Rock Climbing on the west coast of Sweden

Gothenburg or Göteborg, is the Yorkshire of Sweden - certainly grading-wise. Grades here tend to indicate slightly easier climbing than you actually encounter on the routes. The crags here are numerous and easily accessed. The most popular crags - Utby and Fjällbo er within the city limits, and offer great views over the town. I have visited the crags here many times and ran courses here. Travelling from Denmark, or the UK, is straight forward. From Struer we drive and then sail from Frederikshavn. From the UK you can fly directly to Gothenburg. The main crags are 20 minutes drive from the ferry terminal. The pictures below are from an early trip to the area, during the first weekend in October. The weather was fantastic and the trees were in full autumn colours.

Above, the crags at Fjällbo in full autumn colours. Left, Gitte and Thomas belaying climbers on Skarselden and Fars Dag at the Slabben area of Utby. Right, Gert climbing Skarselden, Scandinavian 4+ (HS). Below right, Steve leading Gunnars Skrack 5 (HVS) at Fjallbo.

Left, Thomas seconding the easy Fars Dag and below, Steve on a top rope on Sneda Sprickan, 5 (HVS) a tricky leftward slanting crack line.

Gothenburg Information Maps You need just a normal road map to be safe, although driving in Gothenburg is quite tricky. Enlarged plans of the crag locations are given in the guidebook. Guidebooks The latest guide is 'Klättring i Göteborg med Omnejd' by Tomasz Ratajczak, ISBN 91-631-2380-0, a very RockFax looking guide. The guide includes all the crags in the Gothenburg area, including quite a few sports climbing crags. The previous guide was from 1997 by Göteborg Klatterklub. The guide can be obtained from High Sport in Gothenburg (see the links page) or from the good book shop just by the central station. There are also selected areas on the net, for example The Jugs Guide (see the links page). For latest access information see the Swedish Climbing Councils website (see the links page). Travel From Struer by car to Frederikshavn (190km) then by ferry to Gothenburg with StenaLine  (see the links page). Good bargains for 5-in-a-car. The crags are 15 minutes drive from the ferry terminal if you don't get lost, but basically you need the E20 towards Stockholm where you turn off left at Partille then drive back towards the centre for 1.5km until you reach Utby. The crags can clearly be seen.

Bohuslän is a large area that stretches for 140 km along the western coastline of Sweden from north of Gothenburg to the Norwegian border to the southwest of Oslo. Bohuslän is one of Swedens best climbing areas with its solid granite, clear fjords and beautiful countryside. The guidebook to the area describes over 1200 routes on 100 crags. A large majority of the climbing is on trad crack lines, however, there are also bolted routes on some of the harder crags. The climbing season is long - from May to September if you like warmer weather, and beyond these months if you don't mind the cold. The best time to visit is at the end of August or beginning of September as the water is warm. The pictures below are from trips in August and September.

Our first stop was the crag at Rågårdsdal (pronounced Rowgoresdale) near the town of Bro in the county of Lysekil about 75 minutes drive from Gothenburg. The crag (above) is 5 minutes walk from a small picturesque harbour which offers a fantastic spot for a dip in the water. The crag offers routes from Scandinavian 4 to 5+, up to 18 m long. Above right, Niels on Drömmar om Snövit, 4, and left, swimming in Åbyfjorden.

Above, standing on top the of the fantastic crag at Kleven on the small southern end of the island of Smögen, a popular Swedish holiday resort. The island is connected to the mainland by road and is quite unusual in the way that the houses are arranged on the rocky landscape. The picture shows the view from the top of the crag looking out onto the waters of Skagerrak and the many islands around the coastline. Below, Louise nearing the top of a route at Kleven.

Below left, me about to top out on För säkrad (6-) and right, Dennis seconding Sätt fyr på skiten (4+) both at Kleven. This visit was in September.

Right, Jesper climbing on the very clean granite at Kleven. The crag is no more than 10 minutes walk from the car park and the ice cream shops. There are many minor crags on Smögen but Kleven has to be the best. The 16 routes are up to 10 m high and are graded between 3- and 6. If you are feeling lazy and don't want to lead then just take a single rope, a few screwgates and a 240 cm sling - there are pairs of bolts along the top of the crag for easy top roping above most of the routes. If the sun is shining, take plenty of water - it gets hot!

Above left, Charlotte and Jesper at Mollön - a rather obscure crag seldom visited, on the half island (halvø) of Mollön, just west of where the E6 bridges the fjord at Uddevalla. The island is a wooded nature reserve giving a pleasant 15 minute walk from the car park to the crag which lies right down to the water. Near the car park there is an excellent swimming area and near the crag there is a small beach too. The guidebook describes 6 routes but there is no diagram, which is a shame because the climbing is good. There is certainly enough her for an afternoon. Take a 20 m length of static if you want to set up top anchors for top-roping then you can push yourself on the harder moves. Below, Niels sunning himself at the foot of the crag.

Bohuslan Information Maps Any decent road map covering the area is all you need, preferably 1:300000 or better. The guidebook describes crag locations well and gives GPS data too! Some knowledge of Swedish for reading the guide will be a distinct advantage. Getting to the area is easy from Gothenburg or Oslo via the E6. A car is the best method of transport allowing you greatest flexibility. Guidebook Kätterguide Bohuslän by Jaokim Hermanson in cooperation with Bohusläns Klätterklubb 2002. ISBN 91-970004-0-x. An excellent guide with lots of information and an introduction in English and German. Check out the guidebook website and the Bohuslän climbing club site (see the links page) for new routes etc.

About 140km south of Gothenburg is the area around the town of Halmstad. The Halmstad area is very beautiful and is typical of Sweden with rolling hills, extensive forests and rivers. There are many crags in the Halmstad area but climbing here is relatively new, most of the development has occured since 1988. The Halmstad Climbing Club is responsible for most of the development of the crags, however, there are many possibilities remaining and we managed a few new routes during this trip. There were 4 of us from the club that travelled over, Thomas, Dennis, Susse and myself. Susse being a last minute addition saying that I had said she was welcome but hadn't actually asked her, therefore the car was completely filled up with 4 people and all our gear for a 4 day trip. We had been invited over by Steve Bone from Århus whose family has a summer house 25 km from Halmstad complete with all the luxuries of home.

The first day was at Solklippan near Tofta. The crag is 8 m high, mostly slab but with some overhanging sections. Some routes can be led on leader placed gear, whereas many routes are top-roped. The pictures above show Susse on Cowboy Man, Scandinavian grade 5, and Thomas under the overhang on Gösen Med J another grade 5 (about 4b).

The second day was at Kajehallar crag near the town of Kvibille. The crag is approximately 400 m long and is between 10 and 20 m high with routes either top-roped or led using natural protection. We spent the first half of the day on Black Labelväggen (Black Label wall) climbing several 4+'s and 5+'s. For the rest of the day we moved to Originalväggen where we climbed 2 new routes and one existing route. The picture on the right shows Thomas on the start of 'Belly Jam' 4+, a route first climbed first by Steve on a previous visit but first named after Thomas got stuck the wrong way round near the top of the chimney. The route climbs up the chimney on the right of the picture and then leftwards in the horizontal groove before finishing up the nose.

Left, the picture shows me climbing the arete (seen in profile above right). This route is called Arresterad, 5+ 20 m, which is a classic route and deserves a couple of stars. The other new route we climbed here was led my myself with Thomas seconding and is 3 m to the right of 'Belly Jam'. The route climbs an obvious crack line with some slightly overhanging sections. The route was dubbed 'Zulu' due to me throwing down of several sticks and grass obscuring the top of the route. Zulu is a 5- and is approximately 20 m high led on natural protection. The picture below right shows the area of Originalväggen with Arresterad on the left, Belly Jam in the middle and Zulu on the right.

The remaining climbing day was spent at Klövaberget near Simlångsdalen. This crag has a selection of easy routes from grade 3 upwards and a few really mean routes that are overhanging on small holds up to grade 7+. Dennis, below right, is climbing Input Noll, grade 5, 25 m. Below, I am climbing Vita Lögner 7-, an excellent route which follows the light-coloured rock seen in the centre of the picture below centre and is overhanging for the most part. Steve is also shown on the route in the final pictures, his facial expressions tell it all.

Halmstad Information Maps You need just a normal road map, enlarged plans of the crag locations are given in the guidebook. Guidebooks Halmstad Föraren 1998, Halmstad Klatterklub. The guide can be obtained from High Sport in Gothenburg (see the links page) and costs around £10. Travel From Struer by car to Frederikshavn (190 km) then by ferry to Gothenburg with StenaLine (see the links page). Good bargains for 5-in-a-car. Halmstad is 140 km south of Gothenburg. Otherwise by ferry from Grenå in Denmark to Varberg in Sweden, which is 60 km north of Halmstad. Or drive up from Helsingborg. The crags are spread within a 25 km radius of Halmstad.

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