Cheselenflue | Dr Blau Chäfer ****

6SL | 150m | 6a + (5c obl)

W. Britschgi 1996

The route name, the blue beetle, sounds lovely and could be associated with a plaisir or even children's route. On the one hand dr Blau Chäfer actually has a plaisir character. The climbing is, as is typical for the cross-layered limestone in the Melchtal, very generous with often positive holds. Accordingly, the Blau Chäfer in particular tests rather your ability to stick good holds in steeper terrain and less how precisely you can move in technically delicate terrain. This suits, for example, those people who have less experience in technically delicate outdoor climbing and who are used to gyms. For those, the Blau Chäfer, for example accompanied by an experienced climber or mountain guide, offers an extremely attractive route to gain experience in outdoor multipitch climbing, comparable for instance to the very generous routes at the Mittagflue above Guttannen.

The rock in the Blau Chäfer is consistently good and the less solid sections are already well cleaned due to the numerous ascents. Climbing requires some power and the grades go up to 6a+, but the mandatory difficulties are no more than 5c. Whether you have to take a rest in the individual pitches or not, it is a great pleasure to climb the impressively steep Blau Chäfer - especially knowing that such steep routes can hardly be found in those grades.