Nybegynnergjellet, Oppdal
Snow snaked and weaved across the road in front of the car as though it was haunted. The thermometer had showed -22 degrees when we had arrived in Oppdal kommune the previous night and although it had warmed to approximately half that figure snow was now falling heavily and blowing across the valley, making for some very wintry conditions. A day for finding some short routes close to the road and saving the bigger effort for the following day when the snow would largely have abated.
We paid a visit to the quarry at Skiferbrudd but were disappointed to find no climbable ice. Nearby Bratt'n i Gjelet looked to maybe be climbable but the build-up of ice was impossible to gauge through the blizzard and we weren't overly motivated to climb the ravine for a closer inspection. We drove back South back options as thin as much of the ice. Brudetrusa was still looking fine but we had ticked that on our last visit. By late morning Bjølla had a pair of top-ropes hanging down the right side it, with the left side looking too thin to lead. Snatching some routes at Nybegynnergjellet looked the best option.
We made the mistake of trying to park on a flat area beneath the ice routes and immediately wedged the front end of the car in deep snow. Some passers-by tried (and failed) to help us move the car before a snow plough appeared. The driver promptly directed the extraction like a professional, without the need for a tow, highlighting some winter skills of a different kind that I am lacking...
We bashed up through the trees towards Gjelisen (WI3) and Rampa (WI3+) with the hope of climbing the pair of them before day's end. Rampa was an attractive icefall that funnelled into a steep finale. It was only 25m in length but offered some interesting moves for the grade, particularly in the upper half. We then abseiled down Gjelisen and promptly climbed that before daylight was out. The route was more of an easy-angled ice bashing affair but a good opportunity for some extra mileage. The gentle gradient naturally meant that it was accumulating a lot of snow on its surface.
Then the retreat back to our cabin at Furuhauglig, and the comfort of warm showers and radiators.
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| View of Drivdalen from Nybegynnergjellet |
We paid a visit to the quarry at Skiferbrudd but were disappointed to find no climbable ice. Nearby Bratt'n i Gjelet looked to maybe be climbable but the build-up of ice was impossible to gauge through the blizzard and we weren't overly motivated to climb the ravine for a closer inspection. We drove back South back options as thin as much of the ice. Brudetrusa was still looking fine but we had ticked that on our last visit. By late morning Bjølla had a pair of top-ropes hanging down the right side it, with the left side looking too thin to lead. Snatching some routes at Nybegynnergjellet looked the best option.
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| Nytt på Nytt & Diederet at Skiferbrudd looking non-existent |
We made the mistake of trying to park on a flat area beneath the ice routes and immediately wedged the front end of the car in deep snow. Some passers-by tried (and failed) to help us move the car before a snow plough appeared. The driver promptly directed the extraction like a professional, without the need for a tow, highlighting some winter skills of a different kind that I am lacking...
We bashed up through the trees towards Gjelisen (WI3) and Rampa (WI3+) with the hope of climbing the pair of them before day's end. Rampa was an attractive icefall that funnelled into a steep finale. It was only 25m in length but offered some interesting moves for the grade, particularly in the upper half. We then abseiled down Gjelisen and promptly climbed that before daylight was out. The route was more of an easy-angled ice bashing affair but a good opportunity for some extra mileage. The gentle gradient naturally meant that it was accumulating a lot of snow on its surface.
Then the retreat back to our cabin at Furuhauglig, and the comfort of warm showers and radiators.
 |
| Steep finish to Rampa (WI3+) (Photo by Anna Kennedy) |
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