Crazy Hard Trad Route Opened in Norway
Pete Whittaker has made the first ascent of Crown Royale, a route that will surely be graded among the hardest gear lines in the world
Pete Whittaker has made the first ascent of Crown Royale on the Profile Wall in Norway. While he hasn’t graded it, we can assume that it will be in the 5.14+ range as he said that it’s “up there with the hardest bit of trad climbing I’ve done.” The 100-metre route required Whittaker to untie from his 80-metre rope and solo the last 20 metres.
Over the past decade, Whittaker has become one of the world’s strongest trad climbers, with climbs like Recovery Drink 5.14c, Cobra Crack 5.14b and Century Crack 5.14b. Just last month, he made the first ascent of Eigerdosis 5.14b on the Profile Wall. In 2019, Whittaker flashed Ronny Medelsvensson 5.13d on Profile Wall before completing every other climb on the wall. That same year, he also opened Feta Kake 5.13b. In total, he’s made at least nine first free ascents or first ascents on Profile Wall.
In 2020, Whittaker free-soloed The Renshaw/Foulkes on the Kjerag formation in Rogaland, Norway. He climbed 800 meters and through several 5.10c crux pitches in two hours and 25 minutes. In 2016, Whittaker became the first person to rope-solo free-climb El Cap in under 24 hours with an ascent of Freerider 5.12d in just over 20 hours.
The Profile Wall, or Profilveggen, is a big overhanging granite wall up to 120 metres high full of cracks. A few of the classic free routes are Leo Houlding and Neil Gresham’s 1998 Fire Fox 5.12+, Daniel Jung’s Flying Vikings 5.13d, and Recovery Drink 5.14+. For more info on the wall visit here.
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