Idahood

Getting there:
Valencia was an easy flight destination. It is an easy 45-60 minute drive from the airport to the climbing area. If you are offered an “upgrade” to a larger vehicle I would decline (small Spanish streets).

Staying:
I stayed in the actual town of Chulilla, but Losa del Obispo or Villar del Arzobispo would also be fine options.

Amenities:
The main grocery store (Consume) is located in Villar del Arzobispo. If you need a copy of the guidebook, the only place we could find it was the tobacco shop in Chulilla; not the climbing store (weird I know). Hoces Del Turia was a really good restaurant.

General Considerations:
It’s Spain. Nothing is open on Sunday. Operating hours for businesses are… sporadic at best. You will never eat dinner before 8PM at a restaurant. There will be poops in the middle of the trail. Weekends tended to be the time to avoid the climbing, as there was a large crowd coming from Valencia.

Climbing:

Routes are long. Bring an 80m rope.

In general I preferred climbing in the Pantano canyon to the Boca de la Voz canyon.

For climbing in the Pantano area the dam parking is the more efficient way, but I do recommend doing the hike from the other entrance at least once.

Chorreras was far and away my favorite sector. Good tufas, but they seep for days after it rains so take advantage if dry. Every route in the 6 grade there was good. Camino de Leche was a must do, as well as Pim Pam Pons.

Masters had really interesting flowstone climbing, All the 6’s on the right were good.

Oasis had more generic vertical limestone crimping.

Peneta had more climbs in the 6 grade with a pretty unique setting being close to the castle.

Rest Day Activities:

• Valencia – The city center has a cool pedestrian zone. There a large park/greenway you can walk around in. Visit the old cathedral, see the guardhouse. Lots of street art to be found as well.
• Chelva – There are some Roman aqueduct ruins here (Pena Cortada). Pretty hiking, could probably spend a whole rest day here.
• Chera – Driving from Chulilla takes you through the Sot de Chera national forest, which was quite pretty. There is a good hike around the lake/dam.
• Alberracin – A bit of a drive for just a day trip, but the castle/town is stunning. The bouldering is quite good too.
• Costa Blanca – Didn’t actually make it down due to rain, but also supposed to be good hiking with some climbing as well.

There doesn’t seem to be much information online regarding where to stay in Ceuse. We ended up renting an AirBnB in Saint Laurent (neighborhood of Sigoyer). This does involve driving to the crag. If you want to stay within walking distance, I would recommend searching around Les Guerins (the actual campsite). Les Roses and Les Bonnets are also close enough for walking.

We flew into Nice, due to the flight price. Time wise, Marseilles or Grenoble are closer though.

For supplies, we found the supermarket in Tallard to be adequate. While it’s purported to be expensive, it was more enjoyable than trying to drive in/around Gap.

For rest days, the lake near Embrun is quite enjoyable.

Just some random thoughts on Kalymnos:

Avoid the busy season. Shoot for the month of November.
Contact info for the awesome flat I stayed at: stsakrios@gr.com (Skavos and Katina)
Flying into Kalymnos from Athens wasn’t bad… although I can see the potential for getting screwed by the weather.
There are plenty of walkable crags, a scooter is not a strict requirement. However, if you want to go to less polished crags a scooter is needed.
You can take the bus to the cheaper market in Panoramas (I think it’s called Smalios).

Apparently Olympic Air doesn’t fly regularly to Kalymnos, so plan accordingly.

Update:
Having now done the Kos flight and subsequent ferry I can endorse this as a totally feasible option.

Had a great weekend at the Fins. Arrived Friday night in the Monster Van (Tom’s Quigley 4×4). We got there early enough to get in a couple pitches before the sun went down. I managed to warm up and then put one burn in on Al’s Diner. I fell on the low crux, but the the crimp felt sticky good. Apparently my training of doing 1-5 with the crimp/mono combo on the campus board paid off.

Saturday I warmed up slowly, doing both the warmups on the right side of the headwall. On my first go on Al’s I stuck the low crux move to the jug, and let out a mighty roar. I climbed into the rest and felt energized, but jittery. After getting my breathing and heart rate down I launched into the upper crux section. I latched the mono and setup my feet, but then bobbled going to the next crimp and fell. It was super demoralizing. I gave Al’s a couple more attempts later in the day but was falling on the low crux again. I tried to not let it get me too down, focusing on the fact that this was my first time climbing to the rest from the ground. I ended the day giving Koona a couple tries.

Sunday I was surprised to find that my skin felt pretty good after doing 7 pitches the day prior. The Fins is notoriously rough on your skin. I warmed up slowly (again), cleaning my draws off the two warmups on the right. I gave Koona a burn, and punted off the top. I gave Chris running beta and he flashed Koona, I picked up a new rest sequence in the pocket swap. Using the new beta I sent Koona. While hanging at the anchor looking at the extension I announced that I’d rather give Al’s another try. I ended up taking a very long rest as a couple other folks gave Al’s a try, including a TR beta burn. I tied in, forced a smile, and reminded myself to have fun. It was my first time trying the route without the first bolt stick clipped, but it didn’t matter. I had the bottom section pretty dialed from trying so many times, but this time I just floated it. I stuck the low crux without making a peep, and got into the rest. Another forced smile, slow the breath, have fun. Latch the mono, catch the next crimp perfectly. Set feet, stick the thumbercling. Grab the hockey stick. At this point I’d always figured I’d skip the draw and just move right, but I couldn’t get my foot up into the next pocket. Fortune smiled on me, as Troy had ticked another foot out left that I could use to clip off. He also chalked the only left foot I could use to step up. This was the same point where Tom had fallen off a month ago. I hoped my height would be enough as I reached to the jug.

I stuck it, fully extended. I trembled a bit and focused on my breathing and my feet. I was able to bump my foot into the normal sequence I had rehearsed. I stayed focused on keeping my excitement in check and slowly walked my feet out right, setting up for the final move to the anchor clipping jug. As I clipped the chains I quietly called “Take!” and then screamed for joy. As Tom lowered me I tried to soak in the moment, as you only get to break into a grade once.

There were fist bumps and hugs. I debated shotgunning my crag beer, but just sipped on it instead. Tom sent Al’s the next go. An epic end to an epic weekend. Season’s just getting started…

The mono move in the upper crux. Photo by the talented Mr. Kipp Schorr.