By the late 1970s and early 1980s, Carl Boenish’s filming and organizing helped define BASE jumping as a distinct recreational activity rather than an occasional stunt. His work spread ideas about gear use and jump technique across a growing international community. This wider awareness helped draw European jumpers toward major cliffs such as Trollveggen.
In the summer of 1980, BASE jumping activity began to concentrate around Trollveggen (the Troll Wall) in Romsdalen, Norway. The wall’s dramatic vertical drop made it a natural proving ground for a new sport that was still developing its techniques and safety norms. This set Norway up as an early European focal point for cliff jumping with parachutes.
On July 5, 1984, Carl Boenish completed a major jump at Trollveggen that was widely treated as a record-setting “highest BASE jump” at the time. The event drew strong attention to Norway’s big-wall terrain for BASE jumping. It also highlighted how quickly the sport was pushing into more demanding environments.
On July 7, 1984, Boenish was found dead after an unsuccessful jump from a different takeoff point on Trollveggen. His death underscored the sport’s high consequences when conditions, equipment, or timing go wrong. It also intensified public and official concerns about risk and rescues at Trollveggen.
Norwegian authorities established a legal prohibition on parachute jumping and even carrying parachute equipment in the Trolltindene area (including Trollveggen). The regulation took effect on June 12, 1987, creating one of Europe’s most well-known BASE-specific restrictions. The ban reflected fears about fatalities and dangerous rescue operations in steep terrain.
By 1989, BASE jumping had been introduced to the Lauterbrunnen Valley in Switzerland, where it remained legal and accessible compared with banned areas elsewhere. Over the following years, the valley became one of Europe’s best-known jumping centers, shaping travel patterns and community norms. Switzerland’s permissive environment contrasted with Norway’s Trolltindene ban, highlighting different European approaches to managing the sport.
In July 1994, early jumps at Monte Brento in northern Italy helped establish another key European cliff site. With time, Brento’s consistent terrain and access contributed to a stronger, travel-based European BASE scene. This broadened the sport from a few iconic walls into a network of well-known locations.
In October 1994, Stein Edvardsen made the first BASE jump from Kjerag above Lysefjorden, an enormous cliff with a large vertical drop. This created a new Norwegian center of activity outside Romsdalen, where jumping faced a ban. Kjerag’s geography and access helped it develop into a major European destination.
In 1996, the Norwegian Base Association began offering a BASE course in the Lysebotn area near Kjerag. Organized instruction supported a shift from informal mentorship toward structured training. This was important for Norway and for visiting Europeans, since Kjerag was becoming an international site.
In 1996, Kjerag experienced its first fatal accident, bringing police and public attention to how the sport was being practiced there. The incident increased pressure to show that jumpers had procedures to reduce preventable risk. This moment helped push Norwegian jumpers toward more formal guidelines and training.
In 1997, another fatality at Kjerag led the local chief of police to consider closing jumping at the cliffs. According to later accounts, authorities sought concrete evidence that rescues would be too dangerous or that repeated rescues were likely, but these points could not be firmly proven at the time. The outcome was continued jumping, along with more emphasis on rules and coordination.
By the summer of 1999, Kjerag saw thousands of jumps, showing how fast the site had grown into a European hub. The same season included multiple fatalities, intensifying debate about whether and how the activity could continue. Increased scale made informal “everyone knows everyone” safety culture harder to maintain.
In 2000, jumping expanded beyond Kjerag to include Smellveggen, adding a new cliff option near Lysebotn. More exit points meant more visitors and more varied jump plans, but also more situations for organizers and rescuers to track. This expansion helped push local organization beyond a loose national association model.
In December 2000, jumpers created the Stavanger B.A.S.E Klubb (SBK) to provide local responsibility for Kjerag and nearby exits. The goal was to keep the site open by coordinating rules, jump standards, and interactions with authorities and rescue services. This marked a shift toward durable institutions supporting BASE jumping in Norway.
Development of BASE Jumping in Norway and Europe (1980-2005)