Magic Wood, new trad climb in Swiss bouldering paradise

Magic Wood, which forms along with with Cresciano and Chironico one of the "Big Three" bouldering areas in Switzerland, is currently in the news not for another high-end boulder problem but, somewhat unusually, for a new trad climb.

Armed with nuts and Friends Lorin Etzel and Sammy Würtz,established ‘Alte Flamme, neuer Docht’, old flame new wick, that reaches the top of the rock face clerkly visibile from the Magic Wood campsite. The five-pitch outing breaches difficulties up to 6c+.

The route in the Averstal was established ground-up between 2016 and 2018 with the help of Ulf Kühner and Hanna Bannier and follows and series of large cracks that need protecting, while are belays are bolted. Instead of descending on foot through the forest an abseil descent is highly recommended.