Ida Schwenk, a 30-year-old Italian teacher with two 8A ascents to her name, has successfully climbed Mondo Frizzante (8A+) at Monte Amiata.

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
The line was first climbed by Paolo Vangi and is a variation of Mondo Bastardo, a beautiful and famous 8b, with which it shares the first part of the boulder. Even if this area is quite close, I had never tried to approach this line because I always thought it was too hard for me. About a month ago I went with a friend who wanted to try Mondo Bastardo and so, a bit for fun, I also tried the first moves. Immediately I felt it doable, even if very hard... but the next day, as often happens with hard boulders, I could not do even one move! Two weeks later I decided to try the boulder again and in the space of three tries I found myself on top of the rock. Saying that it was unexpected is an understatement!

Can you describe your climbing background?
I started climbing when I was 10, in Venice, not exactly a city famous for its mountains! After trying different sports I immediately understood that climbing was the right thing for me and over time it became much more than a simple sport. Initially I took part in many youth competitions, even entering the Italian youth national team for several years. I had a lot of fun and after moving to Florence for university I tried again to take part in some senior Italian boulder cups. In the meantime I started working as a teacher in primary school, which takes up a lot of my time and doesn't always allow me to climb as much as I would like. In recent years I have totally dedicated myself to rockclimbing, I have realized that it is the thing that makes me feel better and that makes me happy! I try to climb as much as I can and to visit as many places as possible, appreciating every boulder regardless of the grade. If the line is beautiful, I want to climb it!

Four days ago, we reported about Jernej Kruder having done the first repeat of Pete Whittaker’s 100 meters step trad route Crown Royale (9a) in Jøssingfjord. Here comes his full report from his two weeks in Norway. (c) Michael Hutton

Getting better and better at crack climbing, and after sending Greenspit last year, I was searching for a new crack project in Europe. Since Greenspit felt relatively easy—or at least like a quick send—I needed to find something more challenging. Many people recommended I go to Scandinavia, either to Bohuslän or Jøssingfjord. I'm still convinced I’d find good challenges in Sweden, but somehow Jøssingfjord in Norway sounded more appealing. I also talked to Pete Whittaker, who reassured me that Crown Royale wasn’t too technical in terms of jamming and that the cruxes were short and more like face climbing.

Still, the idea of actually sending it hadn’t really taken root in my mind. I just wanted to go there, try it out, and see if it was worth coming back to at some point. Apparently, May is the best month in terms of conditions, so I planned a two-week trip to Stavanger at the end of May.

They were right! As someone who's very sensitive to conditions, I was finally overwhelmed—in a good way—by the weather in Norway. In two weeks, I barely saw a single raindrop. The temperatures were quite high, but there was a constant sea breeze that only died down twice during the entire trip.

13th of May. I arrived at Profile Wall with my Slovenian friend Filip. We were both amazed by the wall: over 60 meters of overhang with a slabby-ish top-out. It’s quite a blank wall interrupted by several crack systems. We didn’t want to waste any time, so we opened the trip with an onsight of a 7b and a 7c.

With some help from Klaas, who was working on the first part of Crown Royale (Lille Krone) at the time, I quickly checked the moves and had no trouble doing them. The only issue was a fist jam that wasn’t possible for me with gloves on. That’s when I decided to climb the first part with only my left glove and tape on my right hand.

The next day brought two unsuccessful attempts, partly because of a small runout in the first crux. After falling there once, I realized it wasn’t a big deal and switched into sending mode. A rest day definitely helped, because on my fourth try, I topped out—not the entire wall, of course, but 30 meters off the ground, where there’s a no-hands rest and the first anchor.

Next up was the upper part. This section had pre-placed gear from Nico Favresse. Another 80 moves to the edge of the overhang, and they turned out to be surprisingly doable—not easy, but manageable. The hardest part was finding good rests. The next four days followed a routine: climb the first part (often skipping 5 moves in the first crux by grabbing gear), then try hard on the upper section. There was even a day when I reached almost the top with pre-placed gear, after sitting in the harness before starting the upper section. That gave me the confidence that maybe—someday—I could actually top it out.

Before giving it proper redpoint attempts, I had to sort out logistics: where to place cams, which ones to skip, how to clean the wall after a failed attempt, etc. I decided to use more cams (10) in the lower part (since falls there could be dangerous) and cut down to 6 (+1 backup) in the upper section (since it's steeper and the gear is bomber). This helped me focus more on climbing and reduced rope drag on the top-out.

Then came the final three days of my trip. Before heading home, I wanted at least one solid redpoint attempt. On the second-to-last day, I was again forced to deal with the first 8b+ crux. I fell on it during my first try. On the second go, the wind stopped and it got super hot. I finally made it past the first crux.

In the upper part, there's another crux right after a good rest near the first “anchor.” Since it's more like a sport climb on tiny holds, I didn’t get too far due to poor conditions. The route is tiring, but I didn’t want to waste time. I gave everything on my third try and ended the day happy, knowing I climbed it with only two falls.

On the last day, I woke up extremely sore—and to light rain. By midday, the rain stopped, and a nice breeze gave me motivation to try again. Thanks to the cloud cover, I could start earlier than usual. The warm-up felt rough. I didn’t feel particularly Olympic, but I was eager.

The prep was long as usual: taping my fingers and right hand, setting up the left kneepad, putting on the left glove, clipping the right one to my harness, sorting the gear, tying in, putting shoes on—then action.

Hand jams felt okay, and even the fist jam into the crux worked. The crux felt hard, and my body and mind almost gave up before the next good jam—but I didn’t fall. Even the easier hand-jam section felt tougher than usual.

I finally reached the dihedral rest. While stemming, I got rid of the tape on my right hand and switched to a glove. I felt terrible but gave myself plenty of time to recover. The first upper crux went surprisingly smoothly. I reached my previous high point and found a better rest in the hand jam. The runout was huge, but I stayed focused on my jamming, which felt dialed in.

After that, I reached the bat-hang and repeated it twice to get my forearms as fresh as possible. The higher I climbed, the more focused I became. The remaining cruxes flowed. I began to believe this could really be it. I didn’t rush. I stayed present. Breathing and visualizing the next moves kept me in the zone.

I reached the last protection and decided to skip it—better focus and less rope drag at the top-out. I reached the slab where the rope drag got too heavy, so I untied and continued my free solo trip to the top of the wall. My mouth was craving water, but inside, I was happy, surprised, and—mostly—proud of myself for not letting go until the end.

Just as I cleaned the route and began hiking back to the car, it started raining. And it didn’t stop for the next three days after I left.

Cadance Hurt, with two 8A’s under her belt, has sent No More Greener Grasses (8A+) in Mount Blue Sky. ”First day this season oh my godddd.”

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
I’ve put two small sessions into No More Greener Grasss (one in 2023 and one in 2024) without ever having been able to stick moves, but today I was able to send within an hour with perfect temps and the perfect crew. After months dealing with a torn pulley, self doubt and other sporadic injuries it was so rewarding.

What is your climbing background?
I’ve been climbing since I was eight in Colorado (competitively and outside) and work as an elite coach as well. I grew up inspired by all the women capable of sending 8A+ and it always seemed like a reach to accomplish it myself, so this send is meaningful is so many ways.

Andrew Nimmer, with six 8c+’ under his belt, has completed Martial Law (9a+) in Mt. Charleston. ”What a dream come true!! Felt so good to finally clip the chains. Shoutout to everyone who encouraged and supported me on this mission.” (c) Rachel Melville

Can you tell us more about the ascent and the process behind?
Climbing something of this difficulty has long been a dream of mine. I moved from Wisconsin to Las Vegas three and a half years ago seeking access to hard sport climbs and a year-round outdoor season. If I wanted to be serious about sending 5.15 or sending at my limit, Vegas was the place to do it.

I first sent the original start “Arrested Development” 8c+ in 2023. I briefly tried Martial Law until Mt. Charleston closed for the year due to flooding. In 2024, I worked it for most of the summer and started getting really excited when I began to feel like I might actually be able to send it. I stagnated for a bit, having a hard time breaking through to actual close red point attempts. Eventually, I got really close to sending before leaving for a trip right as the fall temps were rolling in. When I returned, the season was over. Thankfully, I felt really strong on it right away this spring and sent it before the summer temps hit. The redpoint go was quite the fight which made for a satisfying send. Clipping the chains really felt like a dream come true.

This send was special to me because it really feels like I couldn’t have done it without my friends and community. I received so much encouragement and kind words which helped me overcome my doubts. I even had to level up my knee bar skills with some coaching from Joe Kinder (who equipped the route) and using Bill Ramsey’s knee pad. Friends of mine would also come out just to belay and support which made all the difference.

What do you think is the main reason for you stepping up your game?
This project definitely pushed me to take my entire approach more seriously, from training, to diet and recovery. Also, focusing on sport climbing for consecutive seasons instead of flip flopping between sport and bouldering seemed to help.

What is coming up next?
I’m itching to get back to bouldering later this year. First I would like to try to climb more 8b+ to 9a while I have the fitness. Around Vegas and in Rifle.

Radek Votocek, who during the last two months has completed his first three 9a’s, has sent Hantillio (9a) in Drachenwand. ”Epic fight! Had to dig really deep on the last few moves! Perfect power endurance test piece from Klem Loskot.”

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
Hantillio 9a climbs through the big overhang of the Dragon Cave, with the crux being a powerful, dynamic move to the lip of the roof. It requires a precise catch of a small edge. I was lucky to stick the edge fairly early on. :-) Really looking forward to coming back to Drachenwand in the beautiful Salzkammergut lake region!

Lorenzo Bogliacino, with four 9a+’ under his belt, has done Narcissus (9a) in Erboristeria. In the VL ranking game, the Italian is #13. The picture is from Naturalmente (9a+).

Can you tell us more about the ascent?
First of all, I have to thank Matteo Gambaro for the vision in bolting and releasing such a beast! I returned to the Erboristeria sector somewhat casually after a few years. I used to climb there a lot back in the day, when I was younger and climbed all the routes up to 8b. At the time, I felt too weak to tackle the most challenging lines in that physical style across the entire roof.

Over the years, my climbing style has evolved a lot. I’ve gained some weight (around 7–8 kilos), and now I feel much more confident on roofs and overhanging walls. Last but not least, I’ve really improved my kneebar skills! On the first day, I managed to do all the moves, but unfortunately, on the second day, I broke a big key hold in the first boulder section. It stayed intact in my hands, so I called Matteo, who decided to try and reinforce it to preserve the route in its original state.

After a couple of days working on the second part of the route, last Wednesday, on my fifth day, in terrible conditions at 8 p.m., and a bit tired after nine days of work in a row, I managed to send the route! In the final section, I chose to use the easier beta like Bouin and Ondra, which felt more logical to me, but I’d like to come back and try the original finish, as Matteo did!

Alizee Blass, sister to Theo, who sent a 9a at age 12, completed Guère d'usure (8c) in February. Her father comments on what she is projecting now and what is coming up next?

”She tried an 8c+ recently (a brutal power endurance testpiece at one of our local crags that has no female ascents yet to our knowledge) and managed to do all the moves on her first go, so hopefully something to work on. No projects for the summer as we will travel around the alps and try new crags - Alizee wants to do more onsighting so that would be a good opportunity (at the moment her best onsight outdoors is 7c+ and she knows she can do harder onsights).”

Anak Verhoeven has done Rainshadow (9a) in Malham. The Belgian ranks among the most successful female lead competition climbers. She reached the finals in 36 consecutive World Cup events and stood on the podium 19 times. However, she stepped away from competition in 2019 due to injuries. After making a full recovery in 2021, she chose to dedicate herself entirely to outdoor rock climbing. During her competitive career, she climbed around a dozen routes graded 8c+ to 9a+, and since retiring from comps, the now 28-year-old has added another dozen routes graded between 9a and 9b. (c) Neil Gresham

Can you tell us more about the ascent and the process behind?
Back in November of last year, I had spent one day at Malham Cove and had quickly touched some of the holds in the crux of Rainshadow. It looked like a great project to come back for, so that’s what I did this spring!

The weather was great with lovely, sunny weather, but that meant that the climbing days were short because the route only got in the shade in the late afternoon. I worked the route on and off for a few weeks, because I spent quite some time away from my project; visiting people and climbing in other places. There was a nasty undercut in the crux that hurt the joints of my left ring finger which meant that I could only try that move a few times every climbing day (the hardest move of the route for me). I had plenty of rest days and climbed with a lot of tape to make sure I wouldn’t get injured. After having found all my beta, I climbed the route on May 9th in my 5th redpoint attempt. What a line! I’m very grateful for this send.

Pierre Shankland has repeated Matteo Soulé’s Trois pattes dans la chouffe (9a) and Chouffe qui plâtre (9a) in Gorges Du Tarn, after having projected them during four trips. (c) Pierre Coutn

Can you tell us more about the ascents?
This summer was my first time in Les Gorges du Tarn, where I sent “3 pattes dans le plâtre” (8c), which is the first part of Trois pattes dans la chouffe (9a) and shares its finish with Chouffe qui plâtre (9a) —two beautiful new routes that Matteo Soulé had recently opened. They both climb an amazing roof in the “Amphithéâtre” sector and cross each other in a really cool way.

I came back in October and started working on Chouffe qui plâtre. It begins with a long, physical 8b+ traversing the entire roof, then hits a tricky crux (around 7B+ boulder) before linking into the end of the 8c. I had three more short trips in February, April, and May. And on Wednesday this week, after 17 sessions and countless tries, I finally sent it!

With that ticked off, I decided to try “3 pattes dans la Chouffe” the next day. Since I already knew the first part (the 8c) perfectly and all the holds in the crux (which is the same as the other 9a, but reversed), I managed to send it quickly. To me, it felt a little easier than Chouffe qui plâtre. My friend Antoine Maire, who also climbed it, and I used a slightly different beta than Matteo for the crux. That’s why I suggested 9a for Chouffe qui plâtre and maybe 8c+/9a or solid 8c+ for 3 pattes dans la Chouffe. Anyway, I’m really psyched about the trip. Huge shoutout to Matteo for the first ascents and the vision.

What is your climbing background?
I started climbing when I was a kid with my dad, who did a lot of mountaineering. During my youth, I mostly focused on competitions, but over time I grew more into outdoor climbing. These days, I’m still training for some comps but I also climb a lot in Fontainebleau and head south of France whenever I can.