Preikestolen: Norwegianstyle and Thor

Norway, Rogoland
Author: Lindsay Griffin. Climb Year: 2016. Publication Year: 2017.

On June 13 the well-known tourist attraction of Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock), which rises above the Lysefjorden in Rogoland and is internationally famous with BASE jumpers, gained a five-pitch new route from local climbers Jon Egil Auestad and Øyvind Salvesen. The two rappelled 200m from the summit to the base of the rock and climbed back up following a system of superb cracks, which they protected entirely with traditional gear. They called the route Norwegianstyle (6a, 6b+, 6b, 6b+, and 7a+).

This ascent came a little over a week after Polish big-wall climber Marcin Tomaszewski climbed the single-pitch Thor (7c/7c+) on the top 20m of the formation, drilling bolt protection on rappel. The largest and most authoritative climbing club in Rogoland, Bratte Rogalands Venner, reacted quickly, declaring that bolting ethics in Rogoland are the same as in the rest of Norway, and coming out with the statement: (a) in general, bolts should not be placed in the mountains but only on sport climbing cliffs; (b) bolts should not be placed on lines that are possible to climb with natural protection; (c) the local climbing club and community should be consulted before placing bolts; (d) bolting must not be done without the consent of the landowner.

Tomaszewski, whose original plan had been to extend the line down the face, quickly returned and removed all the bolts, filling the holes so the damage was minimal. The aim now is to try it traditional protection.

Øyvind Salvesen stated, “Even though our project was conceived before Marcin placed his bolts on Preikestolen, his actions gave us extra motivation to finish it, and we would like to send a clear message to climbers visiting Norway in the future: Please leave your drill at home and, if in any doubt, contact local climbing communities, which will be pleased to help.”

– Lindsay Griffin



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