backcountry ski kits and headed out. We drove away from the capital city of Oslo, and into the scenic Norwegian county side and the picturesque mountains. It was a great drive through small towns and along winding rural highway roads. I enjoyed the architecture, and really appreciated the style. It was also a great opportunity to catch up with an old friend. We laughed and told stories, which made the drive go by quickly.

Juvsøjla (WI 6) Norway Waterfalls

Once in Hemsedal we made ourselves at home at a cabin just outside of town. We arrived in town with daylight, so we were able to see one of our objectives, Grøtenfossen WI5. The other objective, Hydnefossen WI5+/6, was hidden in the clouds. Hydnefossen would remain in clouds for every day that we had planned to be in town. Due to our lack of visibility, it was obvious to climb Grøtenfossen first.

Grøtenfossen was a great welcome to Norway climb. The ice climb was five pitches long. The first two pitches were very sun and wind affected. Weird fin like features protruded from the snow cone layers. This made for more heads up climbing in otherwise easy WI5 climbing terrain. The remaining pitches were fun and interesting, with less wind effect but more snowy bits. The climb helped to relieve any jet lag that I had. It proved to be a great objective to get the kinks out of an old climbing team. Day two in Hemsedal we awoke to light snow showers and very low visibility. We stuck with the day plan and headed to climb Hydnefossen. As we drove to the trailhead, the clouds sunk low. It was almost a white out by the time we reached the parking area. After a long posthole approach we made it to the base of the climb. For one split second the clouds opened up, and the climb became visible for the first time.

The giant wall of ice was daunting to say the least. It made Bridal Veil Falls in Colorado look like the kids climb. Hydnefossen was massive, with cauliflowers as far as the eye could see. We made a brief assessment of our route, and then the clouds swallowed the climb again. The weather was coming in and that opening in the clouds would be our last view of the route for the rest of the day.

We racked up and I took off on lead into the ping-pong ball. I had very low visibility, making route finding through the bulges and cauliflowers difficult. I found a sheltered belay underneath a giant cauliflower 60 meters up. I brought Seth up to the belay and he was a Popsicle, and was suffering from early onset of the screaming barfies. It was a brutal day to be out climbing such a beast of a climb.

Seth took off on pitch two, pulling over the crazy overhangs carefully. Ice rained down as he travel through the sea of icicles and cauliflowers. As he climbed I made my sheltered belay as sheltered as possible. I kicked out a small stance, and continued to improve this stance as the ice bombed me. At some point in my shelter building, I kicked the right icicle down, and a cave opening appeared. I communicated with Seth, who was just 20 feet or so away from the belay that I had scored and found a cave to hide in. This gave him the freedom to knock down as much ice as he needed. Just after I muttered the words, Seth told me he was feeling very sick, dizzy and nauseous. He came back to the sweet cave I had found, and we choose to bail because of Seth's health and because the storm was getting worse. As I hiked out that day, I vowed to come back and climb the beast.

The storm that started the morning we attempted Hydnefossen lasted for three full days. The pass we needed to drive over to get to Laeredal was closed. Ice climbing seemed to be a bad option due to all the fresh snow that had fallen and the limited visibility. So we did what people do on a powder day, we went skiing. I enjoyed Hemsedal's best days of the season. After three days of skiing Norwegian powder and tree dodging we drove back to Oslo to regroup.

From Oslo we traveled to Rjukan. It was a three-hour drive through more of the beautiful Norwegian landscapes. As we approached the valley where Rjukan lies, ice lines became abundant. Ice was everywhere I looked. I was getting excited, and eager to climb. When we arrived in town we did a quick driving tour to scope our objectives and their conditions. We found two of our objectives, Lipton WI6 and Juvsøjla WI5+, to be in great shape. We then headed to the trailhead to climb in the lower gorge. We climbed Sabatorfossen WI4+ and another easy one below the bridge. It was good to move on the ice and work my cramped legs after the drive.

The following day we awoke to my first bluebird day of the trip. Seth and I headed out early to climb Juvsøjla. The climb is a classic WI5+ that is 2 pitches of good solid climbing. Seth was nice enough to let me lead the entire thing, since he had already done the climb in the past. I was stoked and enjoyed the on sight adventure. After Juvs ø jla we went into the upper gorge to enjoy a few pitches of sunny ice cragging. I climbed a great mixed pitch and Seth climbed a fun curtain. It was nice to soak in the sun on the last two pitches of the day.

Our last day in Rjukan, we awoke to another stormy day. Light snow was falling, but the visibility was not that bad. We headed to the trailhead, with Lipton as our objective for the day. I was very determined and psyched about climbing that day. The approach seemed to go by very quickly. As we approached the climb the snow began to let up. We had a clear view of the route. It looked very difficult, but intriguing at the same time. We were even questioning whether or not it would go. I insisted that we should at least give it a try.

We racked up for the route, I choose to lead pitches one and two of our three pitch climb. Our doubts about us completing the route still remained. But I headed up to the top of pitch one, so I could look at pitch two more closely. Pitch two would be a traverse under a roof, connecting two small ice blobs to get to a huge tongue of ice flowing out from the main wall. This tongue of ice was a yellow free hanging dagger that looked very solid.

Once Seth got the belay, my courage to do pitch two seemed to arrive with him. I re-racked and mustered up all my courage. I went out on the sharp end and made one move at a time. At the second ice blob I had to make that choice to continue or bail. I knew that if I made one more move up, I could not reverse it to get back to the safety of the first belay. Something in me told me to go for it, and success followed. I made it to the top of pitch two with out any problems. I could not believe I had pulled off the pitch. I was amazed and very satisfied. Seth cruised up behind me, and then fired the last pitch of the climb. We rapped down with giant smiles, feeling a sense of accomplishment from the route. It was a great climb to cap my Rjukan adventure.

My days in Norway were now limited to just a handful. I felt I had unfinished business in Hemsedal. I wanted to go back and climb Hydnefossen. I could not leave the country with out climbing the route. It would be my last ice climb of the season, and I wanted to end the ice season with something significant. Somehow Seth saw my plight, and agreed to make the long drive back to Hemsedal.

The day morning we awoke to climb Hydnefossen the weather was perfect, sunny with light wind. The hike in went smooth due to the snowshoe track that someone beat into the base of the route. This time Seth lead the first pitch, since I lead it the first time we attempted the route. I lead pitch two, and found it to be very strenuous. It was nearly 60 meters of cauliflowers, crazy hanging icicles, overhangs and bulges, all connected somehow with snowy insecure ramps. It was rad and super challenging. Seth led the last pitch, which got us to the top of the route. The last pitch was a short cauliflower section, which rolled back and smoothed out to an enjoyable WI4 finish. We snapped a few summit photos to mark our achievement. It was the perfect three pitches to complete my ice season and my Norway adventure.

As we drove back to Oslo, Seth and I discussed all the ice climbs that were along the fjords. We discussed projects and the time of the season in which to climb them. We daydreamed about next year and the possibilities of me returning. It was not hard to sell me on the idea of long ice routes that are along the coastline. I committed to return at that moment.

I feel lucky to have traveled to Norway. I enjoyed my stay in the winter wonderland of Hemsedal and Rjukan. I also loved the architecture in the city of Oslo. I found the people I met to be fascinating and very friendly. I tried some Norwegian cuisine and found that I am not a fan of brown cheese. I will now plan and look ahead to my trip next year. The next time around I will travel earlier in the season and bring gortex. I am also going to learn to speak the language. So that I know how to say something more in Norwegian other than, "hello good-looking".