Stefano Ghisolfi frees Excalibur 9B+
New venture for climber The North Face Stefano Ghisolfi who managed to free one of the hardest routes in Italy on Feb. 3.
When the sword is not in the rock but is the rock itself, it has to be conquered in other ways. And a way was found by The North Face team climber Stefano Ghisolfi, who freed the Excalibur route (9b+) in Drena, in the province of Trento, which until Feb. 3 was untamed even by the best climbers in the world. In fact, for months the route had been tackled by Stefano, Adam Ondra and Will Bosi without much success because of Excalibur’s peculiarity: as short as it is intense.
“Hard to imagine a more perfect line than this one, I must admit that the process was extremely difficult, from the first time I understood the beta and thought it was impossible, to the start when I felt solid and secure. The best thing about this project, however, was the people I shared it with, who are among the best climbers in the world, but especially with my friends. I am also confident to propose 9b+ as a grade, this time I have no doubt it is definitely the hardest of all my first ascents and probably the hardest route in Italy to date.” Stefano comments.
