Jasper redpoints another route on Eiger

The most prestigious North Face in the Alps has seen another free ascent by well-known Robert Jasper. The German made the first redpoint ascent of Yeti, a route which is situated on the right side of the Eiger. Leading the 18-pitch route graded 7c/c+ took Jasper, accompanied by Stefan Eder, only 12 hours.
For the first time Jasper tried the route last year, but back then he couldn’t free-climb all the pictches. This year Robert spent two days practising moves on the last 250 meters, which offer the hardest climbing. “This section is often wet and also very difficult – a bad combination, bacause one can’t trust the holds. Every meter you climb eats your power and time” – says Robert. The continuous one-day redpoint ascent was made on July 16th.

Yeti was put up in 1998 by Italians Gianni Faggina and Andrea Forlini. The team initially planned to repeat The Sanction (more or less the imaginery line attempted in the Clint Eastwood film, The Eiger Sanction, which was eventually climbed in 1988 by Daniel Anker and Michel Piola at ED3 VIII) but failed to find the bolts put in by the first ascetionists. Finally, they spotted a possibility for a new route on the left of The Sanction but still to the right of the 1981 route North Diedre 6c A2 (Hand and Christel Howald, Marcel Reudi). The line begins from the Dynamitloch, a small tunnel opening out to the North Face (not to be mistaken with the famous Stollenloch, which is about 200m to the east). The Italian party climbed in capsule style, using portaledges. In total, they spent 26 days on the wall, establishing a new 800-meter line with 6c+ obligatory climbing and the hardest pitches up to 7c+.
Rober Jasper has been familiar with the Eiger since the age of 16, when he failed to repeat the 1938 route. Since then he has climbed the face at least 15 times. His best achievements there include a solo of the first Alpine sport climb on the face, Spit Verdonesque, and a new route put up together with his wife, Daniela, Symphonie de Liberte (F8a).