Øksehøgget, or the Axe Gash couloir, is a gnarly, 1,338 foot couloir in Norway. It’s very narrow, appearing to be just about the width of three or four average people at parts, and it stays at about 50° throughout. With it’s continuous steepness, skiing the couloir with speed is near impossible. Instead, most people are forced to descend jump-turn by jump-turn, allowing the sluff they create to move down the mountain without touching them.
Nikolai Schirmer is a bit different than most people, and he saw the Axe Gash as a challenge beyond others. For 9 years it consumed his mind, with a dream of sending the couloir with grace and speed, in a way very few could do.
The final attempt in this video actually occurred five years ago, and Schirmer still hasn’t been back. But he’s shredding elsewhere and continuing to push the limits in the backcountry.
