"The hardest pitch is not the A5-traverse, Golden Desert or The Move. The hardest pitch is a short 5.12c downclimb." That's what everyone was saying. 5.12c? Isn't that like 7b+ or something? When was the last time you tried a 7b+ that you couldn't do, Stefan asked. The first day couldn't have been much smoother. We quickly passed the crux slab pitches of Freeblast, simul-climbed passed the formation called Half Dollar and reched the Heart ledges well before lunch. Two slabs and one off-width later we met up with our haul bag that had been waiting for us on top of Hollow flake. We looked up. Both of us staring at the same pitch. I knew what a fight we where up against 150 meters higher up, and I knew that we only had power enough for one good try each, but that it probably would be enough. Lots of sweat for sure, probably blood, and hopefully victory. Stefan was quiet for a change where he stood staring at the Monster off-width, and that had to mean something.

We beat the monster in the glow of our head-lamps and pitched our portal edge, on sight, by the ledges under El Cap Spire. Next day we came to a dead stop. Sure, 5.12c doesn't have to be that hard, but imagine a 5.12c slab that has to be climbed donwards! After a day of persistant balancing Stefan had found a way that worked for him. As for myself, I had almost given up the whole dream of freeing Golden Gate. On the last try of the day Stefan managed to hang on and redpoint that pitch. How did he do it? His beta seemed impossible for me. I tried 15 other ways, and just before I totally ran out of patience, I found a way that might work. " We won't climb on from here before you have succseeded", Stefan said and hope reappered. Exciting and fun. Had it been as fun if we would have known from the start that we would make it? I don't think so.

The next morning I sent the down-climb on my second try, and we could climb full speed towards the next hard pitch: The Move. Every pitch in Yosemite with a name is either difficult, exeptionally good, or simply hard. The Move qualifies on hard, and a little bit unlikely as it takes a line on a steep wall connecting two crack-systems, and makes it possible to climb free up that part of El Cap. Neither Stefan or I managed to free that pitch that day, but decided to continue anyway to a ledge that is called Tower to the people, since it makes a better bivy. We decided that it would be good enough style for us to lower down the following day to redpoint it.

The Move was the pitch that was hardest for me. Stefan didn't seem to have that hard for it with his insanely long arms. Still a difficult crux for him, but I had to do another two hard moves. Stefan led the pitch just as the sun started to our part of the wall from behind The Nose. I still couldn't do it and fell down into a state of despair again. Was this how it was supposed to end? Almost-free. Our goal had been to climb Golden Gate free. Bouth of us. Not just Stefan! We rested the rest of our fourth day on the wall. "Good for you Stefan", I said, but inside I thought: " Damn! I wish you also had fallen of there and not made it, like me".

We left The Move behind for now and turned to the last two crux-pithes: Golden Desert and the A5-traverse. We had practiced these a week earlier, and already knew that we had a good chanse on doing them when we arrived here. And now we were here. Now was the time to put up. I racked up and set off on the crimpy start. My body felt rested and ready, and I soon decided that there was no need for a warm-up-run. The crux ot the Golden desert pitch is an eight meter long and very thin dihedral with really bad feet. I had power to waste. Could crimp and pinch harder than I needed to and clipped the next belay without falls in my first try. It had saved me a lot of power and skin to sucseed so swiftly. Stefan spat and swore as he fell of for a second time. Third time he made it look easy. Next pitch. The A5-traverse is fairly short, but feels a lot longer. Pumpy climbing on slopers, small pockets and one or two little edge to crimp on. I managed to hit every sequence right and sent this pitch too first try. Stefan did it on his second. We climbed another two pitches before we lowered down to our new home on the Tower to the people, were we rested the rest of the day.

Between us and the top only a few easier pitches awaited us, but I still hadn't redpointed The Move. It was already our sixth day on the wall but we had food and water for another couple of days still. Stefan repeatedly said that we could stay as as long as it would take us, but somewere inside I knew I couldn't take failing more than one more day on The Move. We rapped back down. The crux is right at the end of the pitch, and before that you get a deasent rest. I rested there for quite a while. Let my body getting warmed up from the crimping in the start. Perfect warm-up. This was the moment everything came down to, but I didn't think about that. I just tried a little bit harder than I had before and climbed up to Stefan who waited on the next ledge with a big smile.

The remaining pitches of Golden Gate was pure pleasure. 100 meters of laybacking and jamming in a thin and steep flake that is called Razor blade. Super-exposed climbing with the whole west side of El Cap below us. At two p.m. we stood at the top. "You rock man", I said. "No man, you rock", Stefan replied.