Sari Nevala's climbing blog

Winter climbing in Scotland

2012-02-07T09:51:00.008+02:00

I love it!

After climbing in El Chorro, I flew out to Scotland to join in the British Mountaineering Council's winter climbing meet. The meet took place on the last week of January in Glenmore lodge, which is situated just a stone throw from the Cairngorm mountains. During the meet 39 international guest from 26 countries teamed up with a similar number of UK hosts to experience the best of Scottish winter climbing. Countries attending included Japan, South Africa, USA, Serbia, Sweden and Spain. During the meet many great classics such as Tower Ridge and Green Gully on Ben Nevis were climbed, but also, cutting edge new routes and repeats were made such as the second ascent of Guerdon Groves on Buachille Etive Mor in Glen Coe done by Nick Bullock, Bayard Russell (USA) and Guy Robertson. The evenings were kept busy with excellent presentations from Simon Richardson (UK), Simon Yearsley (UK), Jen Olson (Canada), Nick Bullock (UK), Will Sim and Greg Boswell (UK), and Magnus Kastengren (Sweden).

I found myself climbing on the Scottish mountains 5 out of the 6 climbing days (nobody climbed on Wednesday as the weather was poor). First days I was teamed up with two lovely aspirant guides, Lena from Norway and Roccio from UK. We climbed awesome routes in Creagan Coire Cha-no (Jenga Buttress 3,4 and Anvil Corner 5,6) and Coire an t'Sneachda (Seam 4,5). On Wednesday many of the climbers visited a local drytooling crag, whilst others chilled out playing in the Glenmore lodge drytooling wall. The last three days I was teamed up with Rob Dyer from UK, and we climbed some fantastic and memorable lines in Aonach Mor (Aquafresh 4,4; and missed the gondola due to a large blue-ice cornice), Hell's Lum (started with Brimstone Groove 4,4 but due to the lack of ice diverted to a route on left, perhaps 4,5 or 4,6 and topped out at 8pm) and Coire an Lochan (Oesophagus; again due to lack of ice diverted to a line on right). Thus it was a week of early mornings and great adventures, good company and new friends. For my liking the conditions were bit too thin, and I found routes in difficult condition (compared to two years ago when ice was fat and solid....). But that is winter climbing for you! Thank you Roccio, Lena and Rob for a lovely week!

More information about the meet is provided here:

http://www.thebmc.co.uk/modules/article.aspx?id=5541

Sari on Aquafresh 4,4

Sari and Roccio getting ready

From the Hell's Lum

Devil's Delight

Beautiful Scotland

Winter in El Chorro

2012-02-06T16:06:00.004+02:00

After arriving home from Moscow I wanted to escape the northern winter. Thus, travelled to southern Spain, Andalucia, to a well-known climbing destination called El Chorro. So far I had not been on a full on redpointing sport climbing holiday, thus I thought that now was the perfect timing for it. I have been climbing 6's for a long time - and it was the time to raise the bar. Redpointing is hard work, although I loved it so much that I ended up spending 8 weeks in El Chorro. Here's a collection of my climbing photo's in El Chorro. And yes, I did climb 7a's and tried many more harder routes...

On a multipitch trad route called Africa on the Africa wall

The el Chorro gorge

The best 6a in the Arab steps

Rosie on life is sweet in Makinodromo

Sari enjoying the routes in Encantadas

Makinodromo

Belaying

The gorge again

Climbing in the beautiful Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine

2011-11-11T13:57:00.031+02:00

Mountains of Foros

The beautiful Crimean peninsula in Ukraine

The Crimea (Krim) is situated in the southern part of Ukraine and it is a beautiful place with endless vineyards, spectacular mountains and limestone cliffs, and warm sparkling Black sea. The Crimea has been a very popular destination for tourists from Russia and Ukraine for a long time and there are many curative lakes, thermal medical springs and thousands of historical and cultural monuments in the peninsula. I was lucky to visit the area with Vasiliy Pavlov, Aleksei and Tania Otvagin for 10 days in early November 2011.

Little bit about history....

Crimea has an ancient and rich history. Across the centuries a variety of people have settled on its shores, including the Greeks, the Romans, the Venetians and the Genoese; all of whom left distinctive footprints in the peninsula that can be seen today. In the mid 1200's Crimea was conquered all the way to China by the nomadic Tatars joined with others tribes of Turkish ethnicity. In 1783 Crimea was successfully invaded by the Slavs and transferred to the Russian empire. Both Russians, Ukrainians, Bulgarians, Armenians, and even Germans started to settle in Crimea. In the 19th century, Britain and France became concerned about Russia's expansionist plans to gain control of the passage from the Black Sea into the Mediterranean. Because of this they took an active interest in the Crimean war which began in 1853 between Turkey and Russia, and sent British and French boats into Balaklava in 1854 to attack the Russians. There were no real victors in the war, instead terrible casualties on both sides. After the Russian revolution of 1917, Crimea was established in 1921 as an Autonomous Republic for the Tatars within the Russian Soviet Republic. The Second World War brought the return of German forces to Crimea, who completely occupied the peninsula for two years from 1942-1944. In 1945 the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, US President Roosevelt and Russian leader Stalin chose the Livadia Palace near Yalta as the venue for the Yalta conference, in which the 'Big Three' carved up Europe and set the stage for the Cold War years which followed. In 1954, Khrushchev created the Autonomous Crimean Soviet Socialist Republic, and transferred control of Crimea to the Ukrainian SSR. The transfer was also meant by the Soviet leader to be a symbolic gesture to mark the 300th anniversary of the Treaty of Pereyaslav that unified Russia and the Ukraine. Little did he know how much that moment in history would change the fate of Crimea. In 1991, the most notable event of the modern history of Crimea; the USSR collapsed, Ukraine declared its independence, and as a result of Khrushchev previous actions, Crimea became an Autonomous Republic within the independent Ukraine. Today, as a result of its colourful and complex history, there is a fascinating mix of people and places in the Crimea.

So how do you get there?

The nearest international airport is located in Simferopol. There are many flights from Moscow and Kiev to Simferopol. Many international airlines fly to Kiev of course. I believe Air Baltic also flies to Simferopol from Riga during the summer months. And then there is train of course. In my current knowledge, EU citizens don't need visa. In Crimea, there are many small buses (very cheap) that operate around the peninsula. Also taxis are plentiful. Knowing Russian language is very useful, since people don't really speak much English.

Where should I stay?

There are many apartments and flats to rent (check out internet). It is most convenient to stay in the coastal villages and do one-day climbing at the various sites (we took taxis to the crags from village when we got fed up walking). We paid 20 euros/ night for a 4 bedroom apartment in November (low season). Apparently you can also rent cheap rooms in villages near cliffs, about $5-10 per day. I was told that Kazbekovs' family is building a hotel for climbers near the Red Stone and they speak English. You can also camp by the Red Stone cliff. However, I was warned by few Ukrainian alpinists that if you did camp, it is best not to leave your tent unattended.

There is a shop called Red Stone Shop (36-a, Tsentralnaya St.,) in the village of Red Stone Krasnokamenka, which stocks guidebooks (usually in Russian), climbing and camping gear, and clothes. There is also a large outdoor shop on the main street of Simferopol. Try googling for information about routes in English, several web pages should come up.

So I want to go climbing...

Crimea attracts climbers, mountain bikers, trekkers, tourists... Climate is sub-tropical and it allows climbing all year round, however summers are often very hot (you can still climb early in the morning and later in the afternoon) and winters chilly. The best times to climb are autumn and spring, but be warned, it will be crowded. I found November little bit cold (bring warm jacket), although many alpinists climb in Crimea during the winter months. By going to Crimea during the off-season, you will avoid the crowds, and in November we had the beaches and mountains to ourselves. There is a lot of nice trekking and canyoning around too.

There are several nice climbing sites with fully equipped routes grading from F4 to F9a. Some examples of the climbing regions are: Krasny Kamen (Red Stone), Nikita, Simeiz (Koshka, Leped, Shaan Kaya), Foros (Uarch-Kaya, Parus, Kant), Marcheka (El-Cap of Crimea), Sudak, Batiliman and Bakhchisarai. Krasny Kamen (Red Stone), Nikita, and Koshka and Leped crags in Simeiz are sportclimbing crags. Foros Kant, Shahn-Kaya and Batiliman are areas of multi-pitch climbing with 200-300 meters long routes, 5-10 pitches, usually trad, but some routes are bolted.

Tania climbing Alina 6B in Uarch-Kaya

I visited the following areas:

We arrived to Simferopol on friday evening and caught a minibus to Yalta, and from there, another minibus to the Red Stone crag, which is situated near the village of Krasnokamenka (10-15 mins walk from the highway). There are about 100 limestone routes grading from F5a-F8c in Red Stone crag. Routes are quite long, some even multipitch, so it is best to use a 60 meters rope on this site. Shops in the area are rather well equipped and you can buy for every day utilities and food there. There is also a small street market here. We camped by the Red Stone cliff with other Ukrainian climbers. We climbed several good 6b and 6cs, and tried tricky sevens. They all say Crimean grades are hard, which is quite true...

On Sunday evening we traveled to Foros, which is right by the south coast of Crimea. Aleksei and Tania had rented a cheap, but very nice apartment for us in Foros. Once in Foros, we climbed at several crags within walking distance from the village (if you are lazy, you can always take a taxi to the crag). Most of our time we spent in a multipitch and trad area called Ularch-Kaya, which is within walking distance from Foros. There we climbed several good quality multipitch sport and trad routes such Elena Prekrasnaya (F6a), Alina (F6b) and Karnaval (Russian 4A). Routes in Uarch-Kaya range from F5a to F7b. Other routes (such as Karnaval) in Uarch-Kaya are not well equipped, so you should bring trad gear and perhaps also some skyhooks and pitons (rock in Crimea is often such that it is difficult to find good protection, and according to local climbers, it is dangerous to use small cams on Crimean rock). Great fun and really good quality limestone! In Mshatka-Kaya we climbed route a trad route called Triangular (russian 4B), which was about 300 meters long (6 pitches) and first two pitches were very loose. However, climbing improved and it was a fine day out (and I learned to use a hammer)! On our last day we climbed an amazing multipitch sportroute called Zolotaya Ribka F6b in Parus (2km from Foros). The cliff in Parus looks like a “sail in the ocean of stones” and the last two pitches on our routes were absolutely amazing, only if we were not feeling so cold! In Parus, there are about 30 routes grading from F6b-7c and few multi-pitch routes (4 pitches) leading to the top. I guess the classic route here is the one we did.

Red Stone

Vasiliy climbing Barkas 7a+ in Red Stone

Sari climbing Karnaval (Russian 4A) in Uarch-Kaya

Climbing last pitch of Zolotaya ribka 6A in Parus

Sari and Vasiliy after climbing Parus "the sail in the ocean of stones"

Beautiful sunset in Foros

Empty beach in Foros

Survival in the Wilds of Russia

2011-10-05T09:35:00.004+03:00

In Ala Archa, Northern Tien Shan

Survival in the Wilds of Russia

By Sergei Roy
[Former editor, Moskovskiye Novosti]

We weren't even really climbing, for God's sake. Just quietly crunching across the glacier in the early, much too early morning, when ice-bridges across crevasses were supposed to freeze solid; less danger of them crumbling under your feet. No other dangers, practically, except perhaps for an avalanche or rockslide performing their usual tricks coming suddenly from nowhere. But you can't do much about those. Best ignore the thought in a sort of Inshallah spirit.

So there we were, shivering slightly, fresh from our warm sleeping-bags, just a touch hung-over from the supper in base camp the night before, waiting patiently for the sun to rise and warm us, also illumine some of the most beautiful scenery in the Caucasus, for we were close to Dombai-Ulghen, the Mountain of the Wild Goat That Died, as Shakman translated the name for me. Must have missed his footing, that silly old goat.

One more little snow bridge across a crevasse to walk over. I look at my friend Shakman. He is a Karachai with a degree in Philology and a native's uncanny way with mountains. Some forty pounds heftier than myself, but light on his feet as a chamois. He crosses the ice bridge nonchalantly. I, too, step on the ice, ever so gracefully. The next moment I must have smashed my face against the edge of the crevasse really hard, because later I could not for the life of me remember tumbling down along with chunks of ice to a deepish pool some ten meters below.

Generally, my memories are a bit disjointed and unreliable at this point. On coming to, my first impression must have been of the highly refreshing quality of the water in that pool. Partially melted ice or snow, in fact. For a while, I just lay there quietly, listening to the yells somewhere above and counting my blessings. Among other things, I had landed face up, rucksack down, so my head was above the water surface. But for that, I'd have taken in enough of that iced water to put me out of my misery for good.

I tried moving my hands and legs. The left side was no good for anything except to send pain shooting all the way to the top of my head. The right arm and leg were still serviceable, though. Next point: I could not see much for the blood covering my face, from which I deduced that I must have banged my head about quite a bit in freefall. But ideas kept filtering through that battered organ, and I decided that that was enough for the moment. The rest would have to wait.

In the end, they dragged me out of that cozy pool, smashed kneecap, dislocated shoulder and all. The episode put paid to my mountaineering. After an operation and a lot of murderous exercise to follow, my left shoulder was OK for everyday purposes but had a tendency to dislocate under strain, and you can't have that as you cling to a rock face like a spider. Main thing, you can let down your pals, who will have to carry you down and nurse you on the way. Not to be thought of.

Well, I'd had about ten years of fun with the mountains. I sometimes even think that my having to get out of the sport was for the best, especially when I visit the graves of my mountain-climbing friends. Those that do have graves, that is. For some you just drop a wreath from a chartered helicopter over some inaccessible abyss your pal had disappeared into.

It's been a long time since those rock-climbing days. Decades, in fact, and quite eventful decades. Worth talking about to anyone who'll listen.

When I built up my physique to a semblance of its former shape, I developed a passion for wandering over Russia's wilder, if flatter, parts, known among similarly inclined souls as nenaselenka, slang for "uninhabited areas." Being a bit of a loner, I sometimes roamed these areas with a friend or two, but mostly solo. More chance to pump plenty of adrenaline in your system when you know that there's no one to help, should something untoward happen.

And things did happen. Even adventure-wise, I've had a more diverse career than before. Knocking about the wilder parts of the country in a boat, raft, or sailing dinghy, on foot or on skis, I lost my way in the desert, fell ill in the Siberian taiga and nearly starved to death there, almost froze to death trekking across the Subpolar Urals, had some terrific fun bordering on suicide sliding down rapids in a kayak, had a bit of a shipwreck on the Caspian, and might, if pressed, recall plenty more.

God knows there is enough room for this sort of fun out here. Actually, you don't even have to go out all the way to Siberia to experience any of this. I vividly recall an episode on the Ugra, easily reached by an electrichka (suburban train) from Moscow.

...I heard their lusty yells long before I saw them. The river, swollen with the flood waters of spring, turned here rather sharply, the current was strong, you had to look out for a nasty island closer to the left bank, but there was plenty of room for maneuver. Strictly no sweat. Still, those three had managed to smash their baidarka against a birch-tree that grew on the submerged island and were now yelling their heads off, clinging to the thick branches for dear life.

I ferried them one by one, dripping wet, teeth chattering, in my rubber dinghy to the higher bank, righted their overturned baidarka, then towed it to shore. They squatted where I'd left them, hugging their knees and shaking. What's that Alaskan word for tenderfoot? Chechako. The young people were certainly chechakos of the first water, the three of them piling into that two-seater, and all three, especially the young lady, on the hefty side. Anyone could have told them the boat would capsize. If it hadn't been for that birch-tree, they'd have found another.

Well, they would live and learn. Hardly the right moment to start lecturing them. I made a fire for them, then spent an interesting half hour or so diving for their rucksacks which they hadn't had the sense to tie to the baidarka's frame. The water was more like freshly molten ice. By the time I lugged the last sodden piece of luggage to the fire, they were squabbling fiercely, hardly paying any attention to me. So I quietly toweled myself by the fire, dressed and slipped away. Chechakos will be chechakos. I'd done all that the rafter's rigid code demanded, but I'd be damned if I let them spoil my annual trip to paradise.

For that is what Russia is to the white-water rafter, especially in spring, when most rivers, even quite close to Moscow, rush merrily between fragrant walls of shrubs and trees in full bloom. There's always the spice of danger heavy current and shallows and snags and things you cannot foresee but nothing that cannot be handled with good equipment, a level head and a bit of luck. Ordinary common sense is also desirable, as the above story should show. The best attraction is, of course, that you can feel like an explorer in the wilderness within a couple hours' train ride from any major city, which are few and far between.

After all, Russia is just the greater part of a couple of continents lumped together, and practically all of it falls into the category of the wilds, nine tenths of the population clinging to the western border and the rest smeared over vast spaces in uneven patches. A virtual El Dorado for the fisherman, the hunter, the adventurer, or plain hiker. Until recently, all of it was inaccessible to visitors from abroad, closed forever by a paranoid political system, long defunct now, thank God. It's all openness and light now, and everyone is welcome to the dangers and hardships and thrills of survival and the fun of fishing and hunting, mostly amidst scenery of breath-taking beauty.

It would take a hefty volume to describe even what little I alone have seen and been through, so what follows below offers just a few glimpses. I will try to follow some sort of plan, describing types of travel, types of terrain, etc., but these are merely a frame to hang an old trekker's tales on.

THE RIVERS. Paddling down rivers is probably the most popular kind of travel adventure. The rivers range from mammoths like the Ob, the Yenisei and the Lena wider than the English Channel and flowing over thousands of miles to nice, cozy streams all closed in by trees, more like tunnels in the woods.

For sporting purposes, rivers are divided into several categories, each subdivided into subcategories, A and B; say, 1A, 3B, etc. "Ones" are the easiest; people paddle down them with their kids, including tiny tots, and seem to like it. "Fives" are awful: endless chains of rapids and waterfalls. It takes World Class Masters of Sports to conquer the worst of them, and then only with special equipment. That's something for real rugged types.

So you can take your pick. Some like it in SOUTHERN RUSSIA or KAZAKHSTAN with their quiet clear streams flowing through the endless steppe. Being mostly well stocked with fish, they attract the dreamy fisherman and especially the keen spear-fisher, due to the warm climate (well, warmer than in most other parts of Russia, anyway).

I will never forget the Uil in Western Kazakhstan, probably thrown on the map especially with a view to pleasing the solitude-loving spear-fisher. Just empty steppe for miles and miles around, no people, no human habitation of any sort, translucent water, and plenty of fish: pike, sheatfish, crucian, sazan (a sort of wild carp), you name it. There, I shot at a pike that was about my size, or so it seemed (water magnifies things about 1.5 times). Unfortunately or fortunately from the pike's point of view my harpoon line got entangled in the reeds, and the pike escaped unharmed, pulling away slowly, even majestically. As I left that spot, I shook my fist at the enemy and swore to come back some day and get him. I never did, though Kazakhstan is now a terribly independent country. A friendly one, no doubt, but somehow one has lost the élan that once drove one to such places.

Well, there are always dozens of quiet rivers, large and small, of central and southern Russia that may serve the same purpose. The Khoper is perhaps most typical, eminently suitable for unhurried paddling and fishing, preferred by family groups, often with kids. For the more rugged types there is, say, the lower Volga, especially the delta (I described a not so recent trip there elsewhere on JRL).

In the north of the European part of Russia there's KARELIA, the land of about a zillion picturesque lakes and countless rivers complete with even more numerous rapids. Quite a few people swear by it and would not dream of going anywhere else. The rapids, however, are not to be taken lightly every now and then you see sad inscriptions, painted on rocks that fill half the landscape, to the effect that so and so died there tragically. So there's every opportunity for daredevils to play hide-and-seek with the Ugly One with the Scythe, but the other kind of hiker can always choose an easier route. One year somewhere off Eng Ozero I was amazed to see on the bank a couple of tents with a clothes line stretched between two trees and festooned with drying rompers, Later I talked to a young, pretty mom with a sleeping baby in her arms. That little chap was sure to grow up a real hardy character, as the North Pole is not too far off, and when the wind blows off the Arctic as it mostly does the temperatures are not exactly Californian.

A great many people are in love with THE URALS, the border between Europe and Asia and a continent unto itself: Southern, Central, Northern and Subpolar. You mention Ural rivers to an old hand and his eyes immediately take on a dreamy look as he breathes out the magic word, kharius. That's grayling, a poem of a fish from the salmon family. Mouth-watering, not to mention the joys of fly-fishing. The taimen, that huge, incredibly powerful fish is locally called krasulya, meaning the beautiful one. And he sure is. Trouble is, it is becoming ever rarer, and you have to go farther east if you wish to land a worthwhile trophy.

Beyond the Urals lies THE OB BASIN, with sluggish giant tributaries of the Ob and tributaries of tributaries, all of awesome width. Here you paddle past incredibly tall, glum, centuries-old fir trees, larches, pines and Siberian cedars week after week without seeing a soul, till you begin to wonder where the rest of the world has got to. All the time you keep praying that the fires do not start, for when they do, all the bears head for the river and you may run out of shells trying to scare them away.

When you think you can no longer stand the gloomy, humanless spaces, the river flows into a lake (called here tuman for no apparent reason, for tuman in Russian means "fog") the size of an average sea, so you spend more weeks looking for the outlet, as each and every bay (and they sometimes stretch for countless miles) may turn out to be the source of an outflowing river, and then again they may not.

I hear you mutter the word "maps," but it only shows what a lot you know about the Soviet way of life (I did most of my rafting in the bad old times under the Soviets). In those days, all maps on the 2 km/cm scale (that is, the only useful variety) were terribly secret, and possession could cost you two years in prison. A year per kilometer, I guess. The non-secret variety (say, on the 6km/cm scale) were made with gross, and deliberate, inaccuracies to fool the potential imperialist enemy, I was told.

I did not believe it myself, until I began hearing, time and again, about adventurers who innocently thought that, if a waterfall was not marked on a map, it did not exist in harsh reality. We'll never know what they thought of those maps and their makers when they found it was too late and sort of useless to head for the shore. Survivors were rare. Offhand, I can only recall the story of a young lady who was thrown on the river bank below the rapids with a smashed hip bone and was later accidentally found by some hunters.

I remember reading in the 1970s in the Literary Gazette in those days a sort of safety valve for the intelligentsia's discontent that of the two million people who annually headed for the wilds of Russia (I wonder how they managed to count them; I for one hate being counted, and made sure nobody ever did), around a hundred died in accidents. A goodish number of them certainly died for want of maps, flares, portable radios, and other capitalist luxuries one sometimes incredulously heard of.

But all of this is too painful to dwell on, and quite outdated. Now all you have to do is get yourself a GPS gadget, and you'll always know, with unbelievable accuracy, where you are provided you find a power outlet to recharge your batteries. When you are stuck a few hundred miles from the nearest settlement which may or may not have electricity this may be a bit of a problem.

East of the Ob lies THE YENISEI BASIN. It takes longer to get out there, but it's worth it. The rivers are faster and clearer, none of the endless marshes of Western Siberia here. The fish -- like the monstrous killer taimen I mentioned earlier are more plentiful and exotic. The rapids are what old hands call "interesting," loosely translatable as "reminiscent of obituaries."

There are other "interesting" phenomena, like ulovo (very loosely translated as trap) giant whirlpools where, if your craft is not mobile enough say, if it is a log raft you can go round and round endlessly. People have been known to starve to death in these traps almost within touching distance of the banks.

You may ask why not jump off the raft and swim ashore. To this let me tell you the story I heard from a taiga-born buddy of mine. Ulovo is bad, he said, but something known as prizhim (literally "push-in"; something that pushes you against an obstacle) is much deadlier. It's like this: the current hits a rocky bank with incredible force eroding the rock so that a cave is formed under water, and if something or somebody is driven there by the current, they stay there for good.

It so happened that this buddy of mine was paddling down a similar monster of a river with a group of other chaps, and one of them tumbled into the stream, no one could later say why or how. He was instantly driven underwater in the manner described and never surfaced. Now it so happened that that guy worked at some secret defense establishment, so the news inevitably reached the KGB. There, the view was predictably taken that, since there was no body, the man could have slipped away abroad bearing with him those terrible state secrets. So the KGB told the guys to produce their colleague, dead or alive. They did not much care which, but the physical body must be made available. Needless to say the whole group was "detained," as a precaution.

An obvious impasse developed, until someone had the bright idea to reconstruct the situation stage an experiment. Eighty tree trunks were thrown into water at the spot where the guy had disappeared. One (1) surfaced. The experiment was deemed convincing, and the whole thing was allowed to quietly die down.

So better think carefully before you decide to jump into the river near an ulovo or a push-in. We aren't cats, you know; one life is all we have, and at times it seems exquisitely worth living.

Another nasty feature of Siberian rivers is zalom, technically known as a jam: stretches where a river is literally crammed with logs or newly fallen trees, sometimes for miles and even dozens of miles. This is especially likely to happen in the pristine, untrodden taiga, where for hundreds of years the river has been washing away the bank, carrying the trees growing there to some obstacle where they pile up, the jam growing longer and longer with every year. At a spot like this, your tolerably peaceful kayaking is over, and you start scrambling through the mostly impassable taiga, with all your belongings toward a spot where the river flows again unobstructed you hope. That's a really character-building exercise, heartily to be recommended to the weaker in spirit.

Trees on river banks can generally be relied on to introduce a note of excitement into the boring routine of survival in the taiga. From time to time they topple over into the river, their roots laid bare by the current or surf. They come down with a mighty crash either as you approach or have just passed them (if they drop on you, you are no longer around to cherish the memory of the excitement). The effect is particularly devastating when you paddle close to the shore of a lake on a quiet day in a profound reverie, only to be catapulted from your seat by what seems to be the crash of a howitzer behind your ear. Believe me, a little thing like that makes you a better and nobler human being, or at any rate more appreciative of even the shallowest existence.

Where the current is really strong, you may be granted yet another kind of ennobling experience. As you paddle serenely or stand pensively on a bank, the waters may part suddenly and the mutilated crown of a huge, water-logged tree may emerge from under the surface, rising higher and higher. The trunk will stand almost vertically for a few seconds before toppling over with an earth-shattering report. What happens here is this: a tree that has fallen into the river many miles upstream is dragged by the current submerged until its thicker and heavier end is jammed against some obstruction on the bottom. The current keeps piling up fiercely, lifting the other end apparently to give you a lesson in humility and gratitude to the fates, if you have an imagination vivid enough to picture the scene if you had been paddling over the right spot at the right moment.

THE LENA and its tributaries are like the Yenisei, only more so, because they are farther to the east. They mostly flow through Yakutia, and the population is about fifty-fifty, the Yakut and the Russians, only that same population is spread so thinly that you barely notice it. Hamlets consisting of a few houses are sometimes three or four hundred kilometers apart.

For this reason you must take very special care of your craft. Any mishap to your vessel leaves you stranded in the middle of nowhere with very little hope of being rescued, unless a spaceship lands nearby. A proper repair kit is an absolute must.

Besides a repair kit, it is desirable to have a cool, far-sighted head on your shoulders. One of my more educational stories for the young is about my trip down the Amga, a tributary of the Aldan which is in turn a tributary of the Lena. One day, after about twelve hours plying my double-bladed oar I slept through the night like a log and only woke in the morning to find my kayak gone. During the night the water level had risen summer freshets are frequent on the Amga and the current had carried away my craft God knew where. I'll never forget leaping like mad some five or six kilometers up and down the hills skirting the river until I found my lovely kayak impaled on a sharp bough of a tree lying across the river. Sadly, the rest was even more boring. Returning to my camp, I found it a total mess, most likely the result of a visit by a wolverine. It destroyed lots of my stuff, but luckily the repair kit was almost intact. After that episode I always drag my boat or raft as high on the bank as I can or tie the painter to something really sturdy with a double knot even in places where freshets have never been heard of.

What you hardly expect in Yakutia is good weather: after all, Oymyakon, the planet's cold pole, is right there. Some years temperatures go up into the 30s (Celsius) in July, before the August rains start. Another real blessing: in some places there are fewer mosquitoes than in others.

That does not mean, of course, that you can go sunning yourself like in the Crimea. During a sailing trip down the Lena a friend of mine tried it, and it was a truly unforgettable sight: within seconds his whole suntanned body became grey, covered with a layer of very active mosquitoes. The lad was a good track and field athlete, so he streaked along the sandy bank as he had hardly ever run before, but you cannot run away from those bloodsuckers. He had to throw himself in the stinging cold water, wash off the mess and hurriedly pull on all his clothes. Till the end of the voyage, though, he kept scratching himself, all over.

Generally speaking, everywhere in Siberia you must be ready for a spirit-building encounter with this curse, and a cheap nakomarnik, a hat with a mosquito net protecting your head, is an indispensable part of your equipment. Some find it hard to breathe with the nakormarnik on, but it's certainly better than smearing the mosquito mess all over your face. Hunters have it toughest, as you cannot hunt with the net on, and you cannot get by without hunting, if you want to eat.

Repellents help, but not always. In some places mosquitoes and gnats eat that stuff with relish before starting on you. Whets their appetite, I guess... The tiniest bloodsuckers, gnats, the no-seeums, aptly known here as gnus, are the worst, an abomination worse than nuclear war. They penetrate everywhere nostrils, ears, under the eyelids, boots, the most intimate places. One year, my wrist itched for about a month under the watch strap upon return from the tundra.

Huge elks have been sucked dry by the infernal creatures, hardly a drop of blood left in their bodies. Exhausted, they fall easy prey to poachers, wolves or bears. All reindeer head for the Arctic Ocean coast, where the fierce wind off the North Pole keeps the bloodsuckers at bay.

Having mentioned elks, I must also talk of elk lice, quite a minor irritant compared to mosquitoes and gnats and I am not sure they are lice in the true zoological sense. These are widespread not only in the taiga but throughout the European part of Russia as well. They do not bite, but they crawl. God, how they crawl, getting under the clothes right down to your skin. They are hard to get rid of, as they stick to you like leeches. Best wear an anorak with a tight-fitting hood and wristbands as protection.

Insects can spoil the best-planned adventure in the taiga. That's why the bunch I used to hang out with at one time preferred Siberia in September, when the first real frosts strike and kill off the vermin. But paddling down a river in subzero temperature and fresh, very fresh winds Oh, my aching broken bones...

EAST OF THE LENA lie the really fabulous places, like the Indigirka, the Kolyma, Chukotka, Kamchatka, Magadan, Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands.

You take the Kurils. There was a time when they were known as a fantastic tourist attraction, not a political issue in Russo-Japanese relations. Of course, that was for hikers of a definite sort, the most hairy ones. I just do not know whether anyone wanders over those islands these days, like we used to tramp there among tree-like ferns and similar exotic flora.

One must be practical, though: unless one is prepared to spend two months or more on a trip, it's no use talking of places like these. Too far out. Planes are the only practicable way to travel to and from those areas, only people have been known to spend weeks waiting for some rattling local conveyance because of fog, smoke from taiga fires, or no fuel. Not to mention prohibitive prices, but that's mostly a problem for the cash-strapped Russian intelligentsia that makes up the greater part of the nature-loving adventurers. It's no problem for the New and Very New Russians, only their haunts are mostly the Canaries and the Maldives now, and who could blame them?

Sure, these days there are quite a few of the new breed of entrepreneur who will organize for you a trip anywhere in Russia, including the Far East. That will come at a price, though. I once read of a highly placed US citizen a vice president, no less, if I remember rightly who paid the unbelievable sum of $2000 per diem for fishing in Kamchatka. I merely chuckled, recalling the times when we were doing that absolutely free, and the fish used to snap at unbaited hooks even. Ah, those were the days, my friend...

I catch myself feeling a bit nostalgic at this point, and it's easy to see why. I can be as critical as the next man about life under the Soviets -- the years when the greater part of my trekking was done but there were a couple of things that we certainly enjoyed then and miss now, under primeval capitalism. One was cheap travel, the other, friendship among peoples, to use a bit of political cant from those days.

Train tickets, plane tickets, any kind of travel was so cheap that anyone could go anywhere in this vast land across ten time zones, if your heart so desired. Chukotka, Kamchatka, Sakhalin Island, the Kurils, they were all accessible whatever the state of one's purse. Border areas were the exception, of course. There, the difficulty was mostly insurmountable. People intent on entering these areas were automatically suspected of wishing to leave the country illegally, to defect, in fact. But everywhere else...

I distinctly remember that sailing aboard ship as a deck passenger half the mammoth length of the Volga, from Saratov to Astrakhan, cost five rubles exactly the price of a bottle of Pliska, a cheap Bulgarian brandy. Crossing the Caspian from Bekdash on the eastern coast to Makhachkala on the western one, the same magic figure, five rubles. Sure, traveling as a deck passenger is not everyone's cup of vodka, but I loved it. In the daytime, you could watch the bow wave or borrow a book from the ship's library, and at night spread your inflatable mattress in some cozy nook on deck and watch the stars dancing around the mast half the night. Delightful.

Prices today are a rip-off, sheer banditry. Moscow to Vladivostok by plane, business class -- $5000. My pension for 18 months, to the kopek.

And as for friendship among peoples and how it all ended... Just one episode from my travels. In about 1987 I paddled along the western coast of the Caspian, my favorite sea, in a 7ft-long inflatable baidarka, the sort you put on rather than sit in. Luckily the sea was not too rough a rarity in May and I went all the way along the seacoast of Dagestan and a goodish part of Azerbaijan, reaching as far south as Sumgait, north of Baku. All the folks I met on the way Dagestanis, Azeris welcomed me as a gift from Allah, the way the Koran prescribes to treat a wayfarer. And mark you, they were practically without exception far from the most civilized or law-abiding citizens poachers whose main business in life was catching the forbidden fish, the sturgeon.

Well, anyway, I reached Sumgait, like I said, cadged a lift to the railway station and returned to Moscow, thinking on the way about starting the following year from that spot and heading south, past Baku and Allah willing as far as the Iranian border. But! That same year saw the first of the massacres in the area, Azeris slaughtering Armenians in that same godforsaken, ugly industrial town of Sumgait that had seemed so peaceable, even torpid to me. One heard horror stories about pregnant women having their bellies ripped up and the like, too gruesome to recount here. That was the start of the disintegration of the Soviet Union, in which millions suffered unspeakably, glory be to Gorbachev, Yeltsin, and us damn fools who supported them.

Would I repeat that delightful trip today? Unthinkable. Back then, I slept on beaches in my tiny kayak, covering myself with a bit of oilcloth. These days I would be sure to wake up a hostage or a slave or minus my silly old head. No, thanks all the same.

I seem to be digressing, however, carried away by memories. Let me tackle some of the subjects that have to do more directly, let's say substantively, with my main theme. Like craft that one sails or paddles in.

CRAFT. The most popular craft are baidarkas, a kind of collapsible kayak, only more open, with a crew of one to four, but mostly two. The sports goods industry in this country being what it is, it's really inspiring to see the endless variety of craft the do-it-yourself people (which means practically everybody) put together. Some find this half the fun. I've quoted Kenneth Grahame at them, and they heartily agreed with the Water Rat's sentiment that "there is nothing absolutely nothing half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats or with boats."

A really popular river like the Msta or the Mologa, a mere couple of hundred of miles from Moscow, or the Belaya in the Urals, offer a fascinating spectacle of boats of all shapes and sizes and materials, kayaks, rafts (including round one-seaters made of a single inner tube), catamarans, dushegubkas (literally, "soul-killers," a particularly wiggly sort of dugout), and even American-looking canoes, but these are rarities.

I prefer a modernized version of dushegubka when traveling alone, and a rubber raft when I have company, for comfort and safety if not speed. I also possess a beautiful Polish sailing dinghy, and this leads me to the next section.

SAILING. Anyone who paddles down a small river eventually gets to a large one, or a lake, or a sea, and, quickly tiring of paddling without some aid from the current, makes some sort of sail out of a blanket, a sheet of sturdy plastic, anything. This takes them into a whole new world full of the thrill of sailing. Most folks simply add bigger and better-made sails to their baidarkas, which opens up a whole new dimension of excitement: sailing a baidarka without an outrigger or a leeboard is as good as playing cat-and-mouse with the wind, and you end up a very wet mouse, sooner or later.

The sailing dinghy I mentioned is ideal in this sense: she is collapsible, she can be packed in three bags weighing thirty to forty kilos each, so you can take her anywhere by car or railway, and on one occasion that was on the Aral seacoast I even loaded her on a tiny biplane when time came to return to civilization. She has a centerboard, two sails and a twelve-foot mast in four sections. I've had some terrific fun with her on the Volga, the Ural reservoir, the Azov Sea, the Tvertsa, but mostly on the Aral Sea (when there was an Aral Sea; it is a disaster area now), the Caspian, and elsewhere.

The most memorable voyage was along the Caspian Sea's eastern coast, desert on the left, deep sea on the right, desert islands of bright white sand, seagulls overhead, curious seals, their funny faces popping up within touching distance, frightening me out of my wits as I dozed at the tiller. There was the unforgettable fun of skin diving and spearing gray mullet, catching shrimp with my T-shirt and crayfish with my hands. What I remember above all is the bliss of solitude and light wind and the glare of the sun on the swell, and the roll of the boat.

Of course I got caught in a couple of storms, but that was just to give me a sense of proportion. Towards the end, after I passed Kazakh Bay, the shore was nothing but a wall of rock stretching for dozens of miles. Actually you don't have to be smashed up by a passing storm on the rocks, even: just lose your canister of fresh water when the dinghy capsizes, and you'll realize how real and earnest life is. This was brought home to me most aptly on the night I first arrived at the Aral Sea (Aralskoe More) railway station, and the station-master grumbled indifferently, by way of welcome: "Ah, tourists. We have a whole graveyard full of fellows like you."

There are other vast lakes, seas, and water reservoirs all over Russia, like Lake Ladoga, Lake Onega, Lake Baikal and the White Sea, not to mention those giant rivers the Ob, the Yenisei, the Lena. As I've said before, you'll have to forget all about sunbathing there, better pack a quilted suit or so, even at the height of summer.

The less rigorous spots, like Lake Seliger, Lake Zhizhitsa, Lake Valdai or the Volga itself with its huge reservoirs, are the last resort for me: too populous. But I understand there are sociable types who like this sort of thing enjoying chance acquaintances' company, sitting by the fire all night, exchanging life stories, views and jokes, singing songs, sharing a bottle of vodka. All very nice in its own way.

Actually, I mustn't make out like a surly, solitary hombre: in the right company I can, shall we say, exaggerate with the best of them about past adventures, only most liars lie more convincingly than the man who has truly been there, as someone observed long before me. Speaking for oneself, it's more exciting when you travel for weeks and hardly see a soul, and when you do, they are piteously grateful for human contact of any kind, once you get past the usually rough exterior.

Another fine thing about real wilderness is that there is less danger of being rammed by drunken bargemen or reckless speedboats. All you have to do is take very good care of your equipment, and look out for sudden gusts of wind these are much more frequent on wide rivers and, close to shore, on the greater lakes, than out at sea or on the smaller rivers; the wind force is terrific, snapping steel stays like matchsticks.

In general, when the going becomes real sticky, I tend to remind myself a precept taught me by my father more than half a century ago: never stick your head where your backside won't go, and you will live to see Christmas. Maybe.

TRAMPING ON FOOT. Long hikes are practically inevitable when you want to get right to the source of some river, especially in the Northern or Subpolar Urals, the Sayan Mountains, the Altai Mountains, the mountain country beyond Lake Baikal, in Chukotka or anywhere in the really interesting places. About the only alternative is a helicopter, and you can't rely on those, unless you have friends among the pilots or are prepared to part with exorbitant sums of money.

If you want to get to the tantalizing rivers of the Subpolar Urals and the Lower Ob, you tow your craft up the tamer streams of the western slopes, then pack up and carry everything up the hills and through passes to seek the sources of eastbound rivers. You may even hit the ones you originally planned to, but any will do if they're not too murderous. If they are, you pack up again and walk or climb round the treacherous parts, taking good care not to get lost in some handy marsh or caught by nightfall on bare rock.

Alternately, people go on foot all the way. They don't have to carry their kayaks, and that's the enjoyable part; but then they don't have the fun of shooting down rapids, either. It's a hard choice. On the whole, tramping is more exacting physically, as no right-thinking adventure-seeker ever hikes across pretty woods or fields. That's strictly for packs of voluble housewives and their husbands and children on organized mass tours.

Real adventurers head for the tundra, the taiga, the mountains or, failing all these, the deserts of Central Asia. So let me take these types of terrain one by one.

THE TUNDRA. Some say it's monotonous. There must be something wrong with my aesthetic sense, for the tundra looks heart-rendingly beautiful and infinitely variable to me. Half of it is an endless expanse of green windswept marshes, and the other half, clean water of all shapes and sizes pools, lakes, streams, rivulets and rivers roaring through deep canyons, or running smooth and fast over shallows. If you look carefully, you will see the black backs of grayling lying quietly as boulders near the bottom then shooting like arrows at anything edible that the current carries or at a fly made of your own hair tied with thread.

The sky in the tundra doesn't hold still for a moment, clouds endlessly shaping and reshaping and regularly hitting you with half-hour showers. Then you just sit quietly on your rucksack under a plastic sheet watching water cascade an inch or so from your nose. This gives you plenty of time to think of all sorts of really important things that you never get to think through back in the urban hustle and bustle. At times like these you realize ever so keenly the truth of what somebody put so aptly a long time ago: The Kingdom of God is within you....

True, the going in the tundra is as hard as high-altitude climbing because of the marsh and growths of polar willow, which is mostly shoulder-high scrub so thick that you sometimes hang there helplessly, unable to move right or left or forward or back or even down. And as often as not bypassing these thickets is impossible you try to move around them, and you get sucked down by the mire.
...
The biggest fear here is of getting lost, as you constantly run into marshes and unfordable rivers (unmarked on your map, need I say, if you have one from the Soviet times), which force you to head in unwanted directions. If you wander long enough you find yourself facing the Arctic Ocean and little prospect of ever getting back home. If you walk a dozen miles a day, you are a big hero it's a feat that is hard to repeat two days running.

It's next to impossible to carry enough provisions for a good long hike, so a shotgun and fishing tackle are musts, and you have to take very good care not to lose these in some marsh or river, because then you'd be in real trouble. Strapping, well-nourished muzhiki who lost their way in the tundra and were lucky to get out of it alive have been known to weigh around sixty pounds at the end of their adventure.

These rambles are usually very checkered affairs. Back in '72, my friend and I lost our way in the Ochenyrd Mountains, crossed over to the Asia side, hit Lake Shchuchye (Pike Lake), thus fixing our position on the map, turned west again and promptly lost our way again, by which time we had no provisions of any sort, and all game had disappeared as if by magic. There had been plenty of tundra grouse and all kinds of duck and even geese, but then, nothing. To add to the misery, the hills there, though not very high, are fairly obnoxious, being a combination of tundra and mountain, with high cliffs and mini-glaciers thrown in.

Then, one day, towards evening, I shot a hare. We cooked it in the darkness over a tiny fire and ate it, cinders and all. The following day I shot a reindeer, and a nerve-racking affair it was: the powder in my shells having absorbed some damp, the charge had little stopping power, so I had to finish the job with a dagger through the heart. Terrible. We spent several days in that spot, feasting on reindeer meat and getting our strength back. We buried the reindeer in a huge snowdrift left over from the previous winter and went visiting with him some three times a day, to hack off some more meat.

There was plenty to come, but it was sort of downhill after that couple of weeks. We cooked plenty of reindeer meat and fed on it until we reached a tiny settlement called Khalmer-yu. Actually, we were plain lucky after a few days we hit a vorga, a sort of path or track left by the local Komi moving with their reindeer apparently from one heap of empty vodka bottles to another..

THE TAIGA. This is usually translated as "Siberian forest," only the taiga is as different from any forest as frying is from baking. Put it this way: you can walk in the forest; in the taiga, you push or fight your way through, climbing under or over fallen or half-fallen trees, squelching through marshes and squeezing your way through the undergrowth. Some of it is completely impassable, and you're eternally grateful for any hint at animal tracks; elks are your best friends in this sense. If you're claustrophobic, better steer clear of the taiga.

One good thing about primeval, pristine taiga is that you don't have to worry about fish for your meals as long as you have a hook left plus a grasshopper or two, even if they are disfigured beyond recognition by repeated use. Also there are the curious hazel-grouse, curious to look at, like any wild birds, but also in the sense of inquisitive: they start up with a terrific whirr, then perch on trees nearby, gazing at you mildly while you pick them off one by one. Lyre-tailed black grouse and giant capercaillie also abound; in the really out-of-the-way places they have no fear of man, so you sometimes feel like a louse shooting them.

Unfortunately, there are also LYNXES AND BEARS, and anyone you meet there has his or her favorite lynx or bear story, to make you keep up your vigilance. Like that fellow I met on the Pelym. I could hardly look at his face, so disfigured it was after a misunderstanding with a bear he had shot at close quarters. It seems his homemade round bullet had rolled out of the barrel, and the wad merely parted the hair on the bear's forehead. That was the last thing the man remembered clearly. His laika dogs did not let the bear finish him off, so the brute merely scalped him and broke quite a lot in the way of limbs and ribs. How the poor chap ever got back to his distant village in that state, in temperatures way, way below zero, through deep snow and the kind of taiga terrain I have tried to describe here, is more than I can understand. It is inspiring to know, though, that such a thing is at all possible.

Incidentally, encounters with bears often end in these unseemly hand-to-paw brawls, since a bear takes some killing. Bullet after bullet will plonk in without visible effect. One reason for this is that in the past the good government only allowed us shotguns that fire round bullets, while the possession of rifles was punishable by law. Not now, thank God.

A trekker should always bear in mind that bears often attack from the rear. Some taiga men therefore wear face-like masks at the back of the head, which are said to be fairly effective. Anyway, whether the brute rushes you from the front or from behind, they are so fast they're upon you before you can cock your piece, let alone shoulder it. That's why many carry long knives, or knives with long handles, which the Yakut people call palmas.

The accepted knifing technique is to throw up your fur hat, the bear rises on his haunches to catch it, you stick the knife low in his belly and rip upwards with both hands, for the hide is tough and usually caked with dried mud. If you do it Yakut-style, you aim with your palma at the heart. Others prefer a rogatina, or forked bear spear, but it takes some skill to handle the instrument. The idea is to jam the butt end against the ground with your foot and let the bear skewer himself. Old hands say that a child can do it. I've never tried it, though. Never felt enough childlike faith in the technique, I guess.

Lynxes are worse than bears, or so most locals believe. They jump on you from trees, always from behind, and go straight for the jugular. According to a Siberian aboriginal I once met, the best defense against a lynx is to have a sharp-pointed iron rod sticking from your backpack: the lynx skewers itself on this as it drops on you. Even then, though, the beast can do you plenty of harm before being subdued, so you'd better keep in mind the well-known Russian adage: you want to live, learn to twist nimbly. In a very direct, physical sense.

Speaking of the taiga people the Komi, the Nenets, the Even, the Evenk, the Orochi, and others they are just wonderful to know. Unfortunately, ruined by alcohol to a man. Something to do with the chemistry of their metabolism. If you forget that, just talking to them you go through a school of survival in the taiga. If you find your nylon tent not the most comfortable quarters in the world, think of a typical local hunter's bivouac: some plastic sheeting tied to four knee-high pegs driven into the ground to keep out the rain. That's how they wander about the taiga, alone for months on end; a way of life I've envied only too often. . .

THE MOUNTAINS Like I said at the beginning, I'm no longer up to serious mountaineering working rock faces, climbing peaks, all that sort of thing. But mountains are always a delight, even if you stick to the technically "uninteresting" valleys, ridges and passes. There's nothing like heady mountain air, the vistas that fill your soul with cosmic wonder and make you forget your pygmy worries left behind on the plain. There's also fishing for trout right next to glaciers, or bathing in icy water. Invigorating, that's the word.

As for the spice of danger, remember that you are mostly miles and miles away from the nearest habitation, and if you are rambling solo, even a slight mishap like a broken ankle may lead to serious unpleasantness.

A story that has grown stale from repetition tells of girls in mountain camps going to some stream to brush their teeth, slipping, hitting the back of their head on a rock and falling into the river, to be fished out a few miles downstream with their bodies pounded to a pulp against rocks by the mad current. Somehow it's mostly girls. Victims of personal cleanliness, I guess.

Then there was this stupid accident some twenty years ago in the Caucasus: a large group on a guided walking tour was caught in a freak snowstorm at the height of summer, and the guide idiotically decided to forge ahead. A couple dozen froze to death near the pass in their summer clothes, while a couple of experienced hikers told the guide to drop dead (which he eventually did) and headed back for the woods, where they spent a nice quiet night by the fire. Anyone who has knocked about the mountains long enough has even better and more educational stories to tell.

Since the early 1990s, the range of available mountain wildernesses in this country has dwindled, along with the diminishing size of the country itself. The Caucasus and the Pamir, the most exciting places of them all, are hopeless now, populated by bunches of damn fools who have reverted to their medieval pursuits or hostage-taking and other kinds of banditry, not to mention internecine strife of Rwandan brutality.

Fortunately, there are countless others left in Russia proper, like the Khibiny, the Urals, the Tien Shan, the Altai and the Sayany, to name but the greatest ones. You can spend a few lifetimes exploring each of these. All except the Southern and Central Urals are what you might call sparsely populated: you can wander there for weeks without seeing a soul. In one of these ranges they came a while ago on a family who had really got away from it all (actually from religious persecution) back in the '20s and had lived all those decades unmolested except by bears. Unfortunately, they had lost their immunity to many diseases; only one old crone survived the reunion with the human race, and even she has died recently. There must be a moral in this, somewhere.

Mountain countries fall, on the whole, into two categories, old and young mountains. The younger ranges have peaks up to 21,000 feet high, glaciers, mile-high walls of sheer rock, the whole works. Compared to these, the older hills like the Khibiny or the Urals or some East Siberian ranges have a toylike quality; they are lower and smoother, snow-clad peaks are rare, the rivers not so savage.

However, that's no reason to treat them in a cavalier fashion. If you do, you may feel sorry, provided you are left feeling anything at all. After all, a cliff is a cliff, and whether you fall 1500 feet or just 150, the net result tends to be the same. Also, it is much, much easier to lose one's way in the old hills than almost anywhere else. In the Caucasus, the peaks are all distinctly individual, there is no mistaking, say, Peak Ineh (Needle, in Karachai) for Belyala-Kaya (The Girl With a Multi-Colored Belt). Old hills have mostly been worn to uniformity over millions of years.

Another curious feature of old mountains is false crests. You climb and climb and you think that you'll get to the top in an hour or so, but you get there only to observe the next slope rising not far away to a crest; you start climbing that and the whole thing repeats itself. It is a particularly effective character-building exercise in winter as you climb waist-deep in fluffy snow gloomily watching for certain unmistakable signs of a snowstorm coming on, night falling, and no level ground to pitch your tent on if you have a tent.

You may think I am laying it on thick, whereas in fact I am merely describing an actual experience. When I moved to the Urals all those years ago, a student of mine somehow heard of my modest fame as a mountaineer who'd done some serious climbing in the Caucasus. So he invited me to come on a hike through nearby mountains. I promptly agreed, only to find out, after we had climbed the first few ridges, that he expected me to know the way in this region, which was completely new to me.

How he had worked that out is beside the point. The naked fact was that we inevitably got lost, and it was getting dark and the wind was rising and we were wet with sweat, climbing through all that snow up slippery slopes on all fours with heavy backpacks. Then the boy a strong, rosy-cheeked, talkative chap simply switched off, falling completely silent and staring straight ahead, only going as far as I could push him. Believe me, he gave me a real fright.

The nicest touch was that we did not have a tent, as he had talked of how easy it was to find, up there, a haystack locally called stozhary. They are built hollow for the hay to dry better; you make a tunnel through the hay to the hollow middle and are as snug as a bug. It was quite right what he told me there, I later spent many an unforgettable cozy night in these haystacks, especially when I lit a bit of a candle in a glass jar and had someone cuddly with me while a snowstorm might be raging outside or various heavy-footed animals came to feed at night. On that particular night, though, there were no haystacks, no valleys or plateaus where the haystacks might be, no bit of level ground even, just the nearly-vertical rock and snow and wind and darkness and fear.

In the end, I did find a few feet of nearly horizontal ground under a solitary fir tree, and even built a fire on the lee side, only in my hurry and in the darkness I almost hacked my knee-cap in two as I was cutting some branches for a fire, and that was by no means the end of the story. Might tell you some other time.

Some trips are like that. All you can hope for is to get back alive: try to be good, do not anger the gods, never say die, and maybe you'll wriggle out somehow. But there are also happy trips, in winter, too, when you reach a crest with a fantastic view or a nice cozy valley and the air is still, the sun bright, the frost not too murderous, the skis go swish-swish, and you get an occasional hare or grouse. Which means that I am way into my next subject.

SKIING HIKES. On the whole, skiing trips are for the really hardy, and it would be a mistake to begin your career in the wilds in winter. Frost or snowstorms can last for weeks, and incessant cold is probably the most effective frayer of tempers ever invented. True, it is also the best way to find out one's true worth. There is no cheating here; most people go snap, sooner or later, only some do it sooner and others later.

If you've had some experience in survival in the wilds and wish to try it in winter, do not begin in the mountains. Plains are much easier. The skiing itself is different both from whooping it up (or down) at a skiing resort, with all those lifts and things, and from flat racing where you glide gracefully along a well-trodden track in a psychedelic suit. Here, you have to make the track in knee-deep snow or worse, and do not giggle when you see steam rising in waves over your mate's head, for it also rises over yours.

The skis are different from those used in racing, they are heavier and broader and shorter and they do not have that springy quality of racing skis, but they do have metal rims for sliding down hills. Also special bindings. When you just walk on even ground, your heel is not fixed, but when you face a steep run, you fix it with a wire and try to do elegant cuts with a 60-pound backpack, hoping that when you eventually somersault it will be the wire or the ski that will go snap and not your shin.

There are other character-building aspects of skiing trips in the wilds, like making a fire in the snow. Did you ever realize that, when you build a fire in snow, the snow melts, and the fire goes out? Jack London's characters never seem to have trouble that way, but that's the privilege of fiction. In real life, you either look for a stump of a big enough tree or the fallen tree itself, or else dig a hole in the snow to the very ground, at the end of which process you may find yourself shoulder-deep, which rather complicates things. Some lug around primus stoves and similar machines, but I regard this sort of thing as cheating. Inevitable where there is no firewood of any kind, though.

Tents are also a delight, from the spirit-enhancing point of view. You pitch them and sleep in them and the moisture of your breathing settles on the walls and freezes solid, and your nice lightweight tent becomes hard and heavy as a board, only much more breakable. Also your skis may break, however careful you may be. Then there are the treacherous polynyas, unfrozen patches in the middle of otherwise solidly icebound rivers, covered by thin ice and powdered with snow through which you sploosh, skis, backpack and all. It's a very good way to learn to love thy neighbors who will have to fish you out and nurse you back to life and even probably save you from amputated toes and fingers if not from frostbite.

SOME GENERAL REMARKS ON SURVIVAL. These days a whole industry has grown around the theme of survival, complete with TV programs, survival schools, books, videos, experts and instructors, the lot. One sees distinctly glum-looking folks on desert islands, mostly in fairly large groups, posing for the cameras as they try to make fire by rubbing twigs or the like. You know the sort of thing.

According to one school of thought, survival has something to do with eating worms, grubs, birch bark and such; building all your shelters from scratch; drinking distilled urine for lack of water; and a thousand other silly things.

To me, all this seems to be just a curious way to waste your time, effort and money, but everyone to their own taste. Personally, I take the more Russian, or simply sensible, view that survival is primarily a matter of character or spirit plus infinite-resource-and-sagacity. An absolute must in this business of survival is developing the subject's confidence that, whatever the jam you're in, you can get out of it relying only on yourself and your pals or go down with all possible dignity.

To gain this confidence, you don't have to eat birch bark or vermin at all. As you roam the really wild places, there is enough danger and cold and heat and fatigue and animal hunger, pretty constant, to forge your spirit or smash it to bits, without going into the snake-eating routine. (Mind you, I've nothing against snakes, I regularly use them for bait, chopped up.)

Take Alain Bombard, for instance. He proved scientifically that shipwreck victims do not die of thirst or hunger. They die of fear long before they begin to really suffer from privation or exposure. And the truth of that is obvious to any trekker who's been in a really tight jam.

I had a friend, a big strapping chap, stronger and healthier than myself, a fine hunter and fisherman. It so happened that he lost his way shooting duck in the Volga delta; not a difficult trick as the reeds cover immense areas there, and hoping that someone will come to your aid is plain foolish. Grisha was in a boat, there was plenty of water and food, yet when they found him after three days, he was quite dead.

I couldn't understand it until years later, when I myself lost my way in the reeds on the southern shore of the Aral Sea, close to the Amu-Darya delta. The reeds there are fifteen feet tall and so thick that you can't push your gun between the stalks. They block out the sun, you don't know which way is north, which way south, and even if you did, it would do you no good at all because the reeds just don't let you go where you want. Your only chance is to crawl along tunnels beaten in the thickets and mud by wild boars. Trouble is, you are not a wild boar, so as you push your way through the tangle barely keeping your head above the liquid mud, enduring millions of mosquito bites, and thinking of poisonous snakes, you find it all a bit much, and eventually begin to wonder if it's worth it, after all. The hopelessness is enough to squeeze your heart to a stop.

Aha, I thought, so that was how Grishka had died. Dead easy. Don't ask me why, but that thought of my long-dead friend somehow gave me a shot in the arm, and well, it's a long story, but in the end I pulled through, a much chastened man.

I hope you see my point. It's all very well to be able to eat snake, but I'd have long been eaten by snakes and other vermin if I had relied on that ability for my survival.

SOME PRACTICAL HINTS TO VISITORS. There are roughly two choices before anyone from abroad planning a trip to the wilder parts of Russia. You can deal with one of the countless post-Intourist travel agencies, or you can organize your trip on a people-to-people basis. The former option is for folks who don't mind being fleeced at every step in return for indifferent or inferior services. In my view, the second choice is infinitely more preferable. This way, you team up with a bunch of like-minded local adventurers who are going on a trip anyway. You just pay your way (train or plane tickets, foodstuffs, etc.) and try to be as nice and hardy a sort as you can, and you'll be all right. May even form a few life-long friendships.

A word of caution: human relationships are all-important here, and the further away from Moscow, the more so. An effort may have to be made to change ingrained habits and attitudes. On a trip, you share everything (pretty literally) with your team-mates. Say, keeping a bottle of whisky for your personal
use is sure to raise eyebrows. The usual procedure is to hand all your edibles and drinkables over to the stingiest and most implacable individual, called "boatswain" regardless of sex, who is then expected to take care of the usually ravenous appetites from first day to last, in places where shops and
other amenities are but pale memories.

Another prominent figure in any group, even if it's just the two or three of you, is the komandor or "Commodore": the guy in charge. The title is usually deserved through long years of leadership, and implies wisdom, experience and officer-like habit of thinking of his crew first, second and last. He is sort of morally responsible for his bunch, but if you have any American-type ideas about liability, about suing someone for a broken leg or running nose, best forget it. It's just not done, not here in Russia.

At times I think, though, that someone should be held responsible for the way people neglect to take the slightest precautions against, say, encephalitis. Some areas of the Siberian taiga are crawling with the ticks which spread the disease. Everybody says they ought to have anti-encephalitis shots, and no one ever does, preferring to wear close-fitting anoraks called entsefalitka to protect the back of the neck, where the ticks are said to love to bite. Which is a lot of hooey. They'll bite you anywhere, mostly in the legs. Another bit of nonsense is that the ticks are only dangerous in early spring; you are actually safe from them only in late autumn.

People with an academic background are best chosen as fellow-travelers because they usually have some English. These sportsmen are mostly loosely associated with what they call "tourist clubs" or turkluby. A city or town of any size invariably has them, and if you start early enough, you can find out who goes where and when in good time to join them.

Lastly, WHY? Why climb peaks? Why cross deserts? Why hike in the murderous taiga? Why shoot rapids? Why tempt fate? You hear these questions all the time. You sometimes even ask them yourself, when the going gets really tough.

Sir Edmund Hilary, when asked, Why climb Everest? gave probably the cutest answer: Because it's there. I would add this: because you can tell folks you've been there. There are millions of chair-borne travelers who will avidly listen.

Well, I've been there. I've had all sorts of things happen to me, in about forty years of wandering funny, tragic, mystic, boring, though these last are least remembered. And I've lived to set down some of these adventures in a few novels and many short stories and essays. My fondest hope is that they'll provide at least a glimmer of what Russia, complete with its hinterland, truly is. Believe me, it's very different from the Russia of Russophobic propaganda, ingrained prejudices, and pettifogging journalism.

And another thing. Having gone through some really sticky situations generously offered by the wilds of Russia, you are sure to learn something about yourself something that will make you more tolerant toward human weaknesses and failures, your own included. In fact, you may gain an insight into what not the dimmest of writers meant when he said: "Ah, my friend, all human beings are human, and those who are not, let them be ashamed..."

Six months in Moscow, Russian Federation

2011-10-02T15:17:00.036+03:00

I don't think I really understood where I was going when I agreed to six-month contract in Moscow, Russian Federation. After beautiful mountains of Briancon and Chamonix (thanks Geoff and Louise ♥ ♥ ♥), Moscow felt so industrialized and flat place to be alone, and it took a while to adjust to a life in Russia. Without giving up, I found amazing buzzing city, so full of beautiful architecture and old buildings, funky clubs and restaurants, and sound people from all corners of the world. In the past months, I've found lovely new friends and another amazing place in the world!

Red Square

Kreml

Tiger... really!

Skalatoria bouldering wall (photo by Skalatoria)

Skalatoria bouldering wall (Photo by Skalatoria)

And I have found climbing walls too. And really nice and good people. Strong people. There are few walls around Moscow, some private, and they are really good. Here is a link to the bouldering wall that I go to: www.skalatoria.ru/. I only had to move to Moscow to discover bouldering and to get strong...

Video from Skalatoria: http://vimeo.com/28525728

Few other links worth checking...
http://www.mosclimbing.ru/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=42&Itemid=113
http://www.baurock.ru/
http://www.mountain.ru/ by Anna Piunova

In Chamonix - Climbing the Contamines

2011-05-31T14:16:00.016+03:00

Climbing the Contamines - Contamine Route (TD 6b max) on the Pointe Lachenar on the 23. May and the Le Contamine (ED 6c max) on the Aigulle du Midi on the 24. May with Geoff Unger. Thank you Geoff for two lovely weeks in Chamonix. Lovely routes, lovely weather and lovely company ♥ ♥ ♥. Leading the classic Rebuffat (TD 6a+ max) in the Aigulle Midi in less than 4 hours is perhaps the highlight of my little climbing career too...

Pointe Lachenal

Here we go - Geoff on the Contamine Route TD in Pointe Lachenal

Contamine Route TD

Italians following us on the Contamine Route TD

And next day to the Aigulle du Midi - Le Contamine ED

Geoff on the Le Contamine ED on the Aigulle du Midi

Geoff on the Le Contamine ED

6B pitch on the Le Contamine

In Chamonix - Climbing ReBuffat at the Aigulle Du Midi

2011-05-31T13:26:00.015+03:00

Climbing the Rebuffat (TD+ 6a+ max) at the Aigulle du Midi on 30. May 2011 with Geoff Unger, Dylan Taylor and the Swedish team! Leading Rebuffat in less than 4 hours is perhaps the highlight of my little climbing career too. Great day out, thank you Geoff ♥ ♥ ♥ Chamonix spring climbing rules ♥ ♥ ♥!! On my last day in Cham we also climbed the Voie Rebuffat (TD) exiting via Cosmique's arete. Nice little route and what a fab day!

Steep... naah!

Sari leading the Rebuffat all the way to the summit ; )

Dylan and the Swedish team enjoying the day!

French party enjoying the Rebuffat

Happy girl at the summit of the Rebuffat in less than 5 hours

Teams enjoying the Cosmiques arete

Mount Blanc

Tired... just a bit = )

Beautiful images of the Ecrins

2011-05-28T10:29:00.036+03:00

Three weeks in the Ecrins with Louise. We had good weather, good laughs, wine and cheese, and superb routes. Surely we have now climbed just about every route up to 6c in Ailefroide! Next year 7a?

Sari on Derborence 6c+ in Ailefroide

Louise having go with the mushroom boulder in Ailefroide

Beautiful Ecrins

The Ecrins

Slabtastic

Glaciers of the Ecrin

Old town Briancon

Easter bunnies in Olhava, Finland

2011-04-29T12:26:00.009+03:00

Heidi onsighting Kantti 6

How Heidi found her climbing mojo and few more onsights for the gang....

Back in Febraury, when we planned our Easter-break in Olhava, we never thought we would get this lucky. +25 degrees sunshine, dry routes and kiwi Chris to join us. Four days of onsight climbing, grilling sausages and little bit baileys and whiskey. With some convincing Heidi onsighed Kantti (E2), scary arete with spaced out bolts, Chris monkey'd up and down just about every route on the Olhava main face (with us girls seconding, including Nora and Milla), and I managed to onsight Josse (E1), Kaari (E1) and Vekara (E1), and to repeat Salama (E1). Not bad for three days - it felt more like a week! But myself and Chris totally exhausted, Heidi still had not climbed enough. On Monday Heidi onsighted Vompatti (6c) in Jaanankallio. Well done Heidi, well done team. I recon we'll all have a great season ahead ; )

Photos by Chris Peacocke

Sari on the last moves of Josse 6-

Heidi following Chris on Ruotsalaisten reitti 5+

Olhava campfire

The easter bunnies with the baileys

Wrapping up the winter season

2011-03-25T17:11:00.006+02:00

In Korouoma by Markus Siivonen

Having moved back home to Finland from UK, the country with endless count of superb rock routes and classic winter climbs, my first Finnish winter has been surprisingly good. Snow, minus degrees and many local ice crags. This winter I logged 19 ice climbing days in southern Finland, seven days in Lapland, three days in Norway and at least 50 lead climbs, which is a lot more than I have climbed on normal winters in UK. Thus, there is plenty of climbing in Finland (and it is good) if you just bother to search. And for those who don't - there is always Pirunkallio, an artificial icefall close to the centre of Helsinki (probably melted down by now though)!

So now it's time to pack away axes and screws, put climbing boots to the attic and look for friends, cams, nuts and small climbing shoes. Spring is here and so is my trip to the Ecrins and Verdon in France. Perhaps we'll manage to climb the La Demand this time?

Weekend alpinism in Rjukan, Norway

2011-03-25T15:55:00.014+02:00

I am a working woman now. No more last minute trips to Scotland or the Alps, or quick ones to North Wales. It's all about using my time the most efficient way. And that is why they invented "weekend alpinism"...

I think it was Sampsa and Jose who first used the word weekend alpinism. Well, I got hooked. On mid-March myself and Irma spent three fabulous days climbing in Rjukan with Jose and Jopo. Whilst the travel to Rjukan was a nightmare'ish epic due to road closures and our lack of a local map, climbing was excellent and plentiful. Some of the southfacing falls were getting thin on ice, but knowing this, we chose areas in shade. Due to somewhat sleepless night, myself and Irma climbed single pitch routes in Ozzimozis area on Saturday. Routes were in excellent nic and low in grade due to soft conditions. On sunday we walked hours in steep snow uphill looking for Mael amphitheatre only to find out that we had chosen a wrong path. (Looking back I think we chose to follow a hunters path..). Retreating our steps we found a group of Norwegian climbers who kindly pointed us to the right way, to a large path that would take us to the amphitheatre. How fool did we feel ourselves! After another three kilometers of walking and some rather adventurous scrambling and abseiling we were finally at the bottom of the "isroser" (WI3 over 200m) multipitch route at 2pm. Too late? Maybe, but we decided to climb fast. I lead, Irma followed, and we topped out when the sun went down at 6pm. Climbing was never too hard, except last vertical pitch, which I found very tiring after leading all previous pitches. On Monday, Jose and Jopo wanted to climb on the rugged and wild Kong Vinter area. At first the falls looked very steep and too hard for us, but soon we found a beautiful line that Irma lead. Jose suggested an interesting line called Prinsesse Snofnugg WI3, which turned out to be a huge challenge. Climbing was steep with rather poor conditions and I used several screws too many - and I had to make rather interesting "Scottish" belay station using thin tree, short screw and hex! With some struggles we climbed up the last pitch only to find short mixed section but luckily, Jose and Jope threw us girls their rope, and after some very mocky scrambling up a dead tree the day was saved (there would have been another way, rather interesting traverse, to climb out but because of some time issues we decided to let the boys to pull us girls up). Great routes, great weekend, thanks Jose, Irma and Jopo! I just hope I didn't have to drive all the way back to Oslo, on those small little roads...

Rjukan

Kong Vinter falls

Winter in Finland

2011-01-04T10:55:00.011+02:00

Winter is here. Well, it has been here for two months already. I have been lazy to blog, reasons being my new internship at the Finland's Ministry of the Environment Climate Change Unit, various nights training at the climbing wall and weekends away ice climbing. My stamina is going strong in Salmisaari climbing wall, I truly love the new 30 meter climbing wall there. I am lacking on maximum power though, because I am hopeless on bouldering. On ice, I have already climbed twice in Korouoma (the premier ice-climbing venue in Lapland). The boys of Jyväskylä took me up "Ruskeavirta" seven times on just one day during the independence weekend in December. During christmas holidays I climbed "Ruskeavirta" cleanly, but it took whole day. Furthermore, I have climbed on the southern Finland ice crags such as Kauhala, Valkeala, Pikku Siuntio, airport crag and Nuuksio, and trained on the drytooling wall. All is going well, and now I am looking forward our long weekend in Rjukan in March! And yeah, I did promise to lead every time on our local drytooling wall. Not sure how that is going to happen as it's bloody scary!

Mixed climbing in Vantaa with Toby Archer. "First ascent" of the line, but not a clean one. I rested on the rope once. Photo: Toby Archer.

Ruskeavirta in Korouoma, Finnish Lapland. I lead the Pääuoma WI4, which is the line on the right of the photo. I managed to put so many screws on the main vertical wall that I had to make an anchor in the upper ledge. Next time better eh? Photo taken from http://27crags.com.

Sari climbing Jaska Jokunen during the christmas holidays. Photo: Joel Ormala

Climbers enjoying Jaska in Korouoma. Many ascents were made here in December!

Happy new year 2011

End of the season in Bohuslän, Sweden

2010-10-25T16:12:00.016+03:00

I am sure that end of the rock climbing season is here. Rain, sleet and snow. Minus degrees. Going to look at crags rather than climbing any lines. When even the most overhanging crags are wet. Luckily, it wasn't all just that for us in Bohuslän, Sweden. On our first two days in Bohuslän we climbed awesome lines in Häller and Galgeberget. Leading burly Chapman, about 50 meters of E2 (Finnish grade 6), was pretty much the highlight of my autumn. I also seconded Mallorol (E1/ 6-) after Mikko, and it appeared to be another very good line with several good moves. In Galgeberget I climbed Ormbiten (Finnish 6) and battled up Masken (E4/ 7) on toprope, which is a classics in Bohuslän. On the last two days the last bits of sunny autumn days finally gave in for minus degrees, frost and snow. We went to check out crags such as Skälefäll, Vinterberget and Välseröd and spotted several good lines to climb next spring. Thus, bring on bouldering and indoor climbing. Although, first things first, its getting time to sharpen our ice axes for Korouoma and Scotland!

Marjut on Masken E4/ 7

Lovely Swedish cafe - we did spend some time here too....

Snow.. no, not yet please..

Mikko on Mallorol E1/ 6-. Chapman E2 goes just left to it.

Local horses enjoying first day of snow = )

Onsight fever!

2010-10-11T16:38:00.016+03:00

Last two weeks have been amazing. Sunshine, superb autumn colors and empty crags. Thanks to Marjut, Mikko and Elisa, I have climbed on the sea cliffs of Kustavi and learned to jam, tackled the tricky finger cracks in Havukallio and onsighted two superb classics in Olhava. It is a real pleasure to climb in Finland since I have so many cool climbs to onsight. In Havukallio I onsighted Nössö and Kanto (both E1), fell off Hybrishalkeama (E2) and enjoyed climbing easier classics such as Hollolan Bleau, Syysunelma, Keväthuuma-variaatio and Taisteluplaneetta Gattica. In Olhava I onsighted Ruotsalaisten reitti (HVS) and the famous classic Kantti (E2), whilst Elisa enjoyed Salama E1. It is so lovely to be back home!

Belaying in Olhava

Beautiful autumn in Olhava

Elisa on Salama E1

Beaten by Kustavi jamming!

2010-10-11T16:20:00.005+03:00

I am back home to Helsinki, after being 12 years abroad. But thanks to Elisa, Marjut, Artturi and many others, I have felt myself so welcome back home. On my first weekend in Finland my finnish pals took me to Kustavi in the west coast of Finland. I was so excited, but then I heard that it's all about jamming in Kustavi... Thus, on Saturday morning I found myself on beautiful sea cliffs of Riskeläisniemi. We climbed big granite offwidths and jamming cracks such as the famous offwidth classic called Kivekset (HVS 5a). On Sunday we went to Hopiavuori and I got to practice jamming on 'lastenhuoneen avaimet' and 'ensimmäinen pioneeri'. I did get my onsights, but just.

Elisa on Kivekset HVS 5a

Elisa on Ensimmäinen pioneeri HVS 5a

Marjut on Sireeni

North Wales adventures

2010-09-27T14:22:00.012+03:00

After a long weekend in Cornwall, I visited mountain of North Wales with Adam. The weather forecast wasn't great but we decided to go. Thus, on wednesday morning we drove to Dinas Cromlech in Llamberis pass to start our Welsh adventures by climbing the old classic Cemetary Gates (E1). Despite dark skies and odd raindrops I onsighted Cemetary Gates, however, the afternoon heavy terrential rain prevented any other climbing activities and we spent the rest of the afternoon in Pete's Eats for coffee and cakes. On Thursday weather was even worse - more heavy rains. We decided to check out Tremadog, which is often dry when it's raining in the pass. Luckily rain stopped for few hours and Adam climbed 'One Step in the Clouds' (VS). It was still raining on Friday so we drove to Gogart to see if 'The Dream of the White Horses' was dry but, unfortunately, we were faced with very heavy winds and spent the day climbing in the Holyhead Mountain. We found several good lines such as Black and Tans (VS), King Bee Crack (HVS), Bruvers (HVS), Breaking the Barrier (E1) and Bran flake (E2). We returned to Gogarth next day and Adam lead the Strand (E2), one of the best E2 in Wales. On our last day in North Wales we climbed 'The Grooves' (E1) in Cyrn Las. It was an awesome line, 120 meters of slimy, wet rock with amazing positions.What a great week with my best friends and amazing way to end my stay in beautiful Great Britan!

Holyhead mountain

Adam on Strand E2

Cyrn Las with the Grooves on the right

Adam on the first pitch of the the Grooves

Dinas Cromlech

Grib Goch

Cyrn Las

Sea cliffs in Cornwall

2010-09-27T13:51:00.008+03:00

After submission of my thesis, I spent 10 days climbing around UK. I started in Cornwall with my friend Mel and climbed for four days sea cliffs of Bosigron, Chair Ladder, Gurnard's Head and Carn Kenidjack. The weather was beautiful, climbs superb, and I overcame my fear of multipitch HVS's. On our first day we climbed Brown Jug (VS) and battled up the exposed and thuggy Paragon (HVS). In Carn Kenidjack we climbed Saxon (HVS) and Rock Dancer (E1). In addition, we enjoyed the major classic Right Angle (HS), which ranks amongst the best climbs that I've done. On our last day we climbed the burly and thuggy Diocese (VS). Beautiful Cornwall..... what more can I say.

Bosigron ridge

Mel on the belay of Right Angle HS

Going for the last pitch of the Right Angle HS

Mel topping out the Doorpost in Bosigron

Mel on the Saxon HVS 5a

Cliffs of Chair Ladder

Sari on the Diocese VS 5a traverse. Wicked climb!!

Memories of Peak District

2010-09-13T14:50:00.005+03:00

Next friday is my last day in Sheffield. I have completed my masters in Polar and Alpine science and it is time to move on. So some of you will see me soon in Helsinki, others will be missed. It has been great two years, found amazing hidden gems, met amazing people. Here's a collection of photos of my best times in the Peak!

Peak District

Rainy day in the Peak

Found some sheep

The world famous heathers of the Peak district

Stanage - my other home!

Having great time on Great North Road HVS 5a

Millstone with all its glory

My first onsight E1 - Embankment 4

Peter having fun on Knightsbridge E2 in Millstone

Fern crack VS 4c in Stanage - cant go wrong!

And we even climbed this... Old classic Parsons Chimney in Almscliffe!

Having soloing fun in Almscliffe

And... finally the Slought HVS 5a!

It really is very beautiful in Roaches! Sari seconding Hawkings E1 5b

Back to Peak District

2010-08-20T12:31:00.016+03:00

I am back to the beautiful Peak district! The autumn is definitely arriving (rain, rain and more rain) and so is my thesis deadline. Unfortunately I have managed to get out to the Peak only few times; I explored the caves of Castleton and walked up to the Skyline ridge of Edale in warm mid-august rain with my family, and last weekend I climbed on the high plateau of Kinder north and in the ever so famous Stanage. Many classics were climbed such as the Legacy HVS 5a and Misty Wall Vs 4b in Kinder and Fern Crack VS 4c, Heather Wall VS 4c and Straight Crack VS 4c in Stanage. I still have a few HVS's and E1's to climb before the winter arrives... so fingers crossed the weather will improve!

Adam on Cinturato E1 5c

Beautiful Peak District

Neverending Stanage

Lovely views around Kinder north

Sari on Misty Wall VS 4b

Colin on the arete of Legacy HVS 5a

Images from Svalbard - Kuvia Huippuvuorilta

2010-07-28T15:27:00.006+03:00

As a part of my Master of Science degree in Polar and Alpine science at the University of Sheffield, I was lucky to spend a 12 days period in the Arctic Norway of Svalbard (Huippuvuoret). All our field studies were placed around Longyearbyn, which is the largest town in Svalbard. The whole class including PhD students and visiting researchers stayed in a small hut located beside a local husky farm (not much sleep I am afraid!!) and for six days we adventured the local glaciers of Foxfonna, Longyearbyn and Riprebreen. Below is a collection of photos taken by myself during the trip. Enjoy!

Beautiful Ala Archa in Kyrgyz Tien Shan

2010-07-13T11:33:00.015+03:00

In summer 2010 I was lucky to undertake glaciological works towards my Msc thesis in Ala Archa National Park in Kyrgyz Tien Shan. As usual, I had left everything to last minute but thanks to my supervisor Andy Hodson in Sheffield and my dear friend Dmitry Pavlenko, the expedition outcome was very successful. There certainly wasn't lack of excitement during this expedition, starting from being kicked out from the train in Kazakhstan boarder for having wrong transit visa in my passport provided by the Kazakstan embassy in London (folks, check your visas twice as their embassy does give out wrong information)! I was "arrested" for a day, but thankfully Finnish embassy bailed me out and I returned to Moscow from where I quickly booked flight to Bishkek.

Phew...finally in Bishkek and only one day late from the schedule! In Bishkek I was faced with ongoing unrest in Osh that luckily didn't extend to northern parts of Kyrgyzstan, and it had no effect on my plans. All my investigations took place on Aksai glacier, located within one day walk from Alplager; located just 40km outside Bishkek. For my thesis I investigated the effects of biological dust to glacier melt in Asia and during the expedition I measured the glacial melt rate in Aksai by collecting 100 cryoconite samples, undertaking daily incubations to measure dissolved oxygen, measuring albedo on different parts of the glacier, and taking about thousand photos. Phew!

In addition to glaciological works, I climbed several snowy peaks and I was very lucky to climb two classic rock lines on the Bachichiki rock wall (4515m) with a good friend, local climber and guide, Dmitry Pavlenko. With Dima I climbed both the classic trad route "Schwaba" (russian 5A, 550m; I lead first 6 pitches at vs/hvs) and the "Polak" route (Russian 5A, 550m), both on the Bachichiki rock wall and the latter in terrifying snow/ hail/ rain whilst learning to jumar on big wall style. Many thanks to Dmitry Pavlenko, one of the best mountain guides and teachers that I have met during my very limited years in mountaineering, as without you this small expedition wouldn't have been possible.

Mountaineering and climbing undertaken during this trip:

Swaba 550m (russian 5A - about alpine TD) on Bachichiki rock wall (4515m) with Dmitry Pavlenko

Polak 550m (russian 5A - about alpine TD) on Bachichiki rock wall (4515m) with Dmitry Pavlenko. First pitch was aided by Dmitry, afterwards I can claim a pitch or two under my name. Dmitry brilliantly finished this route in snow/rain/ hail whilst I was learning the basics of jumaring....

Peak Raceka - 2B (no classification) - nice one day climb with David Nicholls!

Peak Korona 4810m - sadly, I had to turn around 200 meters below the summit as we didn't have crampons nor ice axe to go further.

Peak Ucitel 4527m - an easy walking peak, good for acclimation and lovely views!

Russian alpine grade explanation is available here.

Ala Archa is simply one of the best climbing venues in Kyrgyzstan. It is only a stone throw from Bishkek and very accessible. There isn't many routes for beginners but the selection of challenging routes is plentiful. More information about climbing in Ala Archa is found here:

Dmitry Pavlenko

The Alpine Fund

Risk.ru

Below is a selection of photos that I took during my trip in Ala Archa. I hope to write further post about my glaciological work as results come forward.

Top of Aksai glacier

My home for a month

Somewhere close to the top of Korona Peak 4810m. Seems a bit silly now that we didn't go to the top now, but as you might notice, no ice axe nor crampons. But a lovely day anyhow!

Top of Schwaba route (russian 5a) on Bachichiki (4515m)

Views of Ala Archa

Final ridge of peak Ucitel 4527m

Aksai glacier with peak Raceka in the middle

Peak Ucitel and Bachichiki

Sunset of Ala Archa

Dmitry on first pitch of Polak route (russian 5a) 4515m

Beautiful Aksai

Bachichiki rock wall (4515m)

Summit of Raceka peak

Racek Hut

Climbing up Korona Peak 4810m

Dmitry gearing up for the Polak route (russian 5A)

Korona Hotel

Mid Aksai glacier

Dmitry trekking to the Korona Hotel

Free Korea wall 4740m

Korona towers 5 (4860m) and 6 (4855m). Sevaral good rock routes

Dmitry trekking towards the Korona hotel

The wall of Bailin-Bashi (4700m) ahead

Images from the Central Asian cities

2010-07-13T09:29:00.006+03:00

Moscow in images...

....and Bishkek in images

Rock climbing in southern Finland

2010-06-02T18:09:00.014+03:00

After my exams in Sheffield, it was time to spend some quality time with my family in Helsinki, Finland. I also went to discover some local crags around Helsinki, and I enjoyed climbing in Kvarnby cliff, Jaanankallio and Rollarit with Elisa, Mika and Tatu. It was great climbing and I am amazed by the quality of sport routes. In Kvarnby cliff in Kirkkonummi, myself, Elisa and Mika climbed Murkkuhalkeama (HVS 5b), Pintahiki (6a) and Kiemura (VS 5a), and toproped Majavan Paluu (7) and Lepakkomiehen Frendi (7-), which are excellent crack climbs with any measures. In Jaanankallio I enjoyed climbing Rev it up (VS 4c) and Invincta (HVS 5b). I also toproped Wombatti (6c), which is probably one of the best sportroutes I've climbed. Next time leading... Thanks Elisa for a fab day out! Rollarit (gneiss), the closest crag to Helsinki, I climbed Rock Vandal (VS 4c) and had a good go with the Mantra (7a). I hope to return for Spiderman (6-) very soon too. It has been an excellent holiday in Helsinki with family, friends and good climbing!

Kvarnby:
Sport, Walk, Trad VS 5a
Pintahiki F6a - really nice climbing!
Kiemura 5c - good one, I like the handtraverse!
Isidor F6a+ - very thin climbing at the crux
Murkkuhalkeama HVS 5b - requires bit of a fight with the first move!
Heroes in Heaven F5+ - nice warm up!
Lepakkomiehen frendi E3 5c toprope - absolutely amazing line, this I like to lead one day!
Majavan paluu E5 6a toprope - again, absolutely amazing line, I would like to lead this one day!

Jaanankallio:
Invicta HVS 5b - good route and my first finnish 6!
Vompatti F6c toprope - lovely line that didn't feel too hard.
Rev It Up VS 4c- great route, everyone should climb this one!

Rollarit:
Crying Finn VS 4b - nice little route!
Pingviini F6a+ - cool route with some tough moves
Rock Vandal VS 5a - nice route with pleanty of gear
Mantra F7a toprope - desperate crux
Sianlihan Orjat F6a+ - hard bouldery crux

Sari toproping Mantra (7a) in Rollarit. Very hard crux I think!

Sari leading Rock Vandal (VS 4c) in Rollarit. Very nice climbing and a true classic for sure!

Lepakkomies (E2 5c) follows the left side of the overhang. I didn't have guts to lead it this time, but maybe next year?

Elisa tackling with the Wombatti (6c) in Jaanankallio. Great line, great moves, I would love to lead this!

Spring climbing in Peak District and Wales

2010-05-11T13:02:00.028+03:00

Work, study, train, work more, train super hard, sneak outside for a climb, study....

Being student in Sheffield is great. It is less than 10 minutes to gritstone and you are bound to get strong if you have the energy to get out between lectures. For us 'Sheffield'ers crags such as Stanage, Curbar, Froggatt and Raven Tor, are closer than our local indoor walls. For me this spring has been great. I have successfully onsighted three E1's (5b's). Big thank you goes to Lucy Creamer for training sessions both in the Foundry and the local crags. I have also climbed in Lamberis pass and Tremadog in North Wales (thanks Alison for superb weekend!!); sea cliffs in Pen Twryn with Lucy and Tim; and made multiple visits to Roaches, Almscliffe, Millstone and Stanage etc.

However, the biggest challenge is yet to come - to organise my first ever geography fieldwork season in Kyrgyzstan, and it is not coming easy. I still don't have the funding to go there nor the right scientific equipment.

Seconding an E1 called Hawkwings in Roaches. Photo: Adam Potter

Latest routes I have climbed and I highly recommend:

Pen Twryn:

The Pirates of Pen Trwyn F6c+ seconding
Plumbline E3 5c seconding
Precious Metal E1 5b - really lovely route!
It E2 5b seconding
Pale Shelter E1 5b

Tremadog:

Merlin Direct HVS 5a very nice climbing!
Scratch Arete HVS 5a very nice climbing!

Lamberis Pass:

Sabre Cut VS 4c SUPERB corner but bring a large cam!!!

Stanage:

Step-ladder Crack VS 5a
Hell Crack VS 4b classic!
Robin Hood Cave Innominate/ Harding's Finish HVS 5a
Kelly's Overhang E1 5c bloody desperate!!!!

Millstone:
Embankment 4 E1 5b

Lyon Corner House Direct HVS 5a
Great North Road HVS 5a - Superb!!
Svelt HVS 5a
Mayday HVS 5a
Piccadilly Circus E2 5b seconding

Roaches:
Saul's crack HVS 5a - JAMMING CRACK and needs a revisit!!!
The Sloth HVS 5a - superb overhang!!!
Valkyrie VS 4c - gotta love the step, hehe!!
The Mincer HVS 5b - seconding
Wombat E2 5b -very cool overhang!

Contemplating for things to come.... on the Sloth HVS 5a in Roaches! Photo: Jenny Williams

Learning to crack climb - my first E1 5b onsight in Millstone called Embankment 4. Photo: Jon Leighton

Getting ready for a climb in North Wales!

Dinas Cromlech in North Wales. We climbed an awesome corner called Sabre Cut VS 4c. It was pretty scary for an VS (I forgot to take a BIG cam with me!)

....and climbing at the sea cliffs of Pen Twryn (photo from Walesdirectory.co.uk). AMAZING!! I did two good E1's there, Precious Metal (E1 5b) and Pale Shelter (E1 5b).

Spring climbing on gritstone

2010-04-16T16:23:00.013+03:00

The Peak has finally woken up! Everybody is training hard, Malham is busy, Stanage too. Although I have big deadlines with my masters in May and a field season to prepare, I have squeezed in few days of climbing in Millstone, Almscliffe and Roaches. I finally climbed the Great North Road HVS 5a and the Lyon Corner House HVS 5a. In Almscliffe, I climbed Central Climb and Square Chimney and Whisky Crack (both VS's) and in Roaches did Valkyrie (VS 4c) and the Sloth, and climbed the big roofs of Wombat and Simpkins Overhang. A good start for the season - maybe more E1's soon?

Sari seconding Embankment 3 E1 5b (Photo: Adam Potter)

Sari leading Great North Road HVS 5a (Photo: Jenny Williams)

Millstone crag (Photo: Jenny Williams)

And finally.... the Sloth HVS 5a!!!! Photo: Jenny Williams

Project Tien Shan - The The Effects of Biogenic Surface Dust to Increased Glacial Melt on Ak-Say Glacier

2010-03-31T16:07:00.078+03:00

Those who know me know how much I hate nine to five jobs. However, after travelling over a year in Nepal, Kyrgyzstan and Europe, I am back in the office, but this time, not with a normal nine to five job. In September 2009 I started studying for Msc degree in geography concentrating on polar and alpine science. This year has been hard work but same time a blast, and now it is coming to an end. But first, I am undertaking fieldwork for my Msc thesis. I am currently preparing for field season in the glaciers of Northern Tien Shan. Project Tien Shan - Golubina Glacier is about putting all hard work done in the office to practise, and it is a chance for me to do what I always wanted to do most, explore and learn about mountainous regions. I will be investigating glacial dust, its effects on snow/ ice albedo, and as well the tiny bacterias that attach themselves to the dust particles. I will be spending 21-23 days in Ak-say glacier in Ala Archa National Park collecting field data for my masters thesis - for example, I will be collecting samples, taking photographs, measuring dissolved oxygen and with little bit luck, a good deal of mountaineering too.

My journey to Central Tien Shan starts 27. May 2010 when I will fly from Sheffield to Helsinki, where I will be spending couple days visiting my family and friends. On 2. June, I will broad TranSiberian Express with a quick stop over in Moscow. Three days later, on my arrival to Bishkek, I will be meeting my good friend Dmitry Pavlenko and some colleagues from the Central Asian Institute for Applied Geosciences. I also hope to meet American fulbright scholar Ann Piersall, who has done a great deal of work in Kyrgyzstan since November 2009. Check out her excellent web page: http://tienshanglaciers.blogspot.com/2009/05/about-ann.html

Kok-Shaal Tau range in Kyrgyzstan. Photo source: Sari Nevala.

About my research... here's a short introduction to my project:

Northern Tien Shan is located in an arid and semi-arid region of central Asia, at the source region for Asian dust. Every spring, enormous amounts of dust particles are deposited on glacial surfaces after dust storms in the ‘drying’ Caspian and Aral Seas and in the deserts and arid regions of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan (Prospero et al., 2002). The high glacial dust input in northern Tien Shan can be explained by the synergetic action of many factors involving the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere. There are three basic conditions to consider: (1) the increased aridity on the continents due to changes in soil moisture, vegetation cover and retreat of glaciers (Prospero et al., 2002); (2) the more vigorous atmospheric circulation enhanced by the steeper southern temperature gradient generated by the northward extension of sea ice and (3) the reduction in the intensity of the hydrological cycle leading to a decrease in precipitation and consequently more efficient transport of dust (e.g. Joussaume 1989).

In Chinese Tien Shan observations show large amounts of surface dust on the ice surface ranging from 86 to 1113 g m¯² (dry weight), which is within the normal range for Asian glaciers, but significantly greater than those on glaciers in other regions such as the Arctic (Takeuchi & Li, 2008; Takeuchi & Koshima, 2004). A significant part of the surface dust consists of humic material, being the residue of bacterial decomposition of organic matter (Takeuchi, 2002; Fujita, 2007). This suggests that the surface dust is comprised not only of deposits of wind-blown desert, but is a product of microbial activity on glacier itself. Such biogenic surface dust is known as cryoconite, and it enhances the melt rate of the glacier significantly, because the darkening of the ice leads to reduction in surface albedo and, thus, greater absorption of the Sun’s radiation (e.g. Takeuchi et al., 2002).

Therefore, understanding the persistence of the dust is critical to understanding the fate of these glaciers as they increasingly lose their reflective snow cover – not least because the mass balance of Asian glaciers is a vital source of water for rivers and lakes that provide fresh water for large population in this threatened area. The tight coupling between physical and biological processes within cryoconite ecosystems upon a mountain glacier in Northern Tien Shan therefore forms the basis of this exciting project. Specifically, I will consider:

Controls upon the distribution of cryoconite across the Northern Tien Shan Glaciers;
How the cryoconite habitats vary (size, type, location) across the ice cap in accordance withdifferent radiation conditions (e.g. aspect, snow cover), the crystal/ optical properties of the ice and biological activity;
How these habitats enhance entrapment of other debris particles such as desert dust and anthropogenic pollution (black carbon), and then how this process modifies the albedo of the ice surface.

References:

Fujita, K. (2007) Effect of dust event timing on glacier runoff: sensitivity analysis for a Tibetan glacier. Hydrol. Process., 21 (21), 2892 - 2896.
Joussaume, S. (1989) Desert dust and climate: an investigation using an atmospheric general circulation model. In: Leinen M, Sarnthein M (eds) Paleoclimatology and paleometeorology: moden and past patterns of global atmospheric transport. NATO Workshop, PP 253-263.
Prospero, J., Ginoux, P., Torres, O., Nicholson, S. and Gill, T. (2002) Global sources of atmospheric soil dusts. 40, 1, Reviews of Geophysics 40,1 February 2002.
Takeuchi, N., and Li, Z. (2008) Characteristics of surface dust on Urumqi Glacier No. 1 in the Tien Shan Mountains, China. Arctic, Antarctic and Alpine Research, 40 (4), 744 - 750.
Takeuchi, N. (2002) Optical characteristics of cryoconite (surface dust) on glaciers: the relationship between light absorbency and the property of organic matter contained in the cryoconite. Annals of Glaciology, 34, 409 - 414.
Takeuchi, N., and Koshima, S. (2004) A snow algal community on a Patagonian glacier, Tyndall glacier in the Southern Patagonia Icefield. Arctic, Antarctic and Alpine Research, 36 (1), 91 -98.

Kokshaal-Tau range. Source: Sari Nevala.

Language Skills

A personal goal of mine is to develop a working proficiency of the Russian language. I am currently studying Russian language for 1-2 hours a day in hopes that by June I will be able to engage in conversations with local people, friends and fellow scientists.

Mountaineering

From a personal level I am excited by the mountaineering possibilities that exist in

Ala Archa National Park in Kyrgyzstan

. I hope to spend few days either after/ before/ in-between my field work to explore the area and to climb a peak or two!
A very good introduction to the Ala Archa region is found on Kyrgyz Alpine Fund web page: http://www.alpinefund.org/Kyrgyz%20Mountain%20Info.html.

Many thanks for Dr. Andy Hodson for supervision and constant support, Dmitry Pavlenko (Kyrgyzstan) for organisation, planning and support whilst in Kyrgyzstan, all friends and colleagues at the University of Sheffield and lastly to Sean James for being there for me.

Funding has been applied from Royal Geographical Society and University of Sheffield but has not yet been confirmed.

Few very interesting web pages to check:

Ann Piersall - Fulbright scholar currently in Kyrgyzstan http://tienshanglaciers.blogspot.com/2009/05/about-ann.html

Dmitry Pavlenko - Mountain guide and climber in Kyrgyzstan http://www.singleclimb.com/content/view/306/57/

Alpine Fund in Kyrgyzstan http://www.alpinefund.org/Kyrgyz%20Climbing%20Overview.html

Nozomu Takeuchi - Researcher in Japan http://www-es.s.chiba-u.ac.jp/~takeuchi/

Ysgolion Duon (Black Ladders) in North Wales

2010-03-12T16:26:00.018+02:00

Soloing up first pitches of Icefall Gully

Fab day in North Wales - two good routes, good company and blue skies! Very good conditions for early March - the ice was thick enough for good ice screw placements and the weather was perfect! Both routes were very nice, climbing felt easy and safe (enough ice!!!) however, again I struggled with building good belays.... Practise practise practise!!!

Overall it was possibly THE perfect winter day! Thanks Sean = )
http://www.sheffieldmountainguides.com/

Pyramid Gully IV 5 250m
Icefall Gully IV 4 250m

Views from the top - we made it there twice!

Ysgolion Duon (Black Ladders)

Winter Climbing Scotland

2010-02-18T10:55:00.024+02:00

Coire an Lochain in Cairngorms

Coire an Lochain in Cairngorm

Second week of February in Scotland was awesome! Lots of snow, big cornices, good routes and great ski touring, what more can you ask! Aviemore was buzzing and the sky was blue.

Last week was all about big Scottish winter routes. I climbed harder than ever before (scottish grade 5/6), backed off several pitches (thanks Will for leading). But equally, myself and Will climbed 5/6 days that we spent in Scotland. In the end my legs did hurt....

On Monday I had quite an epic climbing on the Message (4,6) in Coire an t'Sneachda in Cairngorm. The Message is a pretty steep and MIXED route (but very good belays) and I was really hoping not to get the crux pitch... But after nearly 2 hours on the crux and nearly loosing my front teeth (the hex that I was resting on popped out), I down climbed and Will finished the pitch. On third pitch we got our ropes stuck whilst getting dark. Many thanks to Stuart from Climb 365 for sorting our ropes in the end. http://www.climb365.net/about-us.htm. And nothing better to finish the day than navigating in snow storm and pitch black darkness....

We had another big day in Creag Megaidh. We were aiming for the classic ice line called Pumpkin but, instead chose an amazing gully line called South Post Direct (4,5). Ice was pretty amazing for Scotland and part of the route involved steep snow climbing with no gear. There I was trying to build belay on 80 degree snow slope with no gear between me and the belayer.... it was scary. Brilliant climb though but perhaps not good one for first grade 5 ; )

Sunday - Patey's Route (4,5)
Monday - The Message (4,6)
Tuesday - Central Left Hand (1/2)
Wednesday - REST DAY
Thursday - South Post Direct (5,4) 400m
Friday - Fiacaill Ridge (1/2)

Recent Report for Scottish winter conditions is here:
http://www.ukclimbing.com/news/item.php?id=51697

Fiacaill Ridge in Corrie an t'Sneachda

Creag Megaidh

Creag Megaidh - South Post Direct (5,4)

Winter climbing in Devil's Kitchen (Cwm Idwal)

2010-01-15T20:15:00.019+02:00

Sari leading The Curtain IV 4

Eddie on the South Gully IV 4***

Current Idwal (North Wales) conditions (14th Jan) are superb but melting fast! Most of the ice lines are climbed and the super classic Devil's Appendix saw many ascents. The team Foundry; Eddie, Dan, Tim and I had a superb day - sunny skies, perfect alpine conditions and lots of fun. The South Gully IV 4***, The Screen IV 4 **, The Curtain IV 4 and The Ramp II* were climbed, and we nearly wanted to stay over for a second day to climb the Devil's Appendix..... ah well, next time!

Dan on The Screen IV 4 **

Big Day - Big Smile

Embassy of Nepal Awards

2010-01-10T11:03:00.015+02:00

The Embassy of Nepal in Denmark and Tourism Board of Nepal are honouring Finnish nationals who have either climbed Mount Everest or other Nepali Himalaya Mountains; Finnish journalists who has written books and articles about Nepal; and other Finnish individuals contributing to Nepalese tourism through research or any other activites. I was given the award for my summit to Ama Dablam and Island Peak in November 2007. Thank You.

Mixtaa Englannissa

2010-01-10T10:53:00.007+02:00

Yllätys, yllätys, mutta kotinurkintani Englannista löytyy jäätä!! Ei siis ole tarvetta ajaa Skotlantiin asti vaan pienet treenit onnistuu kotoa! Veikattiin että vasen reuna olisi jotakin skotti 6 tai 7:kaa. Kuvassa Eddie kikkailee oikeaa reunaa, olisikohan myös jotain 6sta? Yläköydellä oli kiva kokeilla kauden ekoja reitteja. Mukavasti jalka nousi ja voisin uskaltaa jopa yrittää skotti 5:sta Skolannissa tänä vuonna!

Suprise, suprise, but we found some ice in Peak District! No need to drive to Scotland for bit of a training . Below Eddie is climbing right side of the waterfall which is probably Scottish 6. The left side was a great line too, somewhat harder. It was very nice to start out the season with some toproping. Next week North Wales?

Pienempikin putous kiivettiin. Oikea reuna oli oikein mukava pikku reitti!

Lapin Taikaa - Magical Lapland

2010-01-02T20:30:00.029+02:00

"Kaamos (polar nights), the cozyness of Piippukota, old and new friends, salmiakki and licorice , -22 celsius and quietness"

"In the magical Lapland, there is a wicked place of Korouoma Canyon and Piippukota (cozy northern cottage). It is rugged and grand, surrounded by old-growth forests, frozen waterfalls and cliffs. It is quiet and dark, with the occasional eagles gliding in the air."

Piippukota. Photo by Markus Siivola

I have just arrived home to Helsinki after five amazing days in Korouoma Canyon in Finnish Lapland. The frozen waterfalls of Ruskeavirta, Mammutti and Jaska Jokunen were climbed.

Thanks guys and gals! I am looking forward the next year already!!

Jaska Jokunen icefall

Dosentti and "elämäni liidi"

Mammutti icefall

Ruskeavirta with all its glory...

Autumn in Stanage

2009-11-01T09:04:00.007+02:00

Against all the odds, I had a chance to climb in Stanage and Plantation yesterday. It was a wet start but the day got better as it and by midday we were up and down routes.

The Coign HS 4b Lead O/S
Pegasus Wall VS 4c Lead O/S
Wall End Flake Crack VS 4c Lead O/S
Valhalla VS 5a 2nd
Bridge's Variation VS 5a 2nd
Overhanging Wall HVS 5a ** 2nd
Millsom's Minion E1 5b 2nd

Back on gritstone and discovering caving

2009-09-27T10:54:00.011+03:00

It has been hectic few weeks. Very hectic. Climbing, caving, learning.

University has started; I am studying for Msc Geography degree at the University of Sheffield concentrating in Glaciology and Geology. And Russian language. I have many friends to visit in Kyrgyzstan and I better be able to say more than hello then.

I have started working at the Foundry Climbing Centre, and since my return to UK, I have climbed seven days on gritstone and limestone; in Millstone, Lawrencefield, Horseshoe Quarry, Standing Stones and Willersley. I love being in Peak Distrct! I even discovered caving the other day. It was scary experience and after 350 meters and 4 hours of squeezing through small tunnels I ascended completely soaked from very 'wet' caves of Stoney Middleton in Peak District. Thanks Adam, what fab outing.

Stoney Middleton
What the Hell VS 4b * Lead
Morning Crack S * 2nd
Glory Road VS 4b * 2nd

Millstone
Embankment 1 E1 5b ** Lead
Embankment 2 VS 4c ** Lead rpt
Great North Road HVS 5a *** 2nd

Horseshoe Quarry
A Right Earful F6a+ Lead
50 Bolts to the Gallon F6a Lead O/S
The Bog F6a Lead
Armitage F6a Lead O/S

Lawrencefield
Excalibur VS 4c ** Lead rpt
Tyrone HVS 4c * 2nd
Great Harry VS 4c *** Lead rpt
Once Pegged Wall VS 5a * 2nd
Limpopo Groove VS 4b * 2nd

Willersley Castle Rocks
Growl Tiger's Last Stand E2 5c ** 2nd
Lime Street Direct E1 5c *** 2nd
Guts Ache Groove VS 4c ** O/S
Garrotter VS 4c *** AltLd O/S
Pothole Wall VS 5a *** AltLd O/S

Standing Stones
Smiler's Corner HS 4b * 2nd
Fairy Nuff VS 4c *** 2nd
Womanless Wall VS 4b ** 2nd
Pocked Wall VS 4b ** 2nd
Vivien S 4a ** Lead O/S
Twin Crack Corner VS 4b *** Lead O/S
Touch of Spring S 4a * Lead O/S

Lawrencefield
Three Tree Climb HS 4b *** Lead O/S
Excalibur VS 4c ** 2nd

Millstone
Great Slab (Millstone) HS 4b ** Lead O/S
Great North Road HVS 5a *** 2nd

In Kyrgyzstan; Ala Archa National Park

2009-09-11T20:22:00.021+03:00

Ala Archa National Park lies in South Bishkek, its highest summit being Simyonov Tien Shan, 4,875 meters. There are many good rock and ice climbing areas in this region (150 established routes - 500 meters in lenght!!!), the walls of Ak Sai being the most popular. There are routes at every level, from scrambling to extreme mixed climbs. There are some good pictures in here.
http://www.singleclimb.com/.

There are no bolts or guidebooks, you will have to go and take a look at what looks good to climb. The best time for rock climbing is from July to October, after October it gets cooler. I was there in early September and there was half a meter of snow!!!! Be prepared for anything.....

The ice climbing season runs from October to March. The wall of Free Korea and the North Face of Korona are the classic ice walls, both with long routes of ice/ mixed. On Free Korea there are two classic lines, the Barber route and the Lowe route, soled by Henry Barber and Jeff Lowe in the 70s. On the North Wall of Korona there are many good lines, from extreme mixed to good ice.

How to get there:

Ala Archa National Park is located 40 kilometers south of Bishkek. Most climbers take a taxi to get there but you can also catch Marsutka no 265 from Osh Bazar to the National Park gate. Entry to the park was 60som (Sep 2009). From there I hitched 12km to Alplager (shops and a hotel), the start of the trailhead at 2,100 meters. It takes about four hours to walk to the Ratsek Cabin, at 3,200 meters. Most climbers choose to camp here but it is possible to stay at the Ratsek Hut for 300 som (2009). There are two Soviet-era metal climbing huts further past the Ratsek Hut, one on the northwest side of Pik Korona, and the other on the south.

On my visit to Ala Archa I was very lucky to meet Dmitry Pavlenko, Russian Guide and Mountaineer. He took me out for a day and introduced me to the mountains of Ala Archa. Unfortunately snow up to waist level prohibited any climbing action but I definately plan to return Ala Archa in future.
Dmitry regularly guides and teaches in Ala Archa and organises expeditions on request to such areas as Dugoba, Ak-Suu, Karakol etc. He is also available for guiding to exSoviet 7000ders and happy to organise your trip. Check out his web page for more info!
http://www.singleclimb.com/content/view/306/57/

More information about climbing in Ala Archa is found here:
http://www.alpinefund.org/Kyrgyz%20Climbing%20Overview.html
http://www.alpinefund.org/Ala-Archa%20guide.html

In Kyrgyzstan; At Bashi

2009-09-10T17:00:00.031+03:00

At Bashi range - Acha Kaeyndi valley

This range lies in the Naryn Province of Kyrgyzstan, about 35km southwest of Naryn. The peaks are lower, never reaching 5000m, but the range is very extensive, being 100km from end to end. There are very little records of any mountaineering activity in this area. We spent 8days climbing in the area, in Acha Kaeyndi valley, climbing variety of rock and alpine routes. I and Eddie climbed interesting rock route to a 4300m??? peak that had couple F4-5 grade pitches while Vanessa and Sally climbed interesting 6 pitch ice coulouir with 70-80 degree ice. Several other routes were climbed (I will update soon), snow leopard prints found and I even managed to horse trek for few days.

Willis-Brown Couloir 4242m (D) that Vanessa and Sally climbed. Photo: Sally Brown

Add caption

Above Sally Brown (photo by Vanessa Wills) topping Wills Brown Couloir 4242m. The route is about grade 4. 6 pitches of 60m (3 of 70-80 degree ice), Alpine D. Height at top of route 4242m.

Craws nest 4155m AD+. I and Eddie climbed the long rocky line on red in left.

Sari at the top of the Craws Nest - Two pitches of F5, alpine AD+ , rest moderate scrambling (we mainly moved together), the height of the peak 4155m

Snow Leopard - just missed it!

....and some horse trekking action (I got sick of walking!)

In Kyrgyzstan; Western Kok Shaal Too

2009-09-10T09:12:00.036+03:00

Above approaching the summit of Pegger Peak 4640m PD+

Western Kok Shaal Too - Komorova Glacier

The following introduction to the area is taken from
http://www.alpinefund.org/Kyrgyz%20Climbing%20Overview.html

"The Kok Shaal-Too (“Forbidden Range”) is located on Kyrgyzstan’s Chinese border. It was a closed military region until the late 1990s, when the first Western expeditions visited the region. The Soviets had climbed the highest peaks, Dankova (5,982 meters) and Kizil Asker (5,842 meters), but the region as a whole had not been well explored by climbers. This will remain a region of unclimbed pearls for some years to come. In 1997 several Americans, Britons, and a German climbed new peaks, including Lyev, Unmarked Soldier, Jerry Garcia, Pik 52 Years, and others. More Americans and Canadians returned in 1998 to climb Babouchka (Butterfly) and Ecstasy, among others.

Kizil Asker (5,842 meters) and its surrounding peaks offer the best new-route potential. The main couloir on the southeast face of Kizil Asker, rising 1,300 meters above the glacier, was attempted alpine style by a Scottish team led by Edmond Tresidder in 2002. After ascending 500 meters on steep ice, their attempt was aborted due to thawing conditions. On the Kyrgyzstan side, the northwest face was climbed in 1985 by a Kazak team led by Kasbek Valiev. The north ridge of Kizel Asker, accessible from the Kyrgyzstan side, has a dramatic high point of 5,400 meters that has been attempted but remains unclimbed. Much of the new route activity of the last few years has been on the more accessible granite cliffs called Ochre Wall, where in 2002 a Canadian team put up the 600-meter mixed route Beef Cake (IV M5 WI4), while a Spanish team put up the rock route Ak Saitan (“White Devil”— 600m, 6a+ A3+) on the wall’s main pillar. This wall has several obvious lines waiting to be climbed." The last photo in this section is from the Ochre Wall!!!!

It was a two-day drive from Bishkek to reach Kok Shaal Too. Off road vehicle is necessary as last part of the travel is on river deltas - wet grass and rocky river beds. We used GAS-66 (12 seats, 4 WD). For our logistics we used ITMC - http://www.itmc.centralasia.kg/ - and I can heartily recommend their services. We hired vehicle, driver, cook and porter through ITMC. As Kok Shaal Too region is a military zone, border permits are required - ITMC organised our permits and we had no difficulties to enter the area. We established our basecamp to the tip of Komorova Glacier - there are no services available here; the local population was long ago removed by the Soviets as a way to sanitize the border.

We spent 10 days in Kok Shaal Too area and during that time we climbed Pegger Peak, Jerry Garcia and other peak???? All routes about PD-AD. I will update heights, grades and locations soon.

There are more information of our expedition blog at http://karagakar exped09.blogspot.com/

Above Nicnaz 4957m PD+ that Vanessa and Eddie climbed.
Decending Pegger Peak 4640m

Approaching Jerry Garcia 5250m and the left route on red is the one that I and Vanessa did!

Jerry Garcia North Face AD 5250m. We got to the ridge line at just under 5000 meters but then I chickened out as the ridge was knife edge sharp and weather was worsening. Decended same way.

The Ochra Wall

In Kyrgyzstan; Bishkek

2009-08-06T11:52:00.013+03:00

Few photos from Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

In Kyrgyzstan; Lenin Peak Summited

2009-07-30T13:03:00.026+03:00

Sari and Artturi have summited Lenin Peak (7134m) via the classic route (West Ridge) in the Pamir Alai region in Kyrgyzstan. The team summited Lenin 26th July at 3pm after 10-11 hours (7 kilometers one way) climb from the camp 3. The weather was exceptionally good and the winds calm.
Neither I or Artturi had any problems with acclimatisation nor suffered from other illnesses, however, we did spend a quite a while acclimatising up and down the mountain..... Artturi was considerably stronger on the summit day, while I experienced stronger days between camp 1 and camp 3. (Just wait and see those videos and photos he took while waiting for me to summit......). Artturi carried all his own load including most team items while I carried all my own gear plus some team items, but once used a horse for the heavier food items and gas between the base camp and camp 1.
Thank you James and Richard from Sheffield for your kind cheer for the very hardest last kilometer to the summit. Although Lenin can be described as a big snow plot, it is very committing mountain as the weather is often very bad with high winds and the summit day is extremely long and traverses in 7000 meters for most day. It certainly was not an easy summit for me and I will remember the summit day forever!

Base camp food and tents were provided by Asian Travel, an Uzbek company that I heartily recommend. www.asia-travel.uz.

Our schedule for Lenin:

6.7 Arrive Bishkek, shopping

7.7 Travel to Osh

8.7 Travel to Basecamp 3600m

9.7 Rest base camp 3600m

10.7 Rest base camp 3600m

11.7 Walk to Camp 1 (16km) 4200m

12.7 Rest camp 1 4200m

13.7 Climb to 5000 meters

14.7 Walk to Base camp 3600m

15.7 Rest base camp 3600m

16.7 Rest base camp 3600m

17.7 Walk to Camp 1 4200m

18.7 Rest camp 1 4200m

19.7 Climb Camp 2 5300m

20.7 Acclimization camp 2, climb to 5800m

21.7 Climb down to Camp 1 4200m

22.7 Rest Camp 1 4200m

23.7 Rest Camp 1 4200m

24.7 Climb to Camp 2 5300m

25.7 Climb to Camp 3 6300m

26.7 Summit 7134m and back to Camp 3 6300m

27.7 Climb down to Camp 1 4300m

28.7 Walk back to Base camp 3400m

29.7 Travel to Osh

30.7 Travel to Bishkek

Chicks in La Berarde

2009-06-29T12:26:00.026+03:00

About 20 km outside of Grenoble, deep into the French Alps near the Italian border, is a beautiful hidden little hamlet called La Bérarde. La Berarde offers great climbing, long and various routes on very good granite slabs. Many of the valley routes are protected with bolts. Myself and Louise spent the last leg of our trip here to explore the mountains and to climb long alpine routes. We spent our first few days climbing the valley routes, we adventured up the Tete de la Maye and Tete Blance via exciting granite slabs.We also climbed Aiguille Dibona (3131m) via Visite Obligatore TD, which starts by the Soreiller hut in 2730m height. Climbing Dibona was sustained 6a, for 10-12 pitches. We found our way to the top of the Dibona in beautiful, but cloudy weather. Amazing. The decent was straight forward two abseils and scramble down via the easiest route to the summit. Now home via the golden coast of France, Cassis and Calanques.....

Du V a Tire-Lagirot 400m D+/TD- 6a max
Tete a Claques 350m TD 6b max
Visite Obligatoire 300m TD+, 6a+ max

Rebuffat himself wrote about Dibona : "This needle is a monument of stone given to mankind by the earth and the time, an extraordinary sculpture in the sky, the light and the silence of Oisans. The same achievements of the climbers on an other mountain would not be so marvellous. This needle was a question, climbing on her a response".

Chicks in Massif des Cerces and Valloire

2009-06-29T12:00:00.012+03:00

The Massif des Cerces is located NW of Les Ecrins, near Briançon and Col du Galibier. This area is ideal for hiking, and rock climbing with peaks around 2500-3000m high. It is also possible to park quite high up and therefore the walks in are less than an hour (depending on the peak). At this time we climbed at the South Face of Tour Termier (3070m).

The rock is beautiful limestone, clean with steep walls and sustained climbing. We climbed 2 routes at the South Face wall of the Tour Termier.

Allo la Terre 300m D+ 6a

Voie du Ponant Neuf 280m TD 6a+

W also spent few days cragging in St. Leger and another morning climbing at the Pontamafrey.

Les Free 6c+ toprope

La Mau-Resc 6b

Les Sarrins 6a

Subtile Bourinette 6b

Granitique Votre 250m D+ 5b max (Pontamafrey)

We also spent a day climbing Via Ferrata in Valloire, Louise nearly managing a split!

Chicks in Ailefroide

2009-06-29T11:17:00.017+03:00

Ailefroide, a beautiful, small, quiet village, located in the High Dauphiné Alps at 1515 metres, is the 2nd biggest French mountaineering area after Chamonix and nestled at the foot of the Mont Pelvoux ( 3946 m ) in the Ecrins massif. Myself and Louise spent a week in Ailefroide climbing bolted multipitch routes in beautiful alpine setting. We had amazing time climbing Palavar-les-Flots, Riviere Kwai and the Pilier du Levant. We also spent few days cragging which turned out to be excellent in quality.

Palavar-les-Flots 400m D- 5c max
Rivier Kwai 500m TD- 5c+max
Pilier du Levant 200m TD 6b max
Pounche Hermine (Palavar) 180m D+ 6a max
Une Chance au Grottage 6a
Quartier Haute Securite 6a
Le Chantier du Petit Homme Vert 6a
Buisson Ardent 5c
Paachtoon 6a
Manio Acion 6a+
Flore del Flango 6a
Neodalle 6a
Dalle a Robin 6a

Chicks in Gorges du Verdon

2009-06-29T10:01:00.016+03:00

Verdon Gorge is amazing, airy, legendary.This amazingly beautiful gorge is located in south-eastern France (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence). It is the world's second largest gorge, at about 25 kilometers in length and up to 700 meters deep providing some of the best limestone rock climbing anywhere in the world with unique, grandiose atmosphere. There are endless amount of cracks, pillars and seemingly endless walls.

Myself and Louise spent three weeks climbing in Verdon Gorge. We wanted to leave earlier to explore other areas but it rained elsewhere in France, and thus we stayed. Good choice though! During our stay we ticked many classic routes (ranging from 5c to 6b) in Dalles Grises, Dent D'Aire and Belvedere. After getting up at 6am for an entire week to climb and after those exhausting and scary abseils, we felt ready for some historic routes. We climbed the L'Offre (6a) and the Pour une Poignee de Gros Lards 6a, attempted three times the historic route La Demand. The following is taken from Louise's blog (www.climbinpink.blogspot.com) as she describes it so well.

"With all the giant vultures circling overhead waiting for some fresh climber carrion, we began our huge abseil adventure from the top to the bottom of the gorge. Oh how we just LOVE abseiling!! The only momentary distraction from the stress of trying to find abseil points and dangling mid air from a rope between large caves and overhangs were the base jumpers. One huge woosh and rush of air and finally a chute opens, followed by another and another. I knew I was stressed as I was wishing we had taken that route down and not our epic abseil. So we arrived fresh and happy some four hours later to start a 13 pitch climb (La Demande)! We were super pleased when we met some French locals who wondered why we had got up at 6am and spent 4 hours getting to the route when we could have parked the car at the bottom and walked in 30 minutes, got to love the guidebook abseil suggestion! After trying the first few bolts and moves on slippery, friction free rock we finally accepted defeat and went to climb another route instead."

After our first attempt we tried to climb the La Demand twice more. First the weather didn't agree with us and then we also discovered that perhaps we are not strong enough for the routes yet. La Demand consists 13 pitches of 6a-6a+ climbing with bolts very far apart (there was only 3 bolts on the first pitch). Looking at the line we suspect that most pitches are cracks (possibly very polished) with spaced out bolts. We were told that large friends (4.5) are needed to project some of the higher pitches.

Below is our 'tick' list for Verdon Gorge. All really nice routes, reasonably well bolted and most 3-star quality.

Les Dalles 5c+
Petit Chat 6a+
El Gringo Loco 6a
THT 6a
Juresserique Park 6a
Cocoluche 6a
Dolce Vita 6a+
L'Offre 6a
Le Rasoir 6b
Takavazy 6a+
Les Jardins de Navarre 5c
Pour une poignee de Gros Lards 6a
L'Herbetto 5b
Saut D'Homme 5c
A Fin Que Nul Ne Meure 6a

Spring climbing in Peak District

2009-05-06T00:39:00.014+03:00

Heidi on Green Gut HS 4b

Above - Marcin on Bud E7 6c

In the last two weeks I have had my good pals from London visiting me! We have been camping, climbing, having barbeques, climbed VDiffs and E7, taken big falls. We have climbed routes such as Tody's Wall, Three Pebble Slab, Green Gut, Pedestial Crack and Bud. Natalie climbed her first trad lead in Froggatt whilst Chris and Heidi were projecting sportroutes in Cheedale. Flower onsighted few E4s and headpointed Bud E7 6c. Chris found himself hanging upside down two feet from the ground. I have been projecting Strapiombante (E1 5b) in Froggatt.

My last two weeks little projects...
Lawrencefield
Nova HS 4b
Tyrone HVS 4c
Once Pegged Wall VS 5a
Three Tree Climb HS 4b
Great Harry VC 4c
Curbar
Avalanche Wall HVS 5a
Stanage
Goliath's Groove HVS 5a
Lancashire Wall HVS 5a
Missisippi Buttress Direct VS 4c
Hargreaves' Original Route VS 4c
Froggatt
Terrace Crack VS 4b
Strapiombante E1 5b
Crooked Start VS 4c
Sunset Crack HS 4c
Pedestal Crack HVS 5a
Chequers Crack HVS 5c

Brimham Rocks and Rylstone

2009-04-20T09:20:00.016+03:00

Yet another great weekend on gritstone and another HVS onsight for me...

On early Saturday morning myself and Adam met Louise in Skipton to climb on the North Yorkshire crags. First stop was Brimham Rocks, which is amazing area of very cool rock formations. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-brimhamrocks. I climbed three classic VS's, and Adam and Louise climbed other HVS and VS classics. In the evening we enjoyed massive barbecue a la Adam. On Sunday we hiked up to Rystone, which is nice, friendly crag in Northern Yorkshire. I had psyched myself for HVS lead and Adam finished the day by climbing his very first E1, Monumental crack.

Rylstone
Monument Crack E1 5b
The Hot Line E1 5b
False Teeth VS 4c
Dental Slab S 4a
Laughing Gas HVS 4c
G.T.X. HVS 5a lead

Brimham Rocks
Jabberwok VS 4c lead
Birch Tree Wall VS 4c lead
Allan's Crack VS 4c lead
Rough Wall VS 5a
Love Bug HVS 5a

In Froggatt again

2009-04-13T21:09:00.014+03:00

Today was great day. A really great day. Finally, the 20+ days on gritstone paid out. I climbed my first HVS. And not just one - I climbed two HVS's!!! Chequer's Buttress and Tody's Wall - two real gritstone classics that can't go wrong. Louise ticked two more HVS's under her belt, Sunset Slabs and Pedestal Crack. Good times.

Few friends from London visited gritstone during the Easter holidays too. Marcin and Bettina made a brief visit to the Curbar and Froggatt, and Marcin did few classic harder climbs. I seconded ever so classic Moon Walk E4 and climbed few lovely VS's.

Tody's Wall HVS 5a My lead
Chequer's Buttress HVS 5a My lead
Chequer's Climb VS 4c
Terrace Crack HS 4b
Sunset Slabs HVS 4b

Moon Walk E4
Cioch Crack HVS 5a??? My lead
Gladiator Buttress VS 4c My lead
Mastiff Wall VS 4c My lead

Below photo from UKC. Tody's Wall HVS 5a!

In Froggatt

2009-04-06T00:13:00.010+03:00

Sunday afternoon, T-shirt weather, sunshine. Peak District. Froggatt. Adam climbed Valkyrie, Louise onsighted Three Pebbles Slab and I bagged Hawk's Nest and Chequers Climb. Good work team. No bleeding fingers, no hanging on the gear or desperate swimming pool mantles. Just good routes!

Hawk's Nest Crack VS 4c my lead
Turret Crack HS 4b my lead
Chequers Climb VS 4c my lead
Three Pebble Slab E1 5a
Sunset Slab HVS 4b
Valkyrie HVS 5a

A Really Good Day!

Classic ROCK Challenge... Update!

2009-04-05T10:53:00.003+03:00

Plans for this SPRING ...Where are we going???

Classic Rock Routes List:

SCOTLAND

Skye (Northern Scotland) (will need atleast 1 week to do all routes and very lucky with weather)
The Cuillin Ridge - VD - very long (1-2 days) and very challenging, navigation difficult.
Cioch Direct - S
Integrity - S - Now HS 4b. Both Cioch Direct and Integrity are in same Sron na Ciche crag.

Sgurr a' Chaorachain
Cioch Nose - VD
Ben Nevis
Long Climb - S
Tower Ridge - D
Glencoe
Clachaig Gully - MS
Long Crack - S
Archer Ridge - VD
Crypt Route - VD
North Face Route - VD
Agag's Groove - VD
The Chasm - S
Beinn a' Bhuird
Squareface - VD
Mitre Ridge - S
Coire an Lochain
Savage Slit - VD
Hell's Lum
Clean Sweep - HS
Creagan a Choire Etchachan
The Talisman - HS
Lochnagar
Eagle Ridge - S
Beinn Shuas
Ardverikie Wall - S
The Cobbler
Recess Route - VD
Punster's Crack - S
Ardgarten Arete - S
Arran Island (Catch ferry from Ardrossan)
Sou'wester Slabs - VD
Labyrinth - VD
Photo from UKC - Cuillin Ridge VDiff.
THE LAKE DISTRICT

Shepherd's Crag
Little Chamonix - VD
Gillercombe
Gillercombe Buttress - S
Black Crag
Troutdale Pinnacle - S
Gimmer
Bracket & Slab - S
Ash Tree Slabs - VD
'C' Route - S
Bowfell
Bowfell Buttress - HD
Dow
Murray's Route - S
Scafell
Jones's Route - S
Moss Ghyll Grooves - HS
Gable
Napes Needle - HVD
Needle Ridge - VD
Tophet Wall- S
Pillar
New West - D
Rib & Slab - S

Photo UKC - Little Chamonix VDiff.

WALES
Craig yr Ysfa
Great Gully - VD - very difficult if wet, 2 hours walk in.
Tryfan
Gashed Crag - HD, First Pinnacle Rib - D (routes are beside each other)
Grooved Arete - VD DONE
Milestone Direct - D DONE
Glyder Fach
Direct Route - HS DONE
Idwal
Hope - VD, follow with Lazarus - S, follow with The Arete - VD
Grey Slab - VS
Clogwn y Grochan
Nea - Now VS due to rockfall
Carreg Wastad (shorter routes, combine with climbs in Dinas Cromlech and Dinas Mot, all close to road within walking distance)
Crackstone Rib - S 4a DONE
Wrinkle - VD
Dinas Cromlech
Flying Buttress - VDiff DONE
Spiral Stairs - HD
Dinas Mot
The Cracks - HS 5a DONE
Cyrn Las
Main Wall - HS 4b DONE (continue with Gambit climb S 4a, brilliant and finishes to the ridge!)
Lliwedd
Avalanche - VD, Red Wall - HVD, Longland's Continuation - HVD (one long route)
Tremadog
Creagh Dhu Wall - HS DONE Seconding
Craig Cowarch
Will-o'-the-Wisp - HVD

PENNINE & PEAK ....working on these....

Penyghent (North Yorkshire)
Red Pencil Direct - S - NOW HS
Almscliff
Parsons' Chimney - HS
Stanage (climbs are very close to each other)
Flying Buttress - VD DONE
April Crack - HS DONE
Black Slab (Hargraeves Original) - HS - VS now. DONE
Birchen Edge
Sail Buttress - HVD - NOW HS
Topsail - S - Now VS - DONE
Powder Monkey Parade - HVD - DONE
Hen Cloud
Central Climb - S - Now VS
The Roaches
Via Dolorosa - S - Now VS
Black & Tans - S
Technical Slab - S

SOUTH-WEST (this is bit of a trek to complete... requires longer holiday eh??)

Avon Gorge
Piton Route - HS - now VS 4c
Dewerstone (Dartmoor)
Climbers' Club Ordinary - MVS - VS 4b (hard?)
Lundy Island
Devil's Slide - S - now HS 4a
Chair Ladder (Cornwall)
Terrier's Tooth - VD - now HS 4b
Pendulum Chimney - S 4b
Sennen (Cornwall)
Demo Route - S - Now HS 4b
Bosigran (Cornwall)
Doorpost - HS 4b

Spring climbing in Peak District with Louise and Adam

2009-03-31T23:20:00.013+03:00

Curbar - Adam climbing Peabod HVS 5b and Rob (YES our ROB from Westway!!!) on The Right Eliminate E3 5c

The weather has been great in Peak District and myself and Louise have been climbing on the local crags. On Sunday we were in Stanage, Monday in Birchen Edge and Tuesday in Curbar. Ticking classics, having good time. Adam joined us on Tuesday to lead Peapod in Curbar!

Curbar

Bel Ami VS 4c
Green Crack HVS 5b
October Crack VS 4c
Peapod HVS 5b
Potter's Wall HS 4b my lead
P.M.C.1 HS 4a my lead

Birchen Edge

Topsail VS 4c my lead
Camperdown Crawl VS 4c my lead
Trafalgar Wall S 4b my lead
Horatio's Horror HS 4b my lead
Powder Monkey Parade VS 4c
Barnacle Bulge VS 4c
Nelson's Nemesis VS 4b

Stanage

The Scoop HVS 5b
The Old Scoop VS 4c
The Louisiana Rib VS 4c
Mississippi Buttress Direct VS 4c
Byne's Route HS 4b my lead
Martello Buttress VS 4c my lead

Green Crack HVS 5b

Louise and Harry

Peapod HVS 5b

Winter climbing with Louise in Scotland

2009-03-27T14:48:00.012+02:00

Sari and Louise on Ben Nevis

10 hours of driving and two amazing routes - Comb Gully (grade 4) and No 3 Gully Buttress (grade 3). Spindrift's, snow blizzards, gales up to 50 miles per hour. Gear lost and found (thanks to two nice chaps from the London Mountaineering Club). Thank you Louise for awesome time.

Comb Gully - Grade 4 - Coire na Ciste, Ben Nevis
No 3 Gully Buttress - Grade 3 - Coire na Ciste, Ben Nevis

Gritstone Addiction....

2009-03-18T22:57:00.019+02:00

The weather in Peak District has been great and I have been gaining mileage climbing mid grade gritstone classics. We have been to Froggatt, Millstone, Stanage, Burbage and Roaches, without forgetting sportclimbing crags in Horseshoe Quarry and Cheedale. I am getting my head around climbing VS's and hoping to tick few HVS's and E1's this summer.

Stanage
Amazon Crack (Stanage) S 4a my lead
Mississippi Buttress Direct VS 4c
Paradise Wall HS 4b my lead
Sand Crack HS 4a my lead
Paradise Arete VS 4c
Robin Hood's Right-hand Buttress Direct HS 4a my lead
Zigzag Flake Crack VS 4c my lead
April Crack HS 4b my lead
Central Trinity VS 4c my lead
Retroversion HVS 4c
Bishop's Route S 4a
Hargreaves' Original Route VS 4c
Christmas Crack HS 4a

Burbage
Lieback HS 4b my lead
Big Chimney Arete HS 4b my lead
Amazon Crack (Burbage) VS 4b my lead
Ringo S 4a
Greeny Crack VS 4b
Route 3 HVD 4a my lead
Lieback HS 4b
Brooks' Layback VS 4b
Black Slab Arete S 4a
Ash Tree Wall HVD
Ash Tree Crack VD my lead
Bilberry Crack (Burbage North) VD my lead
Bilberry Face VD my lead
Ring Climb S 4a my lead

Horseshoe Quarry
He Seems so Sumo
Pale Rider
The Cake Walk
Excavator
Legal Action

Froggatt
Diamond Crack
Trapeze Direct
Terrace Crack
Brown's Eliminate
Green Gut

Millstone
Scoop Crack
Covent Garden
Lambeth Chimney
Embankment 2

Winter walking in Lake District, North Wales and Peak District

2009-02-25T10:03:00.013+02:00

Winter walking Peak District

2009-02-12T09:17:00.013+02:00

Sheffiel Hallam University International Adventure Sports Residential Weekend Peak District. Climbing, bouldering, abseiling, hill walking. Most photos are from Stanage where we spent a day climbing and abseiling.

Wintery photos from Korouoma, Posio

2009-02-03T10:07:00.010+02:00

Photos by Markus Siivola