The crone of civilization is futility: Climb up straight walls with no use or sense, just for the sheer fun of it. And, of course, for good company, sunshine and body tension.

The weekend before November locks in, any place close to the Alps faces piles of cars and people, hikers and families. Hence, it is a perfect day for the last climbing possibility before they close down. Even though the outer walls of “High East” count less then 18m, we enjoy rays of sun and have a narrow wall all for ourselves.

Around noon, we feel the satisfaction of muscle soreness in arms, scapula and fingers – well done for rookies like us!

Hopefully we will not lose all the smooth routine of today’s difficulty levels… I would rather continue with overhanging routes or alpine scarps to climb, but for the time being, we will need to restore our equipment in the closets and wait for flattened curves and re-opened climbing gyms.