Three climbers claim first ascent of Eyrarkerling rock pinnacle

Three Icelandic climbers believe they may be the first people to reach the top of Eyrarkerling, a roughly 70-metre rock pinnacle in Dýrafjörður that historical place-name records describe as “unclimbable,” mbl.is reports.

Egill Örn Sigurpálsson, Jón Hákon Richter and Sigurður Arnoldsen Richter climbed the pinnacle on 11 August. They said they enjoy finding untouched peaks and summits in Iceland and being the first to reach them.

The climb took about two hours and followed the narrow Klofi passage between Eyrarkerling and Kerlingarfjall mountain. The ascent was uneventful, and the climbers had excellent weather.

Sigurður reached the top first, followed by Egill. Jón accompanied them to Klofi and the pinnacle, taking photographs of the climb from below.

Sigurður said Eyrarkerling was somewhat steeper and more difficult to climb than several other pinnacles he had previously scaled, including Hraundrangur and Lóndrangar.

The summit ridge was so narrow that the climbers could barely stand on it. Sigurður said the easiest option was to sit astride the ridge, while the blue-topped spire was so thin that there was room for only half a buttock at a time.

To the best of their knowledge, the three men are the first to stand on Eyrarkerling. They have found no written records of anyone having climbed the pinnacle, although older place-name records describe it as “unclimbable.”