The hardest Ice Climb in Switzerland

Nicolas Preitner & Jon Murua Beta Block Super, ED+ WI7 Kandersteg, Breitwangflue 300m of seriously overhanging ice Extreme alpinism Date: 8.3.2020 Gear used: Petzl Sirocco Helmet: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534963... Beal Ice Line Golden Dry 2x60m: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534963... Petzl Nomic: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534887... Petzl Dart: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534887... La Sportiva G5X: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534963... Mammut Zephir Alpine Harness: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534963... Black Diamond Soloist Finger gloves: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534963... GoPro Session 5: https://amzn.to/3tDt3z1 Petzl Reverso: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534963... Black Diamond Spinner Leash: https://luna.r.lafamo.com/ts/i5534963... Transcript: Forgive me for this, I really struggle to pronounce the name of this route. But what a route! Beta Block Super! A name to remember! And a route to be repeated! I rarely repeat routes because I like exploring, but this route... ... This route is to be repeated over an over again. Don't forget to subscribe to my channel to be notified when climbing or mountaineering videos like this one get published. I didn't know if I would ever dare with such a monster waterfall: 300 metres, level 7 Yes, level 7! This is as hard as it gets! Waterfalls tend to be vertical at most and it is not common to find overhanging ice. Kandersteg in Switzerland however is famous for steep ice and mixed climbing. And the sector Breitwangflue has some of the steppest routes in Europe; you might have heard of names like flying circus for example. ... This season has been particularly bad for ice climbing in the northern Alps. It has been very warm and many waterfalls did haven't formed. There hasn't been much to climb in Kandersteg except for this sector. I kept reading on social media reports of successful ascends and I was motivated. I initially went to try Metro, a fantastic waterfall, level 6+ that forms inside a cave. I went there last year, but I had to bail because it was too wet, too dangerous. This year I had the hope I could remove the thorn. During the approach I could see the blue ice on Beta Block Super and Crack Baby going all the way to the top. Unfortunately, Metro was again too wet and I had to bail for the second time. That was annoying, but at least I took advantage to check the conditions of other waterfalls with my own eyes. Beta Block Super was in unbeatable conditions! My partner didn't need much to motivate and we went the following weekend... The beginning is at low altitude and it is often dry. I wasn't unsure about taking the skis, snowshoes or nothing. Carrying the skis on the backpack and walking with ski boots is not fun, but we can save a lot of time if there is deep snow higher up. It wasn't the case and we regret the choice, but it wasn't a big deal. There are 1000 metres of elevation gain during the approach which takes about an hour and a half. As we started touching the snow it started getting colder. It is a North Face and it rarely gets the sun. When we arrived, there were plenty of people in Crack Baby but only a couple in Beta Block Super. We took our time while getting ready to give some space between the climbers, but another couple arrived in that time. I'm ice climbing, it is not good to climb below other climbers. It is dangerous as we break the ice with the axes and the ice can easily hit the climbers below. We sort-of climbed in parallel, but I was often above the other climber dropping chunks of ice. The first pitches are not very hard comparing to what was waiting for us. Level 5/5+ I would say. There were some steep sections, but not very long. We actually connected the first 2 pitches simul-climbing part of it. ...