Bloody Old Men: first up this year
A long route on the Rotspitze, fully bolted but with plenty of loose rock — and a descent that wouldn't end.
Machine-translated from the German original. The German version is the one I actually wrote.
According to the summit book we were the first party up it this year. That’s always a two-edged compliment: nice to have it to yourself, but it also means nobody has worked through the loose stuff ahead of you.
And there’s plenty of it. The route is fully bolted, so the protection isn’t the issue. The rock simply isn’t good in places, and you climb accordingly carefully — especially with two people hanging below you.
We took the hard pitches on A0; free, the crux goes at 8+.
The descent drags on forever. Being a party of three also means everything takes longer than planned: more waiting at belays, more rope in the way. Good day regardless.