Norway

Norway Romsdal, M ongejura (1,200m ), southwest face, El Pinche Borrego. In July David Font V entura, Jordi C añ igueral Vilá, Jordi Servosa Roca, and I took about to open a new route in Norway. The first idea was to try to o pen a ro u te on the Troll wall b u t the w eather and the co n d itio n s this season were not good. Also, the only possible line we saw only was about 300m and then w ould intercept an o th er route. So we changed the objective to the wall o f M ongejura 1,200m, this has a southw est face and dries faster. We fixed four pitches and prepared two haulbags (the Pigs) and two portaledges, 40 liters o f water, and food for seven days. After four days o f rain it was still raining. So the first day we could only open one pitch and p u t the bivy u n d e r a roof. The second day we could open two pitches in the rain. The th ird day we had sun and could clim b tw o pitches on aid climbing, one o f which was A3+. The next three days were m ostly sunny, then the w eather changed again and we decided to push the next day u ntil we get off the wall. After the last h ard pitches, we clim bed 300m o f th ird class to the only bivouac ledge, after 20 hours o f activity. El Pinche Borrego (905m, VI 5.10d A3+) has som e pitches o f aid and the rest is free clim b­ ing, w ith posibilities to free the w hole route. It w ould be good for this to get a repetition. Luis C arlos G arcía Ayala, Mexico