By Melissa Arnot
The theme for today is birds. North Seymour Island in the Galapagos is really the place for birds, and now is the season to see them. As we disembark, I immediately see the bright red necks of the frigate birds, and only a few feet away from our landing spot I can see [...]
By Melissa Arnot
One of the first major expeditions Eddie outfitted was in 1953 and 54. The Inca Highway Expedition was a 2-year archaeological exploration of the “Royal Road” that stretched from Quito, Ecuador to Santiago, Chile. This spring, in honor of our 90th year of adventuring, First Ascent’s Melissa Arnot went back to Ecuador, to [...]
By Caroline George
Hydnefossen could be the single most outstanding climb in Norway. Although there are harder and longer routes, Hydnefossen is one of those must-do classic hard ice climbs, one that any ice climber would want to have on his or her tick list. It’s of the same stature as other legendary climbs, such as [...]
By Caroline George
The forecast this morning is for sunshine and no wind. We drive to climb Will’s route, a 400m long WI5+ climb, but the wind is blowing snow so strongly that we can’t even make out the road. The summits are again lost in a cloud of snow. The forecast was wrong yet again [...]
By Caroline George
Adam and I decided to stay in Eidfjord after the rest of the group (climber Chad Peele, photographer Celin Serbo and rigger/guide Seth Hobby) returned to their respective homes. We had been in Eidfjord for a week and there hadn’t been a good window to climb Dr. Evil since we first spotted it [...]
By Caroline George
Completing the first ascent of a route means that you are the first person to climb the route…ever. That might seem obvious, but here in Norway, it’s all but a given. There are not many local ice climbers here, and those who climb don’t always communicate their ascents. This makes it hard for [...]
After numerous days of traveling, scouting and climbing, a down day was sounding pretty good. We decided that Eidfjord was just too “dead” to enjoy and that we should have a mellow day of climbing instead. Luckily for us, we had the perfect route to explore. On one of our last scouting missions, when we [...]
By Caroline George
We pull into Ossa, a little hamlet across the ferry north of Eidfjord, sitting on the tip of one of Norway’s many fjords. A striking blue line peers from behind a rocky outcrop. We drive to the end of the road and the view reveals two long pillars of bright blue ice. The [...]
By: Adam George
For the past week, we’ve followed climbers Chad Peele and Caroline George as they attempted a bevy of first ascents in Norway. Also on the trip is George’s husband, Adam, who gave us a sneak peek at what it’s like to tie into rope with your partner in climbing and in life.
Over the [...]
By Caroline George
Naming a route can sometimes be the real crux of a route. The name needs to communicate what was experienced and/or describe aspects of the climb. For example, “The Nose” on Yosemite’s El Capitan gives away the part of the wall the route follows, while Lipton was named after the color of the [...]
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