Can't get enough Bohuslän

It might have something to do with the crap weather in England but I still haven't fully transitioned back since our trip to Sweden. It's always a little unfortunate when your climbing psyche is for boulders that are a long way away.  Since returning I've found myself looking at old pictures/videos from Bohuslän and jonesing to be back.  Man I love that place.  Anyways, I thought I'd share a few pictures from Bohuslän to entice and motivate folks.  

And for those that don't know, every blogpost is labeled by country, city/town and region/area so if you want to see all the posts from Bohuslän (or somewhere else) just scroll to the very bottom and click on the appropriate label.  I wanted the blog to function like a climbing reference of sorts and at some point I'll make it more user friendly.  Hope you enjoy the little photo tour of Bohuslän  

Most of the areas in Bohuslän are small but the quality of problems are often exceptional.  This problem is located at an area consisting of only a few boulders but they are well worth the visit.  I can't remember the name of this problem Kim is doing but it is classic.

Sunshine Arete is a problem I miraculously managed to FA on a warm summer day and is located at the same area as the previous problem.

This granite cave has serious potential for some hard enduro lines.  Two of the three most obvious  straight-outs are done and here John works on the undone project.  We almost did all the moves that day but have never been back.

Another shot of John on the same project.  The next move is the one we never managed to do.

Abiyoyo is one of my all time favorite FAs and I even did a whole blogpost about it.  As far as I know it still hasn't seen a second ascent.

Sioux City Sarsparilla is one of my FAs that actually see lots of traffic as it is regarded as one of the best in Bohuslän.  This one also gets it's own blogpost and there is even a video of the FA.

 Yet another FA, Cuerop de Hombre can also be counted among the best in Bohuslän.  It is located in Häller, which is considered the epicenter of climbing in Bohuslän for both bouldering and trad-climbing. There is also an old video of the FA.

Hippopotamus is another classic problem in Häller.  This power-endurance problem has alluded me and is one of the established problems I'm most excited about getting back to.

Incredible rock, world-class bouldering and spectacular settings combine to make Bohuslän one of my favorite places in the world.

I tend to put an emphasis on harder problems as the sparsity of grips and general blankness that make climbs beautiful also tends to make them difficult.  Fortunately Bohuslän hold lots of amazing moderates as you don't have to be a crusher to enjoy the climbing.  Here Spang demonstrates how it's done on his classic problem Falsifierbarhet.

And for those of you that are crushers there are plenty of projects to be had.  This particular project will require strong fingers and a good head as the hold gradually get smaller the higher you get.

This project should have been done years ago but we've never been back to it as one needs a boat to reach the island.  One of these day.......can't wait to return to Bohuslän.

A Few that Got Away

Once again I've left behind the dark confines of Sweden for greener pastures in the "Land of the Free".  We are a week into our 4 month trip but before I start spraying about life in 'Merica I've got one (or two) post about Sweden.......

It's standard to leave behind a few projects in Sweden when I make the winter journey to the States but this year it seems I'm leaving behind more than usual.  The combo of a new baby and bad weather made the usually productive fall nothing more that a string of rainy days and dirty diapers.  So it goes.  My angst at leaving behind projects this year comes from the fact that I will not be returning to Sweden in the spring to slay said projects but instead moving briefly to England (I keep telling myself it's only a year, it's only a year, it's only a year). Fortunately these projects won't be going anywhere even if it takes awhile to get back to them.

Here are just a few of the many projects I left behind in Sweden.

Stefan on one of the west coasts best squeeze problems, Hippopotamus.  The crux is simply having juice left at the end and I thought I'd get a chance to finish off this project after punting in April but life happens. 

I showed Pyssel this problem over the summer and he styled the fa and I couldn't put it together.  Needed anther day but never got it.  

I found this gem some years ago and brushed it up just before injuring my hamstring and leaving me unable to do a requisite heel-hook.  I took Pyssel here and he fired it after some work.  Was hopping to get back to it but.... 

I stumbled upon a small area while exploring one rainy day and would later get a couple "dryish" hours to try the two best lines.  One is this off the deck mantle that took roughly and hour on rope before cracking a very tenuous sequence.  It started raining before I got to attempt it from the ground and it will be scary.

The other problem in the small area is a difficult squeeze problem.  We managed to do all the moves despite the conditions but it will be a challenge to put this guy together.  Maybe I'll have the requisite fitness when I get back to this a year and a half from now.

With the help of an orienteering map I found a solitary in the middle of nowhere.  This striking arete brought me back there one day over the summer and while we managed the stand and a couple other problems the sit-start awaits a return. 

A Few Pictures from Häller

Häller boasts some of the best granite I've ever climbed on and has an impressive number of great problems for such a small area.  It may be my favorite area in Sweden and I wish it was 10 times as big.    Here are a few pictures.

 Markus warms up on a crisp fall day

 Markus on an awesome warm-up arete.  A little unnerving due to the tree at your back

Søknadsfrist my be a traverse but it's striking with super fun moves.  I seems impossible until you unlock the beta.  Good temps help. 

 Emma on one of Häller's moderate gems, Alf

Josephine on the tricky Dogma

Hippodrome

Hippodrome is one of Häller's many striking lines.  I had previously used some beta that one might be tempted to call stupid.  Fortunately last time we pieced out way better beta that has given me hope of doing the unrepeated low-start.  Here are a couple pictures

 John on the opening move of the stand

 Daniel peeking around the corner

Häller: Some Old and New

It had been awhile since I'd been up in the heart of Bohuslan so when I got a chance to head up north for the day I ignored the damp conditions and made a trip to Häller.  We where a bit limited on what we could climb but we sought out the dry stuff, climbing a couple new things and running some laps on the classics.   

 Peter on a cool new problem

 Granite sloper

 John on another new problem

Erik on Cuerpo de Hombre

Bohuslan Bouldering Video

Still no climbing in the icy purgatory that is Sweden. Been going to the gym a couple times a week in hopes of not being completely worthless for Hueco Tanks. Only 10 days left and then I'll be basking in the sun and flailing on boulders in the USA.
Until then, here is another video. This one has a few problems in Häller and one problem on Orust.

Hope you enjoy.

Swedish Bouldering: Bohuslan from Walker Kearney on Vimeo.

Projects

The list of problems I'd still like to do is constantly growing and with the summer heat keeping the friction to a minimum it seems I'll have to wait until it cools down. Summer is usually the time for exploring and getting mileage but this summer is a bit different as the ultimate project of having a kid has consumed much of my time and energy. The arrival of Hammerstryke will certainly curtail climbing time for a bit but some things are more important.

Hopefully Hammie will be here any day as we are quickly approaching the somewhat arbitrary due date of July 17th. While we wait, here's a few of the problems I'll be dreaming about in between changing diapers and cleaning up baby vomit.

Undone slopey arete

Molndal Lighting. Undone.

Undone roof.

King Ding-a-ling. Henrik has done the stand.

The Cathedral Project. Impossible?

Abdominator. Undone

F**k it Dude. Undone.

Newness

The weather has been fantastic. That said, here's some pics of what I've been doing instead of making a Spain video. I'm still hoping to have a Spain segment on the blog within a week, but it depends on the weather.

Peter finds balance on Mantelpiece

Lars on the popular Double Arete in Lyse

Working one of my projects

Lars on the FA of a fun steep problem. Name?

Spång on his 300ith attempt of Kött Festivalen (Meat Festival)

Cuerpo de Hombre

Of the many projects I have in Sweden one in particular stood out in my mind. Last weekend it ceased to be a project. Here's a little vid of the fa of Cuerpo de Hombre.