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Jorg Verhoeven is working The Nose

Despite summer being over and winter not in full swing, this is the best time of year for late-season rock climbing and early-season ice. For a number of big wall free climbers, this is El Cap season.

Verhoeven has been working on becomming the fourth climber to free The Nose in since Lynn Hill’s historical first free ascent in 1994.

He has been making good progress over the past month. Verhoeven said, “Louder Than 11 caught some nice footage of me stemming, squeezing and trying to be Houdini on the changing corners pitch.

“After four days of work on the 5.14-pitch, I can do the seven hard metres with one hang in the middle. The Great Roof poses a challenge as well, but I’m confident I can do it.”

The Dutch climber Verhoeven won the overall lead world cup in 2008 and was world youth champion twice. From his new hometown Innsbruck he’s been pushing his limits on boulders, big walls and in the alpine.

Canadian Sonnie Trotter is also in Yosemite this fall, working on free climbing one of the most famous El Cap routes that is yet to be freed.

Jesse Huey and Will Stanhope are working on a project and Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson are getting started on Dawn Wall.

Trotter wrote on Facebook, “Yosemite update. Weather is absolutely outstanding. It’s free climbing season on El Cap right now. Sean Villanueva and I went up about 100 metres and scared ourselves silly on some easy aid pitches. Camp four is in full swing with stoked climbers from all around the World cooking rice and beans, and mulling over the new guidebook with cold beers in hand. Rad.”

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