Val Pennavaire and Colosseo

Val Pennaire is a large valley starting from Albenga and offering over 40 crags and more than 1000 Val Pennavaire could be easily a target even for a longer climbing holiday just because of the huge amount of good quality routes to be climbed. A good amount of the routes have been bolted after 2000 or even later than 2010 thou the first rock climbers discovered the valley already in the 90's. If the sole number of fresh routes is not a justification for a visit then the varied styles of climbing from tufas to overhangs and slabs are. 

Our pick of the day from Val Pennavaire was the crag Colosseo that has respectable 35 routes from 4a to 7c+, majority of the routes being on the range of 6a-7b. Bolting here is good as usual and the routes are relatively new, bolted between 2005 and 2006. On some overhangs a bit of polished rock exists but nothing that would affect to the climbing experience. Most propably the best parts of the wall are the on the overhanging part of the wall. Mostly those are 7+ routes but there is still some good overhangs for 6 grade climbers as well.

Again a great crack to visit. So far we have been picking cracks that are bolted 2005 or later and with that in mind the rock quality and bolting has been good or even great. I'm a little bit amazed how many good routes on a good rock there are. And all that in a relatively small region.

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Rise Up - speed climbing and deep water solo

Relaxed social events are always great to be with friends. Millet Rise Up Tour in Arco is one of a kind happening where all climbers without distinction of age or skill can have good time together. Two days event started in Arco's climbing Arena and continued at the following morning with a deep water solo climbing event at Lake Garda.

This year I was lucky to get in the speed climbing competition. For me speed climbing is a new experience so I was climbing the route on-sight. I don't know if it is luck or Finnish mentality that let me push up to the 3rd semifinal round where I accidentally slipped and fell. After that round my next opponent for the finals would have been our ice-climbing couch from last winter's Marmolada adventure, Alessandro Beber. Well maybe it was better that I fell, he would have been too fast for me ;) Great fun thou.

Young power!

My 1st round speed climbing.

And after the competitive evening the following day started as an early morning wake-up with a paddle boat trip to the deep water solo wall. Climbing there was good but at some stage I started to wonder why I feel so cold all the time. I'm a Finn after all and cold water shouldn't be an issue and I was climbing on reasonable difficult routes. The reason for the cold became clear when I got back to home, my body temperature was 39,1 Celsius degrees, oh boy!


See the official video about the 2 days event.

I'm heading towards Madonna.

My brother Juha learns to be a superman.

Learning balance.

Late night picnic at the climbing arena.

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Escaping the rain to Trento and Muse

If you just want to see the photos then click here

One thing that has been different during this summer is the weather. Everyone who I have met in Arco agrees that they haven't seen a summer like this before. And this is the first time for us too that the weather has been so unpredictable over the last 12 summers at Lake Garda. Unpredictable rains, low temperatures and sudden weather changes are more than common. Cooler temperatures are fine for sports but heavy rain and storms makes almost all outdoor activities hard or hopeless.

Today constant rain changed again our plans and it was time to come up something else to do. After few ideas we decided to head towards Trento. Initial idea was to see the city or some museums. As a city Trento is an interesting mix of the Italian and German cultures. That shows up on the street level clearly on the architecture that changes dramatically between city blocks. But hanging around the city in the rain is not too much fun for long. Luckily we heard a tip from the local climbers at Arco that Trento has a new and impressive museum MUSE - Science Museum so we decided to head down there.

MUSE-museum is located in a fresh and modern building and exhibition covers all the main aspects of the science from biology to electronics. Majority of the exhibition area was dedicated to the massive nature and animals collection from past to present. For outdoor people
the exhibition was impressive, especially the replicas of huge dinosaur skeletons. Modern part of the exhibition is designed around personal experiences, you can lay on a spike mat, test your balance or see a 3D printer in action. That suites well for fellows and families who are not that much into traditional museum tours.

Climber's skeleton.

Among other things alpinism was covered too and of course we saw climbing fashion and gear from 30's to present, oh I miss the lost feeling of the real mountain adventurers. I would be rather
outside in the nature but MUSE was still worthwhile to visit, especially when it rains too much for outdoor activities.

 



 See all photos:

Trento, Muse, 8.7.2014

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Rocca di Perti - a huge playground

If you just want to see the photos then click here.


Rocca dei Perti has something for every climber, mountain has crags from sport climbing to multi-pitch walls. Region has total of 19 crags in a relatively small area and approaches from two main entry points. Longest multi-pitch routes are longer than 100 meters and there are lot of long sport routes too. Rocca di Perti has enough routes to offer for a whole summer holiday from beginner to higher level climbers. The only downside is that the nearby motorway A10 causes some background noice on few sectors.

Approeach to the crag goes next to Mediterranean Sea.

Yesterday's visit to Rocca dei Perti was cut short due the rain so we decided to head back. Our crag for the day was Falesia dei tre porcellini (cliff of three little pigs). Crag has total of 32 routes from 5a to 6b+ and a lot of them are longer than 20 meters. Routes are recently and well bolted and it is offering a good selection of lines for a medium level climber. Several of the lines are multipitch routes (2-3 pitches). Routes are mainly slabs with crags with few corners (arêtes). Rock quality is good and not polished so even the hardest 6b slabs are in excellent condition.

Nice, approach via palm streets.

During the day we climbed total of 6 routes Heta's 5b, two 5c and 6a routes and one 6b route. All climbed routes were well graded, enjoyable and offering enough challenge for the given grades. Most enjoyable climbs for the day were Topo Gas Gas 5c - nice slab moves and an overhanging section, Biancanave - short 6a arête and Pinoccio - short 6b slab with few reaches on small fingery holds.

Falesia dei tre porcellini, great crag for 5 to 6b+ climbers on good quality rock, recommended.

View from the top.

Mediterranean Sea can be seen from the top.

Enjoyable 5c slab.

Enjoyable 5c slab.

Enjoyable 5c slab hold.

See all photos:

Finale Ligure, Falesia dei Tre Porcellini, 30.9.2013

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Windy views and refreshing evening at Cavédine

Route from Nago to Cavédine.

After opera at Verona we decided to have a short climbing day and then afterwads enjoy a refreshing evening at Lago di Cavediné. So far during the holiday we have been visiting on new crags but today our choice was to go back to Beldevere and see the more demanding B sector.

Sector B has longer routes and  some of them are overhanging. Best part is that the sector is located clearly on a higher altitude than the A sector. Higher altitude and the average route height of 16 meters means that climbing feels more exposed. At this sector climber has a great views to watch during the whole ascent and the winds of the lake adds a cool and refreshing factor for the whole way up to the top.

Most important lesson of the day was that even the latest and the greatest topo books might have mistakes on route maps. At Beldevere it seemed that most of the routes listed on the latest "Arco Rock" guidebook from 2010 edition were wrong. Luckily there is an informative topo map at the crag. Somehow the grades and the routes were so badly mixed at the book that the local topo table was only clear way to see the routes. I included the actual topo and grades of the of the sector B to the article.

Actual routes.

We had time to try only few routes where grades were from 5c to 6a+. I usually climb 5c on-sight but at Beldevere's sector B I couldn't. It was more likely 6a/6a+ at the top. I also spoke with couple of Italian climbers and they pretty agreed that route is definitely more demanding than 5c. So be prepared for trickier parts even on a warmup route.

Top view from Beldevere B sector towards Torbole.

After short but intense climbing day we decided to avoid a holiday rush towards Torbole and instead of that we headed to the Lago di Cavediné. It is a smaller lake than Garda but big enough for a windsurfing school that is located nearby the beach. It is about 15 kilometers from Nago next to a narrow asphalt road heading towards north. It is definitely a worthwhile to visit especially when own activities are nearby the lake. Water is clear but felt colder than at lake Garda. Visiting after a hot summer day is preferred.

Sadly our holiday is about to end and we have only one more adventure left. Then after that it is all about packing up the gear and head back to Finland. Heading back means a car drive of "only" 2500 kilometers...

Behind the back view towards Nago and Torbole.

Lago di Cavédine

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Market morning and Calvario's classic walls

Bells and whistles at the market.

Arco had a market day so we decided to spent some time there and see if we can find good quality cheese or honey. Market sellers had a lot to offer but today we couldn't find what were seeking for. We decided to leave the markets and start to prepare for an afternoon redpointing session.

Classic wall.

Already earlier on this week we had a grade upgrade climbing session at Massi di Prabi which was a great place to practice for more demanding routes. Next goal was to find a good crag for redpointing routes. For redpointing purposes we chose the classic Calvario which has been the stage for the Italian trials for the very first Rock Master '87. After that the crag has been abandoned for years but in 2009 it has been cleaned and rebolted. All the routes are vertical and technical, in other words it is a perfect place to exceed our current grades. And on top of all that Calvario is located on our back yard just about a 1 kilometer away towards Laghel.

We arrived to the crag during afternoon around 2 o'clock and it was complete empty. That was a surprise because the crag is facing to the east meaning that during the afternoon it is nicely in shadow. And on top of that the rock's face wasn't badly polished.

Calvario is demanding for regular climber it has only one 4b and one 5b for warmups, rest of the routes are from 6a to 8a. Hetas target for the day was the route 2. - Mam 5b and mine the route 5. - Vibrafono 6a.

Preparing for the crux.

As a warmup Heta climbed Popi 4b and I prepared for the 5b. For some reason the 5b had trickier move at the top than I expected and I failed to climb it right at first try. As a result I slipped the very first time in here from a 5 graded route down to the rope. Four meters of unexpected excitement on a warmup route has to be a new record. My second attempt was easier and the "warmup" was topped.

Warmup route then became Heta's redpointing excercise. Initial ascent wasn't too promising but after two or three succesfull attempts Heta decided that she wants to lead climb it. She climbed it with reasonable amount of motivating fear at the crux move that I slipped on my first attempt.

After Heta's success I moved the top rope to my technical training route 6b. Route started with small finger pockets that were pointing downwards. After several attemps I had to agree that my fingers cannot handle that route yet. Next one was the actual target 6a. I managed to ascent with a top rope it and on the second attempt I also found reasonable spots for setting quickdraws. But time ran out and the route is waiting for the actual ascent. Again Heta was the hero of the day by achieving her 5b target! Calvario is a true classic!

See more photos from Flickr >>

Happy climber after a successful ascent!

Nice view from Calvario towards Arco.

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