Dörte Pietron and Daniel Gebel were not having great luck on their trip through Madagascar. The climbing routes they were finding were poorly maintained, and had crumbling rock and corroded bolts.
Then, the two Patagonia ambassador climbers found Lalan’i Mpanjaka. Malagasy for “the King Line,” this 11-pitch route is nearly 2,000 vertical feet of highly technical trad climbing. The bolts were fresh. The sharp granite rock was solid and grippy. And the two climbers fell in love with the route.
But to reach the top, they had to pull out almost every trick in the book. They pushed themselves, spending hours on their portaledge and climbing well past dark. Using their free wall kit, the pair ascended the extremely exposed rock face.
Watch their adventure in the video above, and for more from Patagonia, check out the brand’s YouTube page.
Runtime: 6:25 minutes
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