By Jonathan. Articles about sport climbing don't often describe failure. In part, this could be because the basic premise of sport climbing is that if you work a route for long enough you will eventually do it. A premise that obviously doesn't apply if what motivates you is on-sighting routes. In this mode, success and … Continue reading You Lose Some, You Win Some
For our last week on Kalymnos we were joined by our friends Penny and Mark. This was Penny's first climbing holiday, and we are delighted that she agreed to write a guest blog for us, giving her perspective on the week in Kalymnos. Penny and Mark climbing at Summertime It was with some trepidation that … Continue reading Climbing on Kalymnos: A Beginners Perspective
By Jonathan. Whilst Kalymnos is a world renowned destination for sport climbing it is an otherwise relatively obscure place. It has a rugged beauty but few of the historical or hedonistic attractions that tempt people to many of the other Greek islands. We were therefore a little surprised by how much the character of Masouri … Continue reading Climbing on Kalymnos: Reflections
By: Gaynor After nearly 10 days of watching beautiful sunsets over the island of Telendos, just off the coast of Kalymnos, we decided it was time to investigate further. Part of the long distance Kalymnos Trail circles around the island in a 10km sector that takes the walker past some of the major climbing crags … Continue reading Surviving our Rest Day – the epic walk around Telendos
By: Gaynor Sevasti is a village in northern Greece which has a population of around 650. It is also the name of a route on the Iannis sector in Kalymnos. A route that was a milestone for Jon during this trip. We first saw Sevasti the day after we arrived in Kalymnos. It had rained … Continue reading The Story of Sevasti
by: Jonathan It was beginning to seem like we were the only climbers in Britain who had never been to Kalymnos, so on this trip we are rectifying that omission. Despite knowing so many people who had been to Kalymnos we didn't know much about the place or what to expect. To most tourists, Kalymnos … Continue reading Kalymnos: First Impressions
After a couple of fabulous days on the Greek island of Nisyros, we caught a small, bouncy ferry for the short hop over to Kalymnos. We were renewed, recharged and ready to go climbing again. By the time we found our apartment in Masouri, got supplies and settled in, the sun was setting over the … Continue reading An auspicious start?
It's hot and the sun is beating down on me. The cool breeze does not penetrate into this place. A sulphurous smell permeates the air, and the dry, acrid rock fractures under my feet. Each crack reveals a layer of bright yellow rock, sulphur, crystallised from the steaming gasses. Small droplets of water are visible … Continue reading The Nisyros Volcano
Being back in Kyparissi has been wonderful although our time here didn't get off to a very auspicious start. We first visited Kyparissi last November but it was a short stay and we only climbed at one sector, Kastraki. This time we had five possible climbing days and intended to visit more of the sectors. … Continue reading Climbing in Kyparissi
I am sitting writing this in our latest port of call, Kyparissi, on the east coast of the Peloponnese. My main thought right now is that today is the halfway point in our trip. But I don't really want to think about that! We have certainly settled into a rhythm on this trip, even though … Continue reading Exploring the Peloponnese
Ordinary Climbers 