It’s no secret that we love a via ferrata; metal ladders which provide access in and around mountainous regions, such as the area of Norway around Loen village.  Already host to several via ferrata (albeit ones fixed into the rocks) offering stunning views across the fjords, the latest addition, Stigull, is 131 feet long, at a 45 degree angle and spans a drop of 2,591 feet.  Stigull takes the fearless to the top of Mount Hoven.

This new metal ladder is reached from other sections of the extensive network of mountain routes and has 120 steps, although these are more like skinny rungs than something you’d expect to find on a domestic step ladder, for example.  Climbers are secured to the via ferrata at all times and can scale the routes with a guide, or alone for more experienced mountaineers.  The route is said to be suitable for anyone with a reasonable degree of fitness, although you’ll need a head for heights to keep your knees stable!

From the ground, and other mountainside vantage points, it looks as though people are floating in mid-air and it probable feels a lot like it too, especially if you dare to look down.  Once you’ve made the floating journey there’s a restaurant at the top where you can take a well-earned break and refuel, then make the descent in a cable car (if you’re not up for continuing your climb on the via ferrata, that is).

You might think a cable car sounds like the easy route off a mountain, but for skiers in the Köroğlu Mountains in Turkey it was anything but.  Users of the chair lifts were stranded for four and a half hours when an electrical fault halted the lifts, and evacuations were carried out with a variety of methods.  The most unorthodox was the use of an extension ladder held steady by seven people on the ground.  The extension ladder seemed to be a triple section model, which means it was quite heavy, and the crew holding it at an angle, with no support at the top, must have been pretty strong.

Unfortunately, the video cuts out before we see either of the people on the chair lift attempt to climb down, but as they say, no news is good news so we assume this venture worked in the end.  It goes without saying that an extension ladder is never designed to be used as a freestanding ladder and should only ever be used when in a safe leaning position against a wall, ideally secured at one or both ends for extra stability.

Finally, an extension ladder might have saved the day when an airline worker fell from the plane after colleagues moved the mobile steps from position.  There are rules in place that the moveable staircases must not be moved while the plane doors are open, but in this case that rule was broken and led to a man falling straight to the concrete runway below, landing on his back.

The footage shows the airline worker stepping off the plane, expecting the stairs to be there, but they had been wheeled away only seconds before he fell.  An investigation is underway into the incident, but the injuries the man sustained are not thought to be life threatening.

Clearly, using ladders and scaling heights can be a dangerous business, so always be aware of your surroundings, as well as the actions of others.  We’re sure our customers would always be using the correct equipment in a safe manner, but we can never be sure what other people around us might think is a good idea at the time…