Martin Feistl and Martin Sieberer opened an impressive 500m ice line in the busy Sass Pordoi area yesterday. They graded it as M6, WI 6.
The ice line follows the water that poured down a gully before it froze, hence the name “Gullyver’s Reisen,” which also refers to the 18th-century novel Gulliver’s Travels.
The climbers said that the excellent ice conditions at -15ºC allowed them to climb in a completely clean way on popular walls pinned with dozens of bolts for summer routes.
Winter hit the Austrian and Italian Alps a couple of weeks ago. As fresh ice plastered the walls, local climbers did not waste any time. Martin Sieberer, who lives near Ischgl ski resort in the Austrian Alps, quickly opened another new line, this time with Johannes Kehrer, called Smooth Criminal. He posted this cool video:
Martin Feistl’s early-winter playground is the Dolomites, which the German tries to reach with the smallest carbon footprint possible. He says that he has not boarded a plane in five years.
Sass Pordoy ice climbing frenzy
Feistl says he discovered the gully where he opened Gullyver’s Reisen while repeating Grazie Giovanni, a 300m M6 WI6 line opened by Marco Cordin, Massimo Faletti, and Paolo Valentini on Nov. 16.
Ice climbing on Sass Pordoi peak has been intense since the beginning of November. Simon Gietl and Vitorio Messini opened the formidable Eywa route (570m, M6, WI6) in mid-November. Eywa is located right in front of the route Feistal and Sieberer did yesterday.
