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| First ascent of Titinden: Elizabeth Main
(a.k.a. Mrs. Aubrey Le Blond), Emil Imboden and Josef Imboden, summer
1899 First winter ascent of Titinden by Geir Jenssen and Are Navas, 1. April 1980. A short route description: Titinden is the northernmost, 10th peak of the Lakselvtindene. Start from Holmbukta in Sørfjorden. Follow Goverdalen for 4 km until you stand right under the East face of Titinden.The route follows a snowy, icy gully that starts 400 m above sea level and leads up to a little notch between the North and East summit. Mostly 45 degrees on snow, but also steeper sections with ice and rock. The two rectangles shows the two slightly difficult sections. The first one in the form of a small ice field, the second in the form of a steep mixed section with snow, ice and rock. The first one can be avoided by following the snow fields to the left of the gully instead of climbing the gully itself. From the summit notch follow a corniced, quite dangerous ridge for 100 m to the main South summit. About the return: It is possible to return down the "normal" route on the West face, but because we could not find it we were forced to climb down the East face. Two abseils over the difficult sections. A long climb! Recommended equipment: Ice axe, crampons, 2-3 snow anchors, 2-3 ice screws, 2-3 Friends and a couple of slings. From my diary: "On Tuesday the weather changed for the better. Sunshine and -2 degrees Celcius. We decided to try a gully on the East face of Titinden. We started climbing around noon and reached the summit ridge at 7 pm. We followed a narrow ridge to the summit. First winter ascent of Titinden! Spent two hours looking for an alternative return route, but gave up and had to downclimb the East face route. This took us all night. Reached the camp at 5 am. A few hours later and the others would have contacted the police to start a rescue operation. (No mobile phones in those days!) From Alpine Journal 1975: Winter climbing in Lyngen (excerpt) J. M. G. Sheridan "In the early winter of 1973, the Mountain Leaders of the Royal Marines and one of their Instructors' Courses, were given clearance to visit the Lyngen Alps in N Norway on completion of their Arctic Training. Anntind (Imágaisi) was climbed by a large party of 3 ropes and the views of the sharp peaks and glaciers of the Lakselvdal Range were truly alpine in nature. These peaks still await winter ascents apart from Titind which had a German party on it in October and November 1972. From Anntind a steep descent was made to climb Ellendaltind to the W which boasts a short but very fine ridge between the summit peaks. Najalvarre (1590 m) remained unclimbed due, in the main, to bad weather and snow conditions and remains a plum for picking by the next party. A traverse of the E Ridge of this mountain looks to be a difficult and a major undertaking." |
The East face
of
Titinden as seen from
Sløkedalen
The East face of Titinden
as seen from Sløkedalen.
The East face of Titinden
as seen Goverdalen.
Are Navas on the
first ice
section.
Looking down the gully
Looking down the gully.
