South Africa

Rocklands has a large amount of fantastic lines with different styles and sizes and mostly with juggy top outs, the landscape is beautiful and the sunsets are breathtaking, cheap but delicious meat and red wine. Yes I am confirming the facts that almost everybody knows or has heard about the place. This trip was my first to this continent and somehow I don’t think it is quite that similar to most of the African countries. To me ZA was more like European country with African nature and animals. It is its continents the most developed country with stabile politics and good economical growth, but also the country with one of the highest income inequalities. Comparing the food prices e.g. to Sweden there is not that huge of a difference but labor is very cheap so the salaries are so much more lower. I don’t know how these people actually survive. Considering that the working class is black and knowing the history of the country you could sense some bubbling in smaller cities/towns, but I guess changes do not happen in one night.  

Four weeks was absolutely too short time, at least for me, the first week was super nice but then I injured my shoulder so that I couldn’t fasten a seatbelt without yelling from pain. The following two weeks went in recovering, but I still was able to climb, I just had to pick suitable problems and decrease the level. The last week was nice, but it ended too soon, two months would have been a better choice. Travel tips would be: take your sleeping bag even if staying in a cabin - it is coold, do a lot of uphill running or some kind of leg conditioning because when carrying 15-20 kg in your back and having 45-60 minute hilly approaches you get sore legs and that might inhibit your climbing. I was definetely not prepared for it, the approach to my home boulders varies from 1 min to 15 min on a plain so for me it took about 2 weeks to get used to the walking without pain…

Such a nice and beautiful place with good people, definetely worth going to from longer distances as well. Some climbing pictures, all of them were taken by Mr. pink tights, aren’t they just luvely!?

Mini holiday

This post is not just videos, like it has been the past weeks. I've been working or sick so climbing and everything else has been close to zero. This song is absolutely from top of my luuvs (the whole record is nicenice) at the moment and some sweet soul just put it up 30 min ago on utube. I feel like I just married the prince of my dreams (=superhappy). Of course the video is removed, here is a nice remix.

I was in a desperate need for a mini holiday before the last super busy and stressy week at work. Prays were answered and I got my 36 h holiday. Had to get out of my normal surroundings so destination became good old Åland. It takes one hour to drive to the ferry and then 2 hours ferry ride (round trip 15 euros including car and 4 persons) and 30 min by car - easy breezy beautiful!

 Thunder storm but on Sweden's side, we had sun and +30 C, perfect conditions.

Fine classic.

 Whiskey bar at 1:30 am.

  Getting ready to sleep under the sky. That fun lasted about 30 min where after I had a pizza face á la mosquitoes and had to move inside the vehicle to continue my beauty sleep, which wasn't enough this time either, Meatloaf and Dave were still waving from the mirror in the morning.

Super fun roof problem (Pop the glock), where I did laps always slipping from the last undercling, great training..

My first REAL highball

I’ve been thinking of this one high line since last summer. My friend took me to try gear placements for the first time to this small cliff about 15 min drive away and already then I looked at this high slab that ends with an easy crack. During the whole winter I’ve been thinking that someday I’ll go there and climb that line. Couple of weeks ago I realized that the high season is almost over and it seemed I would not be able to try it. Buuut, since the temperature is back to perfection I decided early this week that someday soon it would be the time. Yesterday I went there thinking well I’m just going to check it out and if I feel strong in my mind I’ll give it ago. It didn’t even come to my mind that I might not be able to do the crux section of it. I found two harder sections that were both slightly morpho. After the harder slab part and doing the last high step I felt very secure and just thought about my feet and tried to keep myself calm. What a feeling I must say!! I enjoyed every bit of it! The problem is Bullen (6C) and is about 7-8 m high. Good mental training for South Africa.

Here is a very shitty video filmed by my pocketcam. You cannot see my shaking feet from it though, but oh boy was I excited and scared. Also, I’m a wall snail so I had to speed it up as much as windows movie maker allowed me to.

Bullen from Pad Lady on Vimeo.

Indiandans

We did an evening quickie in Lilla Bärsta. A very nice area with boulders in an old spruce forest, a wall and few boulders in more open area. A good place to go and do lots of easy problems and just cruise, and just a 10 min drive from my place. I had a crimpy wall problem in my mind that I tought about trying called Indiandans, it is a crimpy, balancy, reachy, pretty high, slopy in the end with a highstep. I chickened out the first top out to the side, but after cleaning the top holds I tried it again and did it and huuh the end made me giggle!! I had slightly different beta than in the video with some extra moves, a fiiine line I loved it!

Some softer tunes with beautiful vocals. I like when artists are honest or at least can act well, Adele looks like she is going to burst into tears while talking about the song. Oh well, we all know it ain't easy with heartbreaks. snif snif

Evening session II

Went to Källberga for another evening shortie. It has 6-7 big boulders in a very small area, about 200 m walk from the parking, lots of easy problems a perfect place for an outdoor gym session in a beautiful boreal-agrarian landscape. On the way back I bumped into some wild boars (video). 

Not forgetting the music part, here is a funfun song for today! Lalalalalalaa lalalala lalallalaa!!!

Summer memories II

This summer I got a visit from some Finns and we did some summer bouldering in the area of Västervik, Linköping and Uppsala. Maybe a bit too warm conditions, but I wasn't bothered, because I got to play with my good old buddies. A minor setback was when I accidentally stepped on a wasp nest, I don't know why but they immediately went for my butt. The result was 3 stings in the butt and 2 stings in the legs and traumatized forever. Fun trip, fantastic bouldering followed by a swim in a cool lake, dinner and drinks with friends in the nature. Life at its best. Photos by The Man with Pink Tights

 Fruberget, Västervik

Long John Kalle Silver, Focksta, Uppsala 

The Office, Björn-blocket, Västervik

Back to biz

As you might have seen my climbing has been pretty boring for the past weeks. Though, last week I started climbing again - jug fests at the gym. My finger feels pretty good, just need to have a long warm up and skip the tiny holds. I do not use tape, because I think you loose the sense and when you are climbing in controlled conditions indoors you can avoid the pain and not force the finger to painfull positions that you might do when having taped the finger. Preventing taping is of course good and I should've used it too before the injury to actually avoid it.

Climbing gyms aren’t really top class in Uppsala, not even middle class to be honest. But, you just have to be creative and find other ways to use them and benefit from them and the most important thing is we have blocks in the forrest. Anyways, one of my favorite forms of training indoors is doing the long traverse set. I usually do it during the lunch time, so I know the gym is empty. I listen to music and then I traverse for 45 minutes without rests including vertical, overhang and roof climbing, just my mula bandha with me. Sounds boring, I know. I don’t know if it improves my climbing either, but it does feel good. Just the movement, nothing else, simple and boring, but also one of the reasons why I got hooked in climbing in the first place.

Here is one of the playlists that I listen to while traversing, it is soft, melodic and pretty lovely :)   

http://open.spotify.com/user/padlady/playlist/2eAnzF7jcvbFQSG6Ugb3hK

Charlie's angels

Last weekend we had a nice tour in Åkers with strong girlz from the capital of Scandinavia and Charlie, and a german paddy. Åkers has some very nice problems with excellent rock quality - a well appreciated fact after working Fingertoppskänsla during the week, which is a fantastic line in Uppsala with very nice moves, but with needles and spikes on the holds making it almost intolerable for a kermaperse like me to climb.  

Photos by Mr. Charlie: Kunglig, Bleau vibrations and Gods of the old world (Åkers).

Honeymoon continues

New area keeps on growing. Slopy problem without a name and super nice Elchock where spotmen are handy.

Photos MC

Love - autumn

Newly discovered big blocks in Uppsala.

Summer memories

This summer was finally the summer when I was able to do a quick visit to Lofoten Islands, Norway. I’ve been dreaming of it since the day I saw an inspiring movie made by the dads of finnish bouldering. I did not have my hopes up for good weather though; first climbing trip to Norway sort of flushed the hope of good weather for the following decades too. So concidering the fact that we had only 5 climbing days it would have been totally possible, almost inevitable, to have rain during the whole visit, buuut…. I guess someone from our team had a good climbing karma, because it didn’t rain at all...

In the following pictures is Kvalvika beach, which is absolutely one the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited. And, the good thing is, that there are lots of boulders too. No guidebook available, but there are two hiking paths that lead to the beach, so it is very easy to find. Other tips that would’ve been appreciated: Think twice, about taking the biggest crash pad with you, because it is a long walk. Also, dogs should be kept on leash because of the grazing lambs and as an owner of a lovinglambsasfood&leashhating-dog, it brought some extra spices for the walk.  

Most of the people come to Lofoten Islands to do bigger balls. Sport climbers should wear a disguise, like couple of cams hanging from your backpack or cut your knuckles. Boulderers are okey. Anyways, the thing is, that there is everything an active person would wish for. Just the scenery is so zen and feng shui put together that it would be enough for me, without any activities. And the people are nice too. I mean, how often have bakery ladies brought you cinnamon buns straight from the owen while you are bouldering?
  

Info

http://www.lofoten.info/ 

Climbing

http://forer.mittnettsted.com/

http://www.rockfax.com/areas/area.php?id=1007