Ascents in Totensteinwände by Christoph Rauch

Somebody stole the pencil again. It's becoming a nuisance. I climbed this thing 6 times now and only once had the chance to sign the book.

Aid route from the late 60s or so, next to "Falkendach". Climbed each passage freely, but had to sit a few times to clarify that the protection was good and also to dust off some of the holds. Brittle in the beginning, lots of pitons in good condition (the first one is even glued in) and a few possible placements for nuts and cams. It's not too bad when climbed freely, but the meandering line, the vegetation and the rock quality in some parts make it clear why this has never been revived.

Typical Totenstein(wände) #warmup that gets you pumped already. The start was moist, which also didn't help.

Yet another great line here. Shares the crux with "Brutkasten", then draws to the right below the roof and up directly in good rock to the anchor of "Noriswand".

Finally got this one, after five years of sneaking past it. Giving it a good brush after the Alzheimer's flash attempt certainly helped, as well as refreshing my memory of the beta. Cruxy moves where you leave the diagonal flake, quite reachy or dynamic. My wingspan was just enough to do it statically. The middle part is a game of "keep it together", before the finish awaits with some more trickery and an anchor that just had to be set so far up left that you're starting to get nervous on the last meter. Great route.

One of my absolute favourites. This time, I got attacked by angry ants in the middle of the dihedral, though. They were swarming all over a thorny bush that grew there, which I brushed with my face a little, which again coaxed them into jumping onto my face and spraying their venom into my eyes. Nasty little buggers. I removed the bush afterwards. Another note: a green dragon cam is perfect to protect the section below the roof (better than the rusty peg). You should leave out the bolt in the chimney to avoid massive rope drag, or take a long-ass sling to extend it.

Finally buckled up to try this, and I can confirm that it's not 8, but 7. Great crack climbing and a good route to level-up your trad skills. Careful with the first placement, though, the crack is quite smooth at the beginning and some brands of cams might slip out. The original line apparently stepped onto the arête at the end (hence the name) and drew up to the left (a peg is still there), which is then the crux of the whole route. However, there's an anchor a little to the right now, too.

Yet another brilliant piece of rock at this wall. The intimidating crack dihedral in the beginning is easier than it looks, the actual difficulty starts when you traverse out to the right into the wall filled with slopers. Barely made it through that passage, sweat dripping off of my brow. The overhanging finish is actually easy (even though it says "very hard" in the old guidebooks; funny old codgers) and great fun.

It's nowadays probably better to start via "Reine Nervensache", but the start actually isn't too bad, just be careful what you hold on to. When you've reached the little alcove with the tiny tree, the real fun starts. Tricky to say the least, but also powerful in places. Climbed to the anchor of "Reine Nervensache" instead of going right to the anchor of "Hohe Liebe".

Felt incredibly hard today in these humid conditions.

Great line, neglected classic. The traverse below the roof is probably what puts most people off, no easy toproping possible. Neither polished nor exceedingly chossy. Best lower off the last bolt, the last few meters are overgrown and there's no anchor. Concerning the route: it's a fun, easy traverse and good layback and crack climbing.

Same procedure as last year, Miss Sophie? I got two moves further this time, though, so only 40 cm missing to the anchor! Worked out a (sort of) beta after I fell, so today I at least reached the anchor. Damn hard finish. Didn't have a brush on me, so next time will be just as dusty above the lip …

(The rating is just for the original start, the crack itself is really good, if you're up for some alpine adventure.) After the little groove, you're supposed to go left just below the crack; I tried that but turned around because of the choss and lack of protection, then traversed left two meters lower. The traverse into the track turned out to be a nightmarish game of peeling off prospective holds, then brushing off grime from the remaining mediocre crimps. Technically, this is probably indeed around 6+, maybe 7-, but you'd need to work the wall with a pressure cleaner before. The upper part went well, though, but the thorn bush above the last bolt is back. Since we didn't have a long enough rope anyway, I stopped there.

Great direct finish. Well … actually, since it's a direct start combined with a direct finish considering the original line, it's a completely different route. Anyway, the first meter after the split from "Hohe Liebe" is quite crumbly, but after that it's perfect rock. The runout after the second bolt in the overhang is unproblematic because you're actually climbing along the huge flakes in the line of "Hohe Liebe", then go back to the right for 5 meters of overhanging, delicate climbing with lots of hidden holds that can cost you the onsight.

Oh bugger. Crux right at the end, after what I first believed to be the anchor because I didn't see any holds above the roof. Splits off from "Reine Nervensache" after about 20 meters or so into a no-hands rest on the left, which you should use, because you need the strength on the last few meters. Bold balance moves a meter above the bolt (I luckily had a knotted sling on my harness which I placed in a crack and which fit perfectly, so my pulse went down a bit again ) lead to a fantastic two-finger pocket. You then clip the last bolt from a huge undercling below the roof, but that's where the journey ended for me. Couldn't figure out how to get over the roof (at least not while the holds above it were slimy from wet lichen … probably hasn't been done in a while). Got to check this out some time.

Somehow overlooked the bolt in the chimney, felt a bit airier than last time. :-D Forgot to take a pen for the book again. #repeat

Still pumpy four years after the onsight. Also still great!

Impressive classic from 1927 that finds the easiest way through the face. Don't be fooled, though, it's by all means not easy. Tricky already to the first bolt, then a tough balance traverse to the little arête. Of course, the arête was a bit wet today, which didn't really help. Up the little dihedral via a rusty peg to a good undercling flake where I placed a cam before stepping over via wet footholds to the next bolt. The rest was dry again, but another challenge awaited in the form of a thornbush (we cut it off afterwards, though). A nice and solid dihedral finishes up the climb ( the final overhang is easy, but there's no bolt afterwards).

Pretty tough boulder at the third bolt. I'm quite sure the flake there was better at some point. Felt more like 8+, compared to "Reine Nervensache", but the style is different. After the boulder, it's far from over, though. Just like with "Robert Elsinger Erinnerungsweg", the slab seems neverending and uncompromising, the holds are round (and dusty …) and there are mostly friction footholds. The moves are great, though, and it was a fantastic feeling to discover all the little tricks during the onsight. At the very end, there's a chossy flake out left, other than that, it's bomber rock and also well-protected.

A brilliant route, which presents itself like a good speech: an elegant start followed by a less memorable and uncomfortable part, but culminating in a fantastic finish that you won't forget for a long time. In rock climbing terms: the slab at the start already demands some tricky, elegant moves, before you have to navigate a relatively chossy middle part; clipping the fourth bolt is a bit uncomfortable if you don't know that there are good holds next to it. The real fun starts once you reach the steep part. Strenuous moves on crimps, pinches and slopers, followed by a burly crack and to finish off, you have to step out onto a blank slab to reach the anchor.

A gnarly classic. Thorn bush below the first bolt (I cut it down as good as I could). Good crack climbing in general, but you always have to be on the lookout for loose material. There has been a bigger rock fall in the middle two years ago which still shows; it's a bit unclear how solid the remaining block lying in the crack really is. A little tree was waiting for me in the upper part. I sawed off most of it and got myself showered in dirt and leaves. At the next (last?) bolt, I lowered off since the major difficulties were over and there was another thorn bush which was almost inpenetrable from below; I'll have to come back and abseil down to remove it.

Fantastic, homogenous route through the middle of the leftmost face. Many complex sections and a hard crux after the layback flake (where I fell). Pumpy throughout. Dusty in places, I definitely need to come back, clean it and climb it.

Felt even better than last time, with the right tools (big cams and nuts for the lower part, small cam – in my case DMM Dragon 0 – for the runout after the roof). Sawed off the rose bushes on the big ledge (and accidentally sent down my saw in the process ) again, so it's climbable without scratches. There was a dead rat in the slot with the strongbox (which is missing a pen for the book …)

Good climbing up to the second bolt (crux is passing the first bolt). The difficulties end there, so it's best to lower off from there, because the rest is not very interesting (except for the fact that you need to be very careful about breaking off holds …), and there's lots of vegetation after the third bolt. Also, no anchor and you need to walk a bit away from the edge to find a trustworthy tree (next to an ant hill).

The polish shows how popular this route once was. Feels like it's hardly ever climbed nowadays, though. Lots of dust on the holds. But still more than a worthwhile climb. Perfect conditions today, sunny autumn day. Cool rock structures and moves, sensible protection in the upper part. The third and fourth bolts should be extended with slings (the fourth because otherwise the carabiner of the draw is lying on the flake below).

Plays in the same league as "Hohe Liebe". A perfectly straight line, nevertheless with obvious features and holds, with increasing difficulty towards the top. One larger bolt distance (you can extend the third bolt of "Hohe Liebe" if you're feeling unsafe) and a difficult passage in the end which resolves nicely if you make a slight left arch.

Terribly chossy rock in the beginning without any noteworthy moves. The actual route is just a short boulder over the bulge. Two moves and it's more or less over. Careful, the bolt with the old rusty piton next to it is the anchor! Loose rock above, so don't try to go any further.

Adventurous route through a dihedral with very good rock quality (but less than optimal protection, so bring nuts and slings) and a glorious roof finish which turns out to be easier than it looks. The unprotected slab in the end (with good holds and a few placements, though) adds to the spice. Maybe bring some secateurs for the roses …