Cliff-climbing at Vårdberget with Åsa R. & Sylvia

_MAL5325.jpg, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

On Saturday I joined Åsa R. and Sylvia for some excellent climbing at Vårdberget, a 30-meter-tall cliff near Fituna, out near Nynäshamn.

_MAL5250.jpg, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

We started out around 13.00, and climbed until after 21.00. It was a lot of fun and the weather was perfect! The cliff has a good selection of routes, all with a sturdy ringbolt at the top for a top-rope. There's a path up around to the left of the cliff, so we walked up to the top and belayed from there. The view from the top was lovely. The cliff faces to the West, so the sun shone on us all afternoon.

_MAL5030.jpg, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

It worked well having three people. We took turns climbing and belaying; and the third person could either rest or take photos. For some of the best climbing shots, Åsa and Sylvia rigged up a sling so they could hang out over the edge of the cliff and shoot downward.

_MAL5319.jpg, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

The climbing is quite varried. There are lots of cracks going up the cliff, from big ones you can put your whole body in, to small ones that you can barely fit your fingers in. The last routes I climbed were of the latter variety, and quite challenging. At several points, it was necessary to put both of one's hands in the crack and lean one's body way out to the side just to get a good angle to make the grips work.

_MAL5332.jpg, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

After we had exhausted ourselves climbing, we rappelled down with our equipment and then went down to the shore, where Sylvia and I mustered the courage to take a quick swim in the 8° C water. The sun was still up, so once we were out of the water, we warmed up quickly on the rocky beach.

There were so many good photos that I posted a total of 175 photos from the day!

Climbing with Åsa at Häggsta

_MAL1420.jpg, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

On Sunday I joined Åsa and friends at Häggsta for a bit of climbing. It was cool and windy, but the sun was shining. We had a great time, and climbed a new route that involves a little overhang. Fun!

Check out the 47 photos from the day!

Sport climbing at Häggstaberget

_MAL6800, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

On Friday I joined Åsa R. for a bit of cliff-climbing. We biked from Tullinge station out to Häggsta, a bit North of Flottsbro, where I went mountain biking last autumn. We parked our bikes at the foot of the cliffs and Åsa hiked around to put the rope through a ringbolt at the top of the cliff. We climbed several routes up the rock, moving the rope to another ringbolt twice.

After a few ascents, we sat in the afternoon sunlight and had a little fika of coffee and sandwiches. Despite the warm sunlight, it was just a few degrees above freezing outside, so the warm coffee helped a lot. After our snack, we made a few more climbs before biking back. Åsa lives in the neighborhood, so Häggstaberget is her “home mountain.”

This was my first time in more than a decade to do any outdoor sport climbing. I think I'm hooked! Here are the 30 photos from the day.

Climbing at KC on Saturday

_MAL3256, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

On Saturday afternoon I did some a few hours of climbing at Klättercentret. I made some new friends, including Jenny, Patrick, and Isabelle, who invited me bouldering in Hanninge the next day.

Here Åsa tackles a fun bouldering problem that involves an upward traverse around the end of the wall. I took lots of photos. Åsa has had photography experience, and she took some great photos of me too. I have posted 18 of the best ones.