After leaving Sicily, our next climbing stop was Statte in Puglia. Statte is right in the arch of the boot of Italy, about 500km south east of Rome and 15 km north of the city of Taranto. The crags at Statte are spread across 16 sectors along the side of a 100m (or more) deep, … Continue reading Climbing in Statte
We have had a fantastic 10 days climbing in Statte (in the heel of Italy), but one thing that has been proven to me during this trip, is that I am absolutely hopeless at spotting a good route! Generally, I just go with the flow. I enjoy climbing for the places it takes me, the … Continue reading Do not let me choose routes!
After four days of climbing in Statte we needed a rest, or to be more specific, the skin on our fingers needed a rest. So we headed out to explore two unique towns in the Puglia region: Matera and Alberobello (more on Alberobello later). Matera is a town characterised by its cave dwellings. Caves which … Continue reading Exploring Caves in Matera
I started climbing almost 40 years ago but for much of the last twenty years everything, including climbing, took a back seat to work. Whilst I have never stopped climbing, the standard at which I performed slipped from on-sighting E5 / 7b to HVS / 6b. However, my enthusiasm for climbing never dimmed and is … Continue reading Making Progress?
As our time on Sicily draws to a close we find we will be leaving with a great sense of dissatisfaction. Why? Well, mainly because we have only scratched a small part of the surface of this varied and complex place. Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean; almost 200 times larger than Kalymnos, … Continue reading Climbing in South East Sicily
One of the anticipated highlights of this trip for me, was the chance to explore some active volcanoes. To get up close and personal, to peer inside the crater and to touch the rock that been thrown up from the depths of the earth. Our itinerary was designed to give me the chance to see … Continue reading Volcanic (Missed) Adventures
After 10 days of unpredictable and changeable weather our time in San Vito Lo Capo has come to an end. Despite several days of hanging around waiting for the weather to improve, the time passed very quickly, and I certainly, was not yet ready to move on. We had extended our stay by an extra … Continue reading San Vito to Ragusa, via Selinunte
Ordinary Climbers 