Greece - Kalymnos

Big steep orange walls with technical climbing on pockets and crimps. Excellent. Gets the sun after about 14.00, although the right hand parts can be climbed until 16.00

Kastri is an archeological site, which is interesting to visit in its own right. The climbing is in 3 sectors. The left hand sector, Kreissaal, is mostly slabs. The middle and main section has an ancient fortress dating back to the 4th century BC. It contains many excellent routes, both slabs and steep walls. The right hand section, Sophie, is less interesting, but nevertheless has a dozen or so routes, of varying quality. The sun reaches most of the sectors between 11.00 and 12.00, although one or two of the steep walls stay in the shade a little longer.

A couple of caves with some steep overhanging routes that are always in the shade

Milianos cave is the prominent small cave visible from the large bend in the road as you descend from Arginonta Pass to Vathy. The climbing is on the walls left of the cave. it is a pleasant crag in a beautiful location with slab and wall climbs on pocketed rock. It gets the shade in the afternoon.

The two large caves just up the road from Summertime have some good and very steep routes. Easy access and shade in the afternoon.

Pleasant climbing, mainly on slabs and steep walls with a couple of caves to test the ambitious climber. Bolting is good and the holds often sharp. Gets the sun between 10.30am on the LHS, and 13.00 on the right hand side cave.

A big crag with 7 distinct sectors. A bit of everything from steep tufa climbs to easy pocketed slabs. Excellent throughout.

Routes for everyone here.From 4b to 9a. Gets the sun after about 2pm on the left hand side, later on the right hand side and in the caves. Getting very pollished.

Steep slabs and walls, on the big cra above Odyssey. Rough rock with lots of big tufas and pockets that give excellent climbing. Gets the sun after about 1.30pm

The line of cliffs to the North of Symplegades, has a conspicuous large cave, and some excellent routes. A bit of everything, steep walls, overhangs, tufas and some easier slabs.  

At the north end of the island is a remote, beautiful bay and beach with a few houses and bars. This is Palionisos. Above the road that leads there are 3 cliffs, Red Wall, Paradise Beach and Palionsis Bay. They contain many excellent mid grade routes on good rock. They get the sun most of the day. On winter days, profit from it, in summer go to the beach!

An excellent and popular crag with tufa climbing on quality rock that is as good as it gets. The tufas can sometimes be greasy on humid windless days. Although not as steep as Grande Grotta, good stamina pays dividends on the long pitches.

A relatively remote crag reached from the top of the Arginonta pass with late afternoon shade. It has several sectors with varying quality of rock, from poor to excellent. Helmets srongly recommended!

A lovely crag just above Sea Breeze with beautiful views, long routes and a mix of easy and harder routes.

The nearest climbing to Masouri, and thus very popular. Lots of excellent routes on superb rock in all grades.

High up on the skyline above Skalia, Prophitis Andreas offers beautiful views and lovely climbing on slabs and walls. The rock is mostly good and the routes are long and well equipped. An 80m rope and plenty of quick draws are necessary. The left hand has some hard, and sometimes painful routes with bouldery starts. It is not clear if all bolted lines here have been climbed, but will be 8a or harder. The middle section from the route Prophitis Andreas rightwards contains the best routes.The right hand side has climbs of varying quality.

A conspicuous crag just a kilometre from Palionisos Bay, the Red Wall has some excellent steep and technical fingery routes on generally good rock. Well worth a visit on a cloudy day, otherwise the sun arrives early and you will cook

A beautiful walk to a beautiful crag next to the quaint chapel of Saint Photis. The climbing is also interesting and varied;  Chapel View has steep sharp slabs, sector Icare has smooth walls and overhanging cave routes on excellent rock, and to the right of the chapel, Chapel Wall has some nice wall climbing. All in all St Photis is well worth the visit. Beware though of days when the lack of wind brings damp conditions, the rock here can sometimes feel very slippery.

An excellent crag for beginners and middle grade climbers with easy access and lovely views over Arginonta bay. The routes are mostly slabs and walls, and some require an 80m rope. 

An incredible geological feature on the north side of the island. Sikati Cave is a huge hole in the ground 100m tall and 100m wide situated above a beautiful beach. Most of the climbing is in the upper grades, very steep on tufa formations. Except for a few warm ups, the routes stay in the shade all day. Because the cave is sheltered, the holds can be greasy on warm or humid days when there is no wind, and is best avoided in these conditions. 

Steep overhanging climbing and a few wall climbs north of Sympleglades

The crags left of Grande Grotta are perfect for climbing in the Afternoon, they do not get the sun until about 4pm. At their left hand side is the impressive white Spartan Wall, and lower down nearer Grande Grotta the sector Afternoon. Both have excellent routes, mostly steep walls and lower grade slabs.

The two sectors Stankill and Ivory Tower are probably the quietest in the Poets / Grande Grotta area, the slightly longer walk thinning the crowds a bit. The climbing is mostly on vertical walls and has many worthwhile routes on both sharp grey limestone as well as the more slippy orange.