Ålesund via ferrata — Attraction in Ålesund

My first via ferrata experience and it has well and truly given me the bug! I had a fantastic time climbing Ålesund via ferrata yesterday, despite the weather being somewhat damp.

I was lucky enough to be the only person booked for my chosen time slot, so it meant I got a fab 1:1 climbing session with my guide, who was absolutely marvellous! He was a genuinely lovely chap who was just the right type of encouraging for me. I need enthusiastic but firm, with time to work stuff out for myself, and he gave me exactly that. At no point did I feel rushed to climb, or felt that he was getting impatient, and was given all the time I needed to figure out each move for myself (I've climbed indoors a fair amount so had the ability to do so). He was also nicely chatty, with a great sense of humour, so we got on very well!

As for the route itself, as a newbie to via ferrata with a couple of years of indoor climbing experience, it was just the right level of challenging to be enjoyable without frustration or needing step-by-step instructions from my guide. For total newbies without climbing experience, I know the guides would step in to give advice and instructions wherever needed. It's only a fairly short via ferrata too (250m ish) so again, a really accessible introduction to via ferrata. Time-wise it took me roughly an hour, which included a good ten minutes soaking in the view from the bench around half way up, and countless pauses to work out my next move! For more experienced 'mountain goats', this would obviously be a quicker climb, while with nervous new climbers, it would likely take longer.

The end of the climb is hidden in the bushes off the side of the steps near the top of the mountain. It amused me enormously that we just popped out of the bushes beside the steps like a pair of bedraggled explorers, much to the surprise of all the tourists making use of said steps 😂 I think the last thing any of them expected was to come across a pair of people in climbing helmets and harnesses, clambering over the safety fence onto the steps!

All in all, an amazing experience- if I ever find myself in Ålesund again, I will definitely be paying another visit to the...

Did this whilst in Alesund for the day on a cruise - Brit, our guide was fantastic! We had never done anything like this before, but absolutely loved it! We had amazing weather so the view from the top was spectacular. A great alternative to climbing the steps up to the view point. Not too tricky, even for total novice climbers like us. Brit was super patient and helpful when I was a bit stuck in places (haha). We had pre-booked, but there were no other people waiting, so we could have probably just walked up and paid...

The Via Ferrata itself is quite easy, but is exactly as expected based on description on the website. The service was good and friendly, views from the top - fantastic. The viewpoint nearby provides also very good views, but is quite crowded, while we could enjoy views over Ålesund in piece and solitude. The Via Ferrata point is a simple spot in the park, so no toilet, cafe or other facilities than...