Alaska Big Wall: possible new climb up Cemetery Spire (Kichatnas) by Silvia Loreggian, Stefano Ragazzo

Italians Silvia Loreggian and Stefano Ragazzo have made a dream come true during their first climbing trip to Alaska by establishing what is likely to be a beautiful new route up the golden granite of Cemetery Spire in the Cathedral Spires group of the Kichatna massif.

The two arrived in Alaska in mid-May and at the first opportunity flew into the massif where they established base camp on the Cul de Sac Glacier. At first unsettled weather forced them to remain stuck in their tents, then they made the most of a short weather window - read no snowfall but high winds - to climb a logical line up the southwest face of Cemetery Spire, located directly above their tent.

The two set off on the afternoon of 4 June, established the first two pitches then returned to base camp. The next day they started up at 7am and, once having jugged up the fixed ropes, they climbed non-stop, reaching the summit at around 10pm. They immediately began the descent which proved to be very difficult indeed, with strong winds making rope management difficult. At around 3 in the morning they bivouaced briefly on a small ledge to recuperate, then three hours later they continued their descent. This proved more complicated than the actual ascent at one point had to abandon 30m of rope when this became stuck on the rough granite. Only the descent belays were left insitu, and these include 7 hand-planted 8mm bolts, two pegs and two nuts. Towards the end of the ascent, circa 200m below the summit, they came across an old destroyed belay, most likely from a previous attempt.

The new 600m line is called Gold Rush, is graded 5.12a A1+ and has been described by Ragazzo on his instagram handel as "the biggest adventure I've been looking for for years!" According to preliminary research, this may well go down as a splendid new route. More information about the climb will follow in due course.

Silvia Loreggian and Stefano Ragazzo thank: SCARPA, The North Face Italia, Grivel, Totemcam

Info: www.alpinevibes.it