23 June 2025
Babsi Zangerl and Jacopo Larcher FA 8b+ MP
Babsi Zangerl and Jacopo Larcher, two of the worldโs top big wall climbers, have completed the first ascent of Next Generation, a 170-meter route in six pitches (7a, 8a+, 8b+, 7b+, 7c+, 6c) in Rรคtikon.
โThis line is probably the closest mini big wall to our home - but still, itโs way up in the mountains. The approach from our flat to the base takes around three hours, which makes for a pretty demanding day. The climbing is simply amazing on this perfect limestone wall. The route was first climbed in 2018 by Pio Jutz - a true pioneer of alpine climbing in Austria. He established all the lines on this wall. But Generation Next was still waiting for its first redpoint ascent.
We first checked out the route back in 2022, but never returned - until this week. With the temperatures rising in the valleys, we felt like it was the perfect time to head back up and give it another go. After the long hike, we spent some time on the wall figuring out the beta for the two crux pitches. Both of us managed to send the first hard pitch, and Jacopo also successfully climbed the crux pitch. I had one fall at the crux, but it felt very promising to me too. Eventually we ran out of time and had to bail. But the cherry on top of an almost perfect day was flying back down to the valley in just a few minutes with our paragliders. After that, we knew it could work - we just needed to come back and give it a proper try.
Two days later, we hiked all the way up again and climbed the whole line free. Both of us led the three hardest pitches, and in the evening we stood on top of Zwรถferkopf. Such a cool summit, looking down at where we started that same morning. We really enjoyed this kind of big day out. Huge thanks to Pio Jutz for this incredible line!โ
โThis line is probably the closest mini big wall to our home - but still, itโs way up in the mountains. The approach from our flat to the base takes around three hours, which makes for a pretty demanding day. The climbing is simply amazing on this perfect limestone wall. The route was first climbed in 2018 by Pio Jutz - a true pioneer of alpine climbing in Austria. He established all the lines on this wall. But Generation Next was still waiting for its first redpoint ascent.
We first checked out the route back in 2022, but never returned - until this week. With the temperatures rising in the valleys, we felt like it was the perfect time to head back up and give it another go. After the long hike, we spent some time on the wall figuring out the beta for the two crux pitches. Both of us managed to send the first hard pitch, and Jacopo also successfully climbed the crux pitch. I had one fall at the crux, but it felt very promising to me too. Eventually we ran out of time and had to bail. But the cherry on top of an almost perfect day was flying back down to the valley in just a few minutes with our paragliders. After that, we knew it could work - we just needed to come back and give it a proper try.
Two days later, we hiked all the way up again and climbed the whole line free. Both of us led the three hardest pitches, and in the evening we stood on top of Zwรถferkopf. Such a cool summit, looking down at where we started that same morning. We really enjoyed this kind of big day out. Huge thanks to Pio Jutz for this incredible line!โ
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Jorge Diaz-Rullo reports on Instagram that he has made the first ascent of Cafe Colombia in Margalef. At 27, heโs already stacked four 9b+ sends and now heโs adโฆ
16 March 2026
Ondra flashes 3*8C in two weeks
โI stopped focusing on competition bouldering after last yearโs World Cup in Prague, partly because I can already feel it on my body, especially in my shoulders. The modern competition style, with a lot of jumping from one hold to another, is very demanding for the shoulders.
Outdoor bouldering isโฆ
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