UKC

Presten

I have been working on the new Lofoten guidebook due out at the end of the year and Thorbjørn Enevold (co-author) has come up with an interesting (but tricky) proposition.

The world classic Vestpillaren Direct (n6) which everyone wants to do is in fact not the Vestpillaren at all but just the four middle pitches of the original climb which started up the big corner on the right and finished up the grooves in the tip of the pillar. The currently described Vestpillaren actually includes the Direct Start and Slanting Corner finish which were added later.

The suggestion is to reinstate the original line as THE Vestpillaren.

What are folks thoughts on this - and especially, if we do change things, what the hell do we call the current and really famous Vestpillaren?

Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:

Keep the current as Vestpillaren and make the original line Vestpillaren(Original Route)?

In reply to AlH:

I tend to agree...

Or if you describe and rename the original line as Vestpillaren, then the current (direct start - slanting corner) one would be more akin to Vestpillaren Direct as I seem to remember it being really a more direct line

In reply to Chris Craggs:

Just keep it as it is and describe the original as the 'original variation'. Also include a shortened version of your above explanation.

In reply to Chris Craggs:

The classic line that everyone does never was the original anyway, because it was listed in Webster's guide as being the direct start. I'd just accept it as Vestpillaren now and note the original start and finish as variations. Is the original finish any good?

Are you giving it a UK grade any where?

In reply to TobyA:


E2 5b seems to be the general view... I'd be interested in a more definitive view as I'd love to try it, but 12 pitches of E2 is above my competence

In reply to JJL:
I've never climbed an E2 but did it 15 years ago without much difficulty. It is generally well protected too, so not scary. It's just longer than most/all UK routes.

In reply to JJL:

The E is for effort...

I've climbed it quite a few times now and to be honest the Nor6 pitches were really safe & easy to protect... good gear every cm or so.

The Nor6- pitches felt harder, when it comes to getting gear in when you want it... But they weren't all that bad.

The only truly scary pitch is the last one into the exit couloir.... For the second, if climbed how it is described in the guide. Makes no sense to build the belay after the "bold" Nor5 traverse into a muddy groove at the level of the traverse. Real easy for the leader to continue up the couloir for odd 20m or so and build a belay on the flakes/spikes on the left side of the couloir. That way the often wet/muddy top out, the second is not lookin' at a pendulum into the belay, rather the (second) rope is coming from above.

In reply to all:

Thanks for the replies everybody - some interesting thoughts.

I'm not sure why it has taken so long for Thorbjørn to come round to this way of thinking, but his main idea as I understand it it to give the appropriate respect and recognition to Arild and Bryjar's original ascent line, which has been rather overshadowed and forgotten by being listed as a series of variations now.


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:


Simply list it as a full line with the title Original Vestpillaren and perhaps dub the one now mainly knows as Vestpillaren as Vestpillaren Direct.

And then have the remaining variations as indeed variations.

Even though I'm generally against listing variations as individual lines, but in this case perhaps it's more appt.