Tuva Stavø makes first female ascent of Arctandria on Blåmann in Norway

Norwegian climber Tuva Stavø has made a noteworthy repeat, and first female ascent, of Arctandria on Store Blåmann on the island Kvaloya in Norway. The 400m trad 8a+ follows a series of cracks up the north face of the massive granite monolith and was first ascended with the use of aid in 1981 by Finn Dæhli, Håvard Nesheim and Sjur Nesheim, then freed in 2005 by the Swiss duo Didier Berthod and Giovanni Quirici who climbed some pitches pinkpoint and did not climb the entire line in a single day.

Austrians Markus Haid and Hansjörg Auer made the first single day ascent in 2007, and at the time Auer told planetmountain "There are no bolts, just some old in-situ pegs at some of the belays. All pitches need to be protected with trad gear. Thanks to the combination of technical difficulties and alpine protection this route can be considered on the hardest of its type in Europe."

Writing to planetmountain about her ascent, the 24-year-old explained "Last year, I climbed my first route at Store Blåmann and was completely captivated by the wall. Since then, Arctandria, the most prominent line up the wall, had been on my mind. I began the season with quick ascents of two slightly easier routes on Store Blåmann, Ikaros and Ultima Thule. Both went surprisingly smoothly, and I felt prepared for Arctandria.

First I went up to try the crux pitch, which is the second pitch. But I found myself too scared by the suspicious protection to really give it a good try. After waiting a few days for the rain to pass, I gathered some stoke and decided to give the whole route a try. I surprised myself by sending the crux pitch second go. The rest of the route was a battle against cramps and exhaustion, requiring two attemps on both roof pitches due to their slimy and wet sections. It was by far the most beautiful line I ever climbed and I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Vegard Lillebudal for the stoke, patience, belaying and jumaring! It would not have been possible without him."

STORE BLÅMANN
Blamann is located close to idyllic town and island Tromsoe, which can be reached easily by plane. This "small" bigwall is located on the Kvaloya island and is a paradise for mountaineering, sports climbing and bouldering. 

Chronology
1981: the Norwegians Sjur and Havard Nesheim and the Finn Daeli climbed a line up the central, steepest section of Blamannen. Their route "Arctandria heralded a new dimension in Scandinavian mountaineering. For many years Arctandria remained the hardest aid route in Norway.

Up to 2004: Numerous attempts at freeing the route at the hands of local climbers.

2005: The granite monolith gains international attention when a Swiss team comprised of Didier Berthod and Giovanni Qurici free all pitches at 8a+. The two do not redpoint the route in a single day.

2007: On 15 July Markus Haid and Hansjörg Auer carry out the first redpoint in a single day. They do not use jumars nor in-situ gear, and need 9 hours to climb to the top. Both climb the route free. The route is upgraded to 8b.

2024: After just one day working the crux pitch, on 14 July 24-year-old Tuva Stavø makes the first female ascent, belayed by climbing parter Vegard Lillebudal. 

Info: klatreforer.tromsoklatring.no

 

 

 

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