The time has just passed midnight and we're about to leave for Breithorn. It's a clear night with a full moon to guide us. There's clouds over Zermatt, hopefully they stay down in the valley. We are both excited to leave, but we're quite tired since we haven't slept anything at all since last night.

...

We summited Breithorn this morning at 07:00 in the first morning sun. We spent one hour on the summit, taking photos and enjoying the view. We're now at the D'Ayas hut planning to attempt the twin mountains Pollux and Castor. There's no mobile coverage here, just at some occations it's possible to send SMS and MMS from a certain cliff. We plan to be back in Cervinia on Thursday or Friday.

Refugio Guide de Carvino.





2008-08-16

This morning, we took the three cable-cars that connect each other up to Plateu Rosa. We have just taken it easy and hopefully acclimatised well. Right now I'm sitting in the sun at 3.500 meters watching Matterhorn while clouds slowly gather below the summit. Lingrat is in poor condition with too much snow. Hopefully it will melt next week. If not, it will be difficult for Anders and me to even make an attempt.

Tomas and Per in front of Matterhorn. Liongrat follow the left ridge.


View from Testa Grigia towards Zermatt


Guides and clients preparing to climb


Tomas in the Refugio Guide de Cervino hut at 3.480 meters





2008-08-15

Today we travelled to Cervinia. When we arrived, the village was packed with people. This day is the highlight of the year for the local bergfürers when they have a day off, and everybody celebrates together. Some guides were dressed like Carrel, Whymper & CO. It has rained with thunderstorms today and all the mountains have fresh snow. We plan to take the cable-car to Testa Grigia to acclimatise tomorrow on Plateu Rosa. We both feel tired today so we'll take it easy.

First views of Matterhorn. Doesn't it look great?

We arrived in Milan, Italy late in the evening. After having a microwave lasagna in the hotel bar, we took a short walk. The city was really empty. The portier told us that tomorrow is a national holiday in Italy, so perharps that was the reason. It's after midnight now, and the bus to Bervinia is leaving early so I really need a good nights' sleep. Here's two pictures from the hotel:

Today I fixed the last things, I went to both the naprapat and got massage. I feel ready to leave, there's just two things that bother me. My helth with sinusitis problems and the weather forecast. The weather forecast look really bad when we will arrive to Cervinia with night temperature down to -9 C and snow. Later the snow will turn into rain... I really hope this won't be a repeat of the weather we faced in 2002 when we aborted and went to Chamonix instead.

Both backpacks ready

2008-08-12

Our journey is closing in with just two days left until my and Tomas departure. Today Tomas came over and we checked the gear we're bringing. We also trained some rope technique in the same tree Anders and I used a couple of days ago. We ended with doing some climbing on my home boulder that's located just some 20 meters from our house. The boulder has artificial grips that was bolted up a couple of years ago when Jonna and I wanted to be able to train when we had almost no time over for climbing.

This site will continue to be updated after our departure. My old friend Andreas Wallström will handle the updates with photos and text that we send him through SMS and MMS.

Tomas bouldering

2008-08-11

I finally got the new Beal Joker 9,1mm rope that I've ordered from Addnature. They couldn't deliver a 50 meter rope, so I got a 60 meter Joker instead, but for the price of a 50 meter. Rasmus "helped" me to coil the new rope. We had som fun with the mess.... I cut away 5 meter rope in both ends to get the right length of the rope and still keep the middle mark.

A good question is what length of rope is best for our trip. It really differs from mountain to mountain, so this is a compromise.

A 30 meter rope would perhaps be best for Breithorn and Castor, a 30 - 40 meter to be able to abseil the crux on Pollux (?) and on Matterhorn I don't know, it depends on how much we want to abseil instead of downclimbing.

I read on Pierres site this evening that the war between Russia and Georgia may stop his plan to leave for Ararat next week. Hopefully it will work out and he'll be able to get there as planned.

Rasmus with the rope sallad...

2008-08-08

I still have headache that now have stuck for more than tree weeks. This morning I had a talk with my doctor, together we decided it probably is sinusitis. Though luck! To cure it you should take it very easy, rest and eat antibiotic. There's less than a week left until I and Tomas leave for Italy... Said and done, I'll have to take it easy until then and my stomach that already is bad after a week on antibiotic will probably turn into worse now when the dose is doubled! I just have to live it for a while.

This afternoon, Anders came over and we practiced some glacier travel and rescue technique. It feel like much needed since we will only travel with two person teams.

Anders finally sorted it out...


Doing the no-hands-rest

2008-08-06

I worked the entire day at KSSS, the Royal Swedish Yacht Club in Saltsjöbaden, trixing with their computers. At 18.30 I finally got home. Rasmus was complaining about my "expedition beard".
- "Daddy, beard off NOW!!", so I just had to shave it off! Well, atleast half off it... Later in the evening I did an easy jogging tour near our home, the same route Jonna and I took last week but in the opposite direction: Brevik - Dyvik - Ällmora - Brevik. 8 kilometers during 46 minutes. The routes goes alot up and down and about 2 kilometers is in the bush.

Today Tomas booked a hotel room for us in Milan at the Ibis hotel. Now we don't have to sleep on in the street during our first night in Italy :-)

The Royal Swedish Yacht Club HQ in Saltis


Self portrait while running near Ällmora

2008-08-05

During the night, a summer storm passed with heavy rain. It was still very windy in the morning. A tarpaulin that we have used the last month to protect our house against rain where we're restoring our house frontage blew away. In the morning it was impossible to get it back due to the wind. It was like trying to handle a sail alone with no ropes! On the way to work the road was blocked when a tree had fallen across the road. I had to turn around and drive about 10km extra to get around it.

In the evening when I was lying in the sofa I heard something strange... It was a bat that by mistake had found it's way into our living-room! It was really hard chasing it. Suddenly it was gone! Just to show itself again. Finally I caught it in a bucket and released it outdoor.

The bat

2008-08-03

There's been a very rainy weekend with thunder and bad weather. On friday, Rasmus stayed at my mothers place while Jonna and I continued with the never-ending birch-tree history. Now we finally can see there will be an end to all this work. Most of the landyard is cleared but there's a huge job to left - to chop the trees into birchwood. On saturday we went to Bauhaus and bought a new set of outdoor furniture that Rasmus and I put together today. I also built a sandbox for him to play in...

This evening I teamed up with Pierre and his pal Anders for a last training hike around in Tyresta before our separate trips. We did Pierres standard tour, around two lakes; Tyresö Flaten and Albysjön. We had a long talk about the recent events on K2 when a lot of people lost their lives in diffrent accidents. Not fun.

In the end of our hike it was raining cats and dogs and we got totally soaked! Remember to have a look at Pierres site and find out how his next expedition to Ararat will turn out (in swedish only).

Pierre Näsman in front of Albysjön


Donna


Raining on the porch

2008-07-31

Today I worked in the city, at Mentor. When I was finished, I went to Addnature to see if a web order I placed to buy some gear for our Alp trip was ready, but no. Still the Joker 9.1mm rope is missing. Went to another shop, Carlsönerna and bought a couple of chainsaw protective boots and ordered a pair of chainsaw protective pants specially made for tree climbing. In the evening I met up with Pierre and we had a good time hiking and running on Sörmlandsleden. On the way back we went off trail that ended up with a bush-walk. The GPS landed on 9,29 kilometers. When getting back home I found a tick sucking blood from my back. I must have had at least 20 - 30 ticks this year.

Per on Sörmlandsleden at Höjden


Hunting tower

2008-07-30

Jonna and I worked with the birch-trees for the entire day while my father followed Rasmus to the zoo. In the evening we had time for a quick walk close to home. Brevik - Ällmora - Dyvik and back home in a circle, 9.13 kilometers.

Boat house


Dödskalleberget. No climbers today

2008-07-25

I still have that headache. Hate it. Normally I almost never have headache. After 6 hours work in the server room at Klintberg & Way, I went to Krusboda and walked out in the forest. Todays workout ended with 20 kilometers hiking through Tyresta National Park. I hiked to Tyresta Gård and back, following the hiking trail Sörmlandsleden. The GPS showed 4 hours and seven minutes of walking, taking 24688 steps...

Sörmlandsleden, close to Tyresta Gård

2008-07-23

Yesterday I was back at the hospital. I still feel "strange" and the test from last week "perhaps" was positive on borrelia. Not fun, but easy to treat. So they took a new blood test, hopefylly I will get an answer soon.

This morning I woke up with a terrible headache, I decided to stay in bed. Slept until 11.30 when I got up and had breakfast. Some hours later I went out and continued working with the birch-trees. I worked for about two hours, then I felt it was enough. Later in the evening I felt OK for a walk. Hiked around Tyresö Flaten, the GPS stopped on 6.3 kilometers. Now the headache is back again. Will try to get a good night sleep...

Working with the birch-trees

2008-07-21

After a very rainy day, working with the computers at Klintberg & Way, Pierre Näsman and I met up in the evening and hiked around the lakes Tyresö flaten and Albysjön. It's always fun to walk and talk with Pierre. We talked about our climbing projects and his big goal for 2010, Everest. Check out his site here.

My cellphone has a built in GPS and pedometer, got some statistics from it about this hike... Duration 2.08 hours, Distance 10,2 kilometers, 13343 steps...

Gammelströmmen


Roe deers


Frog with a tick stuck on the lip!


Pierre and Per, back in Alby

2008-07-20

Anders Grawin came over with his kids Hugo and Vendela, we went behind the house and did some scrambling. Anders led Harphoon, a 4b slab crack. Last time he did in gloves, this time with mountaineering boots. It went OK with one fall at the absolute end when the boot flopped on a tiny crystal. Think I shall try it in crampons next time. We finished with climbing my and Jonnas favourites Ahab (5b) and Moby Dick (6a)

I spent one hour in the afternoon to practice prusiking, I need to fresh up my glacier and cevasse travel/rescue technique...

Prusiking up the pine-tree I prepared yesterday

2008-07-19

Jonna and Rasmus travelled to Finland yesterday and will stay for a week at her parent’s summerhouse. On the way home last night I felt strange, I don't want to become sick again now when I feel it's a must increase my training for Matterhorn. Said and done, I started to feel ill and got a bad stomach and wanted to vomit. I couldn't sleep for the entire night. I finally fell asleep at dawn.

Woke up at 11.00 and felt better but weak. I had a tiny breakfast and got my chainsaw pants on and started working with the birch-trees. After four hours of work I felt stronger. I had pasta for dinner and watched a movie to relax. I put on the chainsaw pants again and the tree climbing equipment I have borrowed from Micke. This was my first tree climb with aborist equipment. It proved not totally easy to climb with the "leg spikes". I felt like an ice-climber novice and I must admit it was harder than I had expected. Fun though! I ancored a rope seven meters up in one of our pine-trees. I want to simulate some crevasse self-rescue sessions before our departure.

I ended the night with three kilometers of running (Brevik runt). The ill from the previous night is still here as I write this. I hope I will feel better tomorrow when Anders and his kids will come over for a climbing session on Träsket...

Climbing a pine-tree

2008-07-15

After being forced to a two week rest having a cold, I finally got some action when I and Anders Grawin did some scrambling at my home cliff, Träskberget.

Anders on Träsket

2008-07-12

Jonna and I hired Micke to help us take down ten large birch-trees that had to be taken down piece by piece. After having a talk, we decided that I would try to assist him in on future jobs. It seem like fun. It's a hard and somewhat risky work but you get to climb and also get paid for it! The professionals call themself aborists.

Micke in action with the Stihl chainsaw

2008-07-01

Bushwalk at home with Pierre Näsman to Dyviksudde. Tomas asked Pierre to accompany us on our trip to the Alps, but he has higher ambitions this summer and is going for Ararat.

Made it to Dyviksudde

2008-06-17

Two days ago I made a solo ascent of Bierdnacokka (Bear-mountain) in Norway. I did it as a test to see how well I have recovered from last year’s illness. It took 4½ hours to the summit from the car and 2½ hours back. I wanted to follow the East Ride to the summit and traverse down to the west. The East Ridge proved to be dangerous with serve cornices that combined with a high temperature made me abort my plan and focus on the easy but longer West Ridge. With a partner and a "jump" rope, the East Ridge would have been possible.

I performed OK, but not more, I was a bit disappointed that it took long time to get into my normal "phase" and that I was very slow in deeper snow. On the way back my legs filled up with lactic acid and I was walking on will power the last kilometres to the car. Now I have only two months to sharpen my strength.

Bierdacokka from Silvervägen


The first snow


Summit (1710m)


Left my pack 10m from the summit


Bad weather from north


Descending in my old tracks


Almost back at the car at the Silvervägen road






2008-06-04

Did a "Pierre" training and hiked from Brevik to Dyviksudd and back. Took 2½ hours straight through the terrain. Saw some climbers on Dyvik, empty on Dödskalle and Träsket. Took some photos with my cellphone.

Dödskalleberget

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