Not very long time ago, I wanted to purchase a new harness in order to substitute my old -and loved- harness, the Mammut Ophir. In that time, I wanted to have an all around harness, with emphasis on trad and multi-pitch climbing and therefore I got the Petzl ADJAMA.
Although the Petzl ADJAMA is a great and very comfortable harness, due to the fact most of the days I spend them on sport climbing crags, I also got the new Hirundos model by Petzl.
Visiting the area of Mt. Varasova is always very pleasant and while being there, is always great to try to do as many routes as possible. This is what we have actually done at the beginning of 2023.
Early morning we climbed Kalydonios Kapros(V+, 100 m) and upon a short break for a snack and a refreshment we decided to go and climb another route, Public.
During the past few years, while I have been constantly getting better in climbing, I have been tempted to try and test different kind of climbing shoes. My first pair as a beginner was La Sportiva Tarantula, which was a great pair of shoes for my first “baby steps” in the climbing activities. Upon that, I have tried various other models, such as the Anasazi VCS by 5.10 and the Simond Rock+ and the La Sportiva Otaki. Till this day, most of the times I use the Simond Rock+ and I have been extremely happy, though after a long testing period, I can not say the same about La Sportiva Otaki. Therefore, once again, I did an extensive research, mainly via my network of fellow climbers. My choices where the following two, the La Sportiva Katana Laces (2022 model) or the La Sportiva TC Pro.
During the winter time, I mostly enjoy to go for Winter Mountaineering activities and the initial plan for the first outdoor trip of 2023, was to visit and climb Mt. Olympus. Though, this year, here in Greece we had minimum snowfalls so far and taking also into the account the high temperatures (for this time of the year), we decided to change our plan and instead of visiting Mt. Olympus for Winter Mountaineering, to visit Mt. Varasova for Trad Climbing.
Our plan was to climb as many multi-pitch routes, in traditional style, thus we selected route in the range of V UIAA and VI UIAA.
Every now and then I try to visit one of my favourite outdoor locations of Greece, and specifically Mt. Parnitha which is located just 30 minutes far from Athens city centre. Mt. Parnitha is located in Attiki province, 25km N from the city of Athens. It is one of the 4 mountains(the others are Immitos, Penteli and Poikilo) that surround the circular plain, in which the city of Athens is built. Mt Parnitha is the tallest and more impressive among the mountains that surround Athens.
It has been quite some time since my last visit in the area of Meteora, and due to the fact the Hellenic Federation of Mountaineering & Climbing was organising the annual meet up of the climbing community of Greece, I did not loose the chance to join the festivities and be part in of the most spectacular areas of Greece.
Meteora includes about 170 conglomerate summits of various shapes and types, as massive mountains, rocky pinnacles, minor peaks and spires, some of which are truly amazing and bizarre. The range overlooks the village of Kastràki and the town of Kalabàka and features about 850 multi-pitch and single pitch routes. Due to their singularity and a bit of mistery surrounding the place, in addition to the presence of various monasteries, the towers of Meteora are quite famous all over the world.
One of my favourite locations in Greece for outdoor activities is Mt. Parnitha which is located just 30 minutes far from Athens city centre. Mt. Parnitha is located in Attiki province, 25km N from the city of Athens.It is one of the 4 mountains(the others are Immitos, Penteli and Poikilo) that surround the circular plain, in which the city of Athens is built. Mt Parnitha is the talllest and more impressive among the mountains that surround Athens.
Every now and then, I try to visit the area of Mt. Parnitha either for hiking or climbing activities. Though, for quite some time now, I had in my bucket list to visit the area of Kato Flabouri and climb the first ever route that was climbed in the area. This route is known as Klassiki (classic) or by the names of the first ascenders – Michailides, Tsamakides, Liagos, Idosides.
Rock climbing is an activity that is done outdoors and provides a feeling unlike any other outdoor activity. To reach that feeling, though, you need to have the correct gear to keep you safe in case of a fall. A climbing harness is a crucial piece of equipment: it’s the contact point between you, your rope and your belayer (the person on the ground on the other end of the rope to stop you from falling).
There are many climbing harness options to choose from and it all depends what kind of climbing you are planning to do and how the specific harness fits on your body.
Summer time in Greece, especially in the southern regions of the country can be rather hot. Therefore climbing near the seaside can be a very nice experience and at the same time bearable with the high temperatures.
In the past year, we have climbed a lot in the Ermionida region and we established several Trad Climbing routes, especially nearby Dardiza Bay.
It has been almost two years ago since my last visit in the area of Mt. Pateras and specifically in Kantili location. During my previous visit, I had climbed the Horned Owl ridge but while climbing that ridge it struck my attention a rock formation which is located in the opposite from the main peak of Kantili.
After some research, I had noticed that there were a couple of routes and together with a climbing buddy, we decided to pay a visit to the area and give a try to a route named Fantastic 4.
Pateras is a mountain of West Attica, Greece, with an elevation of 1,131 meters. Its highest peak is named Leontari. It is situated between the plain of Eleusis and the plain of Megara, and stretches between the Gulf of Corinth at Aigosthena and the Saronic Gulf near Eleusis.
It is separated from its northern neighbour Cithaeron by the plain of Vilia. The mountain is covered with woods with Aleppo pine and Mediterranean maquis. In the tops of the mountain, that belong to a CORINE biotope, there are firs, of species Abies cephalonica.
Olympus Mountaineering 