Silvan Schüpbach, Matteo Della Bordella, Yannick Glatthard discover their Ying Yang on Gross Wellhorn

Gross Wellhorn in the Bernese Alps is renowned for its tough routes on often far from ideal limestone and this reputation has been further enhanced by Ying Yang, a testing new line established by Switzerland’s Silvan Schüpbach and Yannick Glatthard, and Italy's Matteo Della Bordella.

The 450m multi-pitch was started by Schüpbach and Della Bordella in 2013 to the left of Schüpbach’s Adrenlinchiubi and Röck u Zöpf, and while the duo managed to forge just over half the route before retreating, the remaining pitches were completed by Schüpbach with Glatthard this July.

The first free ascent was carried out by Schüpbach and Della Bordella on the 25th of August after having breached difficulties up to 8b. Disaster almost struck the next day during Glatthard’s redpoint attempt as the 22-year-old fell off the crux and became entangled in fixed ropes used by the cameraman before smashing into the wall. He was not wearing a helmet; miraculously he escaped unharmed and has made a full recovery. The harrowing unfolding of events is depicted in the video below.