Marauding Foxes or A Weekend in the Elbsandstein
On Friday I drove from Vienna to Koenigstein in the Elbsandsteingebirge. It was only about 20km from the Czech border. I read and hung out in a Gasthaus waiting for my buddy Torsten to arrive from Hannover. The weather forecast was decent so we had decided to make a pilgrimmage to the birthplace of free climbing.
The climbing history in the Elbsandstein is very rich and long, reaching back to the turn of the century. Strict ethics evolved from the fragile nature of the soft sandstone – no hard protection, only knotted cords and slings. The few bolts that exist were all placed on lead, and strict rules govern the spacing between bolts – basically they are way far apart. Above all it is an area that challenges the mental toughness and psyche of the leader. The rock is soft sandstone with a trademark black exterior. The climbs are a mix of crack, face, and friction routes. Another hallmark of the strong Naturschutz tradition is that all climbing is limited to freestanding summits – all massivs are off limits, but with over 17000 different routes the towers offer a lifetime of challenges.
We set up our tent at a deserted campground in Koenigstein right on the Elbe river and tried to get some sleep amidst the noise from the street and the trains passing close by in the night. Luckily I was dead tired and hardly noticed any of the ruckus.
On Saturday we breakfasted then checked out the Koenigstein, a imposing fortress looming over the town. It was quite impressive and we had good misty morning views of the Elbe from the ramparts. The weather was not so promising but we headed out to the crags in the Bieletal. This is a good area for newcomers to the Elbsandstein – the climbs are only up to 25m tall, the rock is solid, and most climbs can be protected well. Tosten led the first route, a Saechsisch V (or maybe it was a IV) which was a fun crack that ate up knotted slings and cord very well – it was pretty well-protected. In addition to the usual overhands and figure 8 knots in the slings Torsten had a few special weapons for large cracks. The Saechsisch (Saxon) equivalent of a large hex is a special mariners knot that creates a Kinderkopf (child's head – real large knot) or an Affenfaust (ape's fist – not so large). He used all of these and some girth-hitched Sandohren (sand ears) to sew up the climb. He then led a nice VIIa (UIAA 6, about a 5.9+) with fun arete and face moves, as well as some short overhangs. It was also well-protected, even having some bolts. Next we TR'd a fun VIIc (5.10b/c) that was a very fun, sustained, crimpy face climb. The cold weather made for stiff fingers, unfortunately the sun did not come out as predicted, but the fall mood was great and the forest was lit up with the fall color. I finished the day by doing my first lead there, only rated a IV (5.4?) but with a poorly protected start and some interesting friction moves, then an overhanging finish it felt quite demanding. Nothing for sport climber weenies!!
Saturday night we found a comfy bivouac spot at the trailhead for the Schrammstein area and cooked a tasty dinner and enjoyed some red wine in the crisp night air. It was a quiet spot, aside from a few moments of loud music from two other campers, and I was expecting a restful night as I laid down contentedly in my sleeping bag.
Most to my surprise I was rudely awakened a few hours later by a bop on the head from some creature. I fumbled around for my glasses and saw a small light-colored four-legged animal rooting through our trash bag in the moonlight. It was a fox! He was obviously used to scavenging and was not at all scared by our efforts to shoo him off. I laid back down to try to catch some zz's but our friend soon struck again, this time batting Torsten on the noggin. The only option left was to cache everything in the cars and set up the tent for shelter, which we groggily did, me hobbling around on one running shoe and one sandal – the rascal had carried off one of my stinky running shoes and I did not feel like looking for it. We manged to get a decent night's sleep in the tent, though the cur also bit a hole in Torsten's down sleeping bag.
Sunday morning I located my running shoe – he had bit through the laces and slobbered a bit inside but nothing major – Torsten taped up his sleeping bag and after a quick breakfast we hit the trail to the Falkenstein, a fantastic 100m tall black sandstone monolith that towered over the colorful trees below. Feeling pretty insignificant we started up the 4 pitch Loetzwand, a fun VIIa route that had everything from overhangs, fun face climbing, squeeze chimneys, to pure friction moves. The first pitch had a few stout overhangs that felt challenging even with a rope from above but Torsten did a good job leading and protecting everything well. The last two pitches were easy but run-out, with long traverses that were as dicey for the second as for the leader. We arrived on top in the early afternoon, shook hands and said “Berg Heil!” according to another Saxon tradition then scambled over the adjoining peak to sign the summit book. The day had cleared up and the view from the top were incredible – majestic black, sandstone towers rising above a kaledioscope of fall color interspersed with patches of evergreens. We soaked in the late afternoon sunshine and enjoyed the moment before rapping down to the base. A colorful sunset capped off the great day and we hiked back to the trailhead in the setting darkness. Another fine day in the mountains…
Gabriel Williams
(erschienen im "Höhenrausch" 1/2002)
