Lee Harrison Climbing

After a late, albeit eventually good, start to the season the warm weather over Christmas and New Year pretty much killed off the possibilities of climbing some of the south facing objectives that were right at the top of my to-do list during January. There were of course plenty in reserve though and one route that has always eluded me is Jukulkula, which is a regional classic. It had already seen a number of ascents this season (not least from Pete Whittaker) meaning there was near certainty that we would find the route in good climbable condition. I also had a solid partner in Gareth, who was equally happy to solo the easy lower pitches in order to improve our climbing efficiency. That of course meant a little more time in bed could be afforded. Jukulkula, viewed not far from the parking spot The approach was surprisingly easy. The online guide stated an hour but we were beneath the route in what can't have been more than 40 minutes, despite there not being the easiest of ...

After a big day on Makalu the previous day, there was certainly enough reason for Nikolay, Anna and myself to return to Stavadalen in order to take advantage of some decent ice conditions. Some of the routes at Stavadalen were a little on the thin side but O'hoi looked fat and enticing, although apparently not as fat as it can be some years. It was both shorter and potentially easier than Makalu and, with no rising traverses to negotiate, it was hopefully more predictable. Some friends had also climbed the route the day before, which further reduced the uncertainties. Anna had climbed the route the previous season but she was more than happy to climb it again, given Stavadalen's close proximity to our cabin and the poor alternatives elsewhere, such as in Hemsedal. The route's name apparently originates from the first ascentionists who needed rescuing, and apparently shouted 'o'hoi' in the dark in order to gain attention. O'hoi (WI4, 100m) I was now ...

Anna and I had tried to climb Makalu on New Year's Eve but we had bailed after one pitch due to the ice was becoming too wet for comfort. Small ice debris had even began to fall from high up the route, which was quite disconcerting. We had hoped that the hard climbing would largely be done by the time the warm weather arrived but it had beaten us to it. Anna climbing the first pitch during our first attempt on NYE. We drove to Hemsedal that same day during late afternoon, as some friends were spending New Year there. The forecast indicated that the warm temperatures would linger longer in Hemsedal than in Valdres, and our suspicions that maybe we were driving in the wrong direction were partially confirmed when it began to rain whilst crossing Golsfjellet. The car dashboard read 5 degrees and by the time we had dropped into Hemsedal it was 7 degrees. Four of us crammed into a tiny cabin in Hemsedal, which needed creative thinking in order to find places to hang wet gear...