Klippeklatring (trad climbing)

Klippeklatring — or trad climbing (from ‘traditional climbing’) — is the older of the two main forms of rope climbing, and still the dominant form on Norwegian mountains and big walls. You climb routes where the protection is placed and removed as you go: you fit nuts in cracks, cams in parallel cracks, and slings around blocks or projecting flakes. The climber in front places the protection; the climber behind — the second — removes it. The result is that the rock keeps its original form, no bolts are left behind, and every trip becomes a piece of craft.

For anyone who has climbed sport first, the move to trad is often the biggest qualitative difference in their climbing career. Everything you have learnt about movement and physical technique still applies, but you also have to read the rock for protection, judge the quality of your own placements, and take responsibility for the protection system in a way that sport climbing does not require.

What sets trad apart from sport

The difference between trad and sport climbing comes down to who places the protection:

Sport climbing — bolts have been drilled into the rock by earlier climbers. You clip quickdraws into the bolts as you pass them. The protection is reliable (tested to 25 kN), predictable, and pre-installed.

Klippeklatring (trad) — you bring nuts, cams and slings. You place them in cracks or around blocks as you go. The second takes them out as he or she climbs up. The protection depends on your own judgement of the placement — is the crack good? Is the cam the right size? Is the sling sitting securely?

The consequence is that trad demands more skill, but also gives more flexibility — you can climb routes that have no bolts (most Norwegian alpine routes, many classic Setesdal routes, and the whole big-wall tradition). You leave no trace on the rock. And you build a more fundamental understanding of climbing protection.

For anyone who wants to climb in the Norwegian mountains — Hurrungane, Romsdal, Lofoten, Sunnmøre — trad is in practice necessary. Most classic routes are unbolted, and even where bolts exist they are often spaced widely enough that trad placements between them are obligatory.

Equipment — natural protection

The main categories of trad gear:

Nuts (nuts/stoppers) — passive protection in the form of small metal blocks with a sling. Placed in constrictions in cracks. The NKF recommends 10–12 nuts in various sizes per route. The most classic makers: Black Diamond, DMM, Wild Country.

Cams (cams, friends, Camalots) — active protection that is spring-loaded. The lobe expands when you squeeze the trigger, grips the crack, and then locks when the trigger is released. More reliable than nuts in parallel cracks, more expensive (1,000–1,500 kr each), and they take a little more practice to place well. The NKF recommends 5–12 cams per route, sized to suit the route.

Slings (slings) — textile slings that are placed around blocks, projecting flakes or through holes in the rock. Classic for building a belay or for reducing rope drag.

Hexes (hexcentrics) — hexagonal nuts placed as a combination of passive and active protection. Less common in modern climbing, but still used.

Offset nuts (offset nuts) — for irregular cracks.

For anyone wanting to build a trad rack: start with a full set of nuts (around 4,000–5,000 kr) and one set of 5–6 cams in moderate sizes (around 6,000–10,000 kr). You can expand later. A full trad rack for varied climbing typically costs 15,000–30,000 kr.

Placing protection — the heart of the skill

Correct placement is what actually decides whether the protection holds. The classic principles:

For nuts:

Place the nut in constrictions where the crack becomes narrower than the nut
Thread the sling down in the direction of loading
Check with a firm tug that it sits stably
Avoid placements where the nut can fall out if you disturb the crack

For cams:

Place in the middle of parallel cracks, not in constrictions
Choose a cam that is expanded to 50–80 per cent (not fully open, not fully closed)
Check that all four lobes have good contact with the rock
Avoid cracks that are too wide (lobes fully open) or too narrow (lobes barely engaged)

For slings:

Choose blocks or projecting flakes that are stable (not loose)
Test the loading with a strong pull before you climb on
Consider how the sling lies — it should not slip off the block when the load comes on

Placement is learnt only through practice. On a basic trad climbing course (2–3 days with NKF-approved providers such as Norges Høgfjellsskole) you place dozens of pieces of protection on lightly loaded terrain, and the instructor gives feedback. That is the difference between reading about placement and being able to do it.

Where in Norway

Trad climbing thrives in particular in the mountains and on natural crack systems:

Hurrungane and Skagastølstindene — Storen, Soltindene, Maradalsryggen, Vigdals sva. Classic trad routes at alpine heights. Usually requires a combination of glacier travel and climbing.

Romsdalen — Trollveggen, Romsdalshornet, Vengetind. Big-wall climbing is almost exclusively trad in Romsdal.

Lofoten — Vågakallen, Stortind, Helvetestind. Granite cracks that are ideal for trad.

Sunnmøre — Slogen, Kolåstind, the Vestkapp area.

Stetind — the classic trad mountaineering route in Norway.

Setesdal and Hægefjell — even though many routes here are sport routes, several are classic trad lines (Via Lara has bolt pirouettes, but other routes on Hægefjell are pure trad).

Kjerag — big-wall trad in top form. Tsunami (9-/9), Hoka Hey, and a range of other long routes.

For anyone wanting to build trad experience in Norway, the order is typically: short trad routes in sport-climbing areas (many Setesdal crags have the odd trad line alongside the sport routes), then longer multi-pitch trad in Hægefjell or Lofoten, then alpine trad in Hurrungane or Sunnmøre.

The way in

For anyone who has sport climbed and wants to move into trad:

Basic trad climbing course — a 2–3 day course with NKF-approved providers. Norges Høgfjellsskole, NTK, or local climbing clubs. Price typically 3,000–5,000 kr.
Climb with an experienced mentor — your first outdoor trad trip in the company of someone with 50+ trad routes under their belt. They see placements you do not see, and they correct your mistakes before they become dangerous.
Easy routes first — start with trad routes that are two grades below what you climb on sport. You need the margin to focus on placement without the climbing itself being critical.
Short routes before long ones — single-pitch trad before multi-pitch. Multi-pitch trad requires belay building, which is a skill of its own.
Build gradually — after a season of club trad you are ready for independent trips. After two or three seasons you can consider alpine trips in Hurrungane or Lofoten.

Safety

Trad safety is like sport-climbing safety plus two additional elements:

Placement judgement — the core. Learnt on a course, practised as you go. Know that a marginally placed nut can be pulled out by a fall, while a good placement holds even long falls.

Fall prevention — on trad routes falls are potentially more serious than on sport routes because the protection can fail. Climb with a margin. If you feel that the next sequence is beyond your level, place an extra piece of protection or consider retreating.

In addition, the same basic safety applies as for all climbing: helmet, correct tie-in knot, correct communication, a known route.

Ethics

The trad tradition is strong in the Norwegian climbing community, and there are some established principles:

Do not bolt routes that can be climbed trad. If a route has natural cracks that take good protection, it is left as trad. Bolts are used where natural protection does not exist (compact rock, smooth granite, etc.).

Leave the rock as you found it. Do not leave behind slings, jammed nuts or other traces.

Respect the first ascensionist’s grade and choice of line. If the route was first ascended as trad, you climb it as trad — not as sport climbing with extra bolts.

The bolting debate has been a live one in Norwegian climbing for the past 40 years. German climbers who established routes in Setesdal in the 1980s have returned to fit better belays or extra bolts on certain routes, and there is still discussion about how much is appropriate.

Next steps

If you climb sport and want to try trad: take a basic trad climbing course and join a club trip to Setesdal or Hægefjell.

If you climb trad and want to go further: build length through mountaineering or big-wall climbing. Both are trad-based and let you use the skill in alpine or long settings.

For equipment choices: protection and equipment goes through the additions in detail.

Learn more

Text: Snuitide (2026).