Pared de Cataluña, or big wall Catalan style

This w-end saw some of our ambition come true as we headed for Montrebei. The naming is very confusing in this part of the world, so to get is straight, the pre-Pyrenees range going from Terradets gorge to Montrebei gorge is called Montsec Oeste or Montsec d'Ares, it includes such walls as Pared de Begasses (Terradets), Font Freda, Pared de Ager, and finally Pared de Cataluña (Montrebei). I suppose that the range stops an Pared de Cataluña (to the right in the picture above, a closer look in the picture below), although I am not exactly certain.


Nevertheless, on the other side of the gorge there is Pared de Aragon, another equally big wall, already part of Aragon, but also part of Montrebei from what i gather (picture below). Cataluña or Aragon, both walls form a gorge and are very attractive to a climber's eye. They involve around 400 meters of vertical to overhanging terrain, mainly adventure style, with numerous aid and trad lines going up this immense sea of limestone. Moreover, these walls go on for kilometers on one side of the gorge and another. Yes, this country is a rock paradise, and please correct me if anyone is more advanced than myself with the naming game!


Anyway, we climbed a route on Pared de Cataluña, called Diedro Gris. It is one of the two easiest routes up this impressive wall whose description mercifully does not include the use of pitons or any other extended aiding technique. We even did not include the recommended friend 4 in our material list after several climbing parties told us we did not really need it on the route (and true, we did not). The approach starts with the walk-in down a spectacular man-made path through the gorge, a popular hiking destination for its own sake. It looks something like this (path in the middle left of the picture) :


The full view of the walls comes in after the gorge (when approaching from the North), displayed in the inverse order in this post. Then the business of actually getting to the top of these monsters has to begin, and it is as intimidating or more as it looks, even for the easiest route out there! Also, the Cataluña wall is in the shade until at least two, so our first pitches were pretty cold, painful and laborious. Here is Cathy with full clothing following the 6th pitch, another very impressive 5+. That is basically when we began taking pictures, meaning that sun finally hit us and our mood significantly improved.


Below is Cathy two more pitches up, getting slowly undressed and starting to enjoy the experience, exposure, and view, the perks of the climbing trade. I liked the second half of the climb very much. The 6a crux of the route is an amazing side-pull-bridge-and-don't-get-scared roof on gear, nicely led by Cath just before this pic, hence the big grin:


And, this is the view from the top, with snow-capped Pyrenees fading through the over-exposure of my camera - but they are there, waiting for the conqueror, god, or just a lost tourist, believe me, i know!


PS - some pictures (the best ones) are courtesy of Cathy

...Self-Reflecting...

Sella

First visit to Costa Blanca to supplement the knowledge of the area and climb some more went on last w-end. It is the most hilly province in Spain, and for a reason! The popularity of climbing around Alicante, in the Valencia region, is partly due to the Costa Blanca guidebook published by Rockfax, a good resource for the English-speakers, something rather rare in the Spanish climbing world, or at least in my home Cataluna. This might be to the best on the other hand, given the plethora of Englishmen getting all these nice routes polished to death in Costa Blanca - i'd rather they kept far, far away from our hidden treasures...


For our first visit, we went to Sella, one of the most popular sport climbing spots. The limestone is polished on lower grades, however the setting is beautiful and makes you quickly forget the buildings and ugly cemented coast of the close-by urbanistic disaster, Benidorm. The first day we spent working Kashba, a very good line, although pretty sustained for the grade.

The second day, with more confidence, we went to the Rosalia wall, where the real things happen. The limestone is totally unpolished due to higher grades and 5-minute longer approach. We did a 3-pitch Tanit (view below from the belay on the 2nd pitch), and a couple of first pitches. I was impressed by the 1st pitch 6c of La estacion de la bruia, and especially the El endemoniado that can be toproped from the same anchor - a very sustained line, worth by itself coming back to the crag - not mentionning all the other multipitches we ignored this time...


And below is el Divino, on the other side of the valley, one of the many many objectives, like Puig Campana or Penon de Ifach, that remain out there. Thanks to all the friends who made this another very nice w-end!


There is a relaxing, Mexican-style refuge almost at the base of the cliff, with climbers as guardians, and 6 eur per night, hard to beat! Definitely a place to come back for further exploring!

Susana Baca

A very good Peruvian singer, Susana Baca is worth listening to over and over on a good or on a bad day.

Oh My Dear Ukraine

I have spent my Easter holidays in the long forgotten homeland. It greeted me with wonderful weather, warmer than my adopted Barcelona. The first day i strove through the familiar streets and took a couple of positive and negative shots. First, the spring view of renovated Lviv sights, the Korniakta tower on this one:


Next, the various restaurants and bars that have clustered the streets of my city in numerous, sometimes unexpected places. With the outside seating the city center looks very comfortable and welcoming, especially on the sunny days.


And some negative ones of the post-Soviet reality, this one of the garbage cans in front of my apartment building (in the fore-left is a hole in the road, marked with a rod for careful drivers to securely bypass)...


On a sidenote, my funniest experience in Ukraine has been listening to the news. Most of the stories were perfect humoristic ones - for example this is the list of news from one evening: a ship cannot get into port in Crimea since 4 months because it is caring stinking meat that none wants; 50 Indonesians living in Kiev are going to vote using their fingers and have even more parties to choose from than the ukrainians; a kindergarden that won a Leninist medal in the 1930ies is going to close because new elite is building apartment blocks on Kyiv´s hills with beautiful views on the river...Ukraine, eternal country of paradoxes! Here goes another shot from the entrance to the nicely restored Armenian church in Lviv, in the city center:


And finally our old but happy yellow house in the mountains:


The other upside of travelling is getting to see old friends, some of whom I have not seen for already...10 years! This is sad but true, time is passing relentlessly. Below Julia and Julia in London´s parks:


And Jenia in same London rambling:

And coffee lovers in Lviv´s Svit Kavu:

And several more that i forgot to take pictures of. Thanks for everyone who found time for me, coffee, conversation, and even a spare bed on occasion during this trip!

ViIlanova, New Affection

Above is the photo of one of the nicest walls close to home - Roca dels Arcs in Vilanova de Meia. It has recently become one of my new favorites in Cataluña climbing. Pictures from climbing Rampas Invertidas and the first three pitches of Pasatgers del Vent below:

Have to come back there, spring season is calling! There is a climber on the picture below (crazy French throwing stones for all the numerous hours they spent on the route...)

Bajame una Estrella

Miriam Garcia Pascual is one of the shadow women of the climbing community worth a thought. I just finished reading her short and only Bajame una Estrella. She died climbing in the Meru Norte, in India, at 26, in an avalanche. The book is a kind of a diary with pictures from her trip from Yosemite to Patagonia, passing by Cordiliera Blanca. Familiar and unfamiliar grounds - and good, inspiring and emotional writing. Not sure how relevant it could be to the non-climbing herd, but it definitely speaks to the rat inside of any self-respecting climber...The paradox of the freedom call, the pleasure of risking one´s life - this actually is an interesting compliment reading with Fukuyama´s "End of the World" i´m into right now. Anyway, there goes a though for Miriam, looking up to her estrella.

Madrid - Patones

To rest our mind, we also stopped at Patones, the sport limestone paradise-crag. This was closer to what i understand as proper climbing, with big (should i say huge...) holds and pleasant bolting. We loved the place so much that we kept coming back - and have to come back more. It is a paradise for people leading 6s, although apparently Andrada also trained around here. Below myself on a brilliant 6a+, Eperon Elisa, on the Parking wall.

Madrid - La Pedriza

A strong, familiar smell of fur trees. Crisp and cold morning, holding the promise of an adventure, pleasant to wake up to with a cup of coffee. Birds, loudly preparing for the mating season, appeared to appreciate the setting as much as the suspicious and overly numerous two-legged visitors. The cordially flowing stream looked just right, and the granite, the eternal stone, was all around us. La Pedriza, Spanish version of Yosemite in the US, Eldorado in Switzerland, or Val di Mello in Italy, generously shared its priceless spring moments with us.

Although not very high, granite school it is, only 1h north from Madrid, in the Sierra de Madrid, or Sierra de Guadarrama, part of the central mountain chain in Spain. This incredible country seems to have mountains close to any city you might visit! It is also one of those places where climbing has started early and boldly. The classic routes here are classic not only for the climbing, but mainly for the run-outs and dare-devil features, head game for both, leader and follower, as many are famous for endless unprotected traverses.


Above is the view of one of the main formations, the Pajaro (top left). We started the reconnaissance with the Este route, or Via Pedro Ramos, opened in 1959. It remains a test piece famous for the second pitch, unprotected Columna de Hercules, rated at 5+ (that famous 5+ grade, as disconcerting here as in Chamonix...). Here is me, already scared enough starting up the first pitch:

Menos mal, as say the Spanish, we had a local guide with us, Gonzalo, that spearheaded the second pitch, and kept us in solo mood for the remaining slabs to the top of the tower. Next, we headed for the neighboring classic, the Sur route, first done in 1935. Apparently, when these routes were opened, pendulums were originally done instead of the scary traverses so in fashion today. Below is myself on the beautiful Escudo - sword - pitch, before i started aiding it (normally free at 6c).

Cracks and more cracks, Cathy following another one on the polished walls:

We also paid a visit to the Hueso, or the Bone. It is named so for the feature on the picture below. It is also famous for the Espolon de Hueso, or La Fulgencia (for Fulgencio Casado) route, opened in 1972-73 by some more young and bold climbers. The frist pitch climbs the chimney (if done on the outside) or offwidth (if, as usually, done on the inside by the scared leader-the gallina). There is only one, old and rusty, bolt, about 40m from the ground...We dared only a top rope to pay our chicken dues.

We headed instead to Tito Rollin Bus, 1976 wonder, on the left of La Fulgencia route, exhibiting some more bolts - and unforgiving granite slabs. This reminded me very much of the Crest Jewel route on the North Dome in Yosemite. I had enough head power to do the second and third pitch in one long 50m, and we successfully rapped after examining the prospects of the traverse (usual 5+) pitch without gear on the following pitch...Below Cathy following:


One of the lessons from La Pedriza - do not get on Galvez routes, that guy was too strong, and as Spanish say, sometimes he just forgot to put an extra bolt...Seeing pictures of him with old torn shoes on 7b in the 80ies makes you understand why some friction moves might have felt different to him than to all other humans.

La Pedriza still holds many jewels, such as the Caballo Blanco route on Yelmo - but that´s when i grow up enough cojones to lead - the traverse, or find someone nice enough to lead it for me! Below the true and capable inhabitants of the rock:


To know more about this place, there is a book, Pedriza: Historia de 32 sends de la vertical from Desnivel, very nice historic picture-filled account of the crazy first ascents going on in Spain.

(most pictures here and in the next post by Cathy!)

Vilanova de Meiá or Girls Can Climb

This w-end was a perfect spring, or is it already almost summer, time had with good friends on the rocks. After last-minute changes we finished in Vilanova de Meiá. The first day we sampled our skills with Amatista on Pas Nou wall (a good overview of the area here), a sustained 6a on big shiny bolts. Here is Cathy finishing one of the pitches:


With the gained confidence, the second day saw an all-feminine ascent of Wild Planet on Roca dels Arcs, following a very appealing line in the center of the main wall, through some impressive orange overhangs and huge roofs. We were very satisfied and used each other´s strengths well to manage this route in a well organized and executed ascent - Olé to Silvia, Cathy and myelf :)! Below is the view in the middle of my aid lead of pitch 2, down on the happily belaying team:

A team was following us, this is the view on the impressive overhanging wall from the belay after pitch 3´s traverse:

And this is Silvia in a movie-like setting mastering the aid on pitch 3, hey, girls can climb!!!

The weather, the climb, the setting - everything was perfect, i can´t restrain from posting more pictures, this is the team following the dihedral of pitch 5:

And, finally, the way down, with the view on Paret de Zaratustra and the impressive shade of just-climbed Roca dels Arcs:


And here is the original topo with the new rebolting in 2008 of the aid sections (still hanging on a couple of alliens required on pitch 3). And - don´t take Vilanova´s 5+ gear run-outs lightly, even if girls can do it!

A Thought for the Mouton

A thought for the fox, baobabs, and the mouton.

Anyway, very nice online version when you need a break here.

An interesting information I was not aware of from the all-knowing Wiki:

"In March 2008, a former Luftwaffe pilot, 85-year-old Horst Rippert, told La Provence, a Marseille newspaper, that he engaged and downed a P-38 Lightning on July 31, 1944 in the area where Saint Exupéry's plane was found.[12][13][14] According to Rippert, he was on a reconnaissance mission over the Mediterranean sea when he saw a P-38 with a French emblem behind him near Toulon.[15] Rippert says he opened fire at the P-38, which crashed into the sea."....

Col de Nargo

This w-end reminded us again we were still in winter, although it was its almost last day. Col de Nargo has mainly one-pitch routes, but it is a great setting for taking pictures. Here is the village of Col de Nargo itself below, with a not-to-miss climbing bar that holds topos of the surrounding Perles, roca Narieda, and Col de Nargo itself:

Here is Cathy still believing it is spring:

And Gonzalo showing us how it is done:


And me failing on another climb because not believing it is spring anymore:

La Mussara and Vilaplana de Prades

This w-end we went South, to explore further la Mussara in the Sierra de Prades. This place is an incredible quality limestone crag, and its highpoint is ... cracks! Yes, limestone cracks that have nothing to envy the granite ones. I took my friends and went exploring. After several warm-up and not so warm-up cracks, we dared go for the prize, one of the main lines of the crag, Jarabe de Palo, a stunning 6c+ overhanging crack line.


We had to work hard to get to the top, but after some time the anchors were reached - and a project was found! Below, me and my chalk bag going for the top rope, hard work, and lots of endurance needed to redpoint this babe...Spring will be challenging!


I can´t resist posting another picture of Jarabe, a really motivating line - and we did not even get pictures from above!

Trashed and tired, we spent Sunday at Vilaplana de Prades, another village similar to Arboli, in the Sierra de Prades. It boasts long rock bands, around 15-20m high. It is not as appealing as La Mussara, Siurana or Margaleff, the routes are very technical on very compact conglomerate-limestone, unforgiving, or maybe the Saturday cracks had gotten the best of us.

Can you believe it´s conglomerate? Only in Spain, the conglomerate mix of any type can be encountered!

Cildo Meireles at MACBA

Slowly getting back to art after my hurricane Rome trip, I went to Cildo Meireles expo at MACBA last week. MACBA itself is situated near the Rambla and Plaça Cataluña and represents Barcelona very nicely, a new building fitted into old streets, with nice bars and plenty of skateboarders around, reminiscent of my youth rollerblading around Palais Royal in Paris. But those old days are gone and no crying about it will do any good. Sometimes commitment, or burning all bridges, reducing freedom makes us more free - or at least that is what i want to believe with my climbing attitude today.

Back to the original topic, Cildo Meireles is a Brazilian, traditionally following the post-modern art principles: unimpressive works, worth three descriptive paragraphs in a booklet and one bored look. However, fortunately, his other works are more interesting. The ones i liked most was his Eureka, maybe for its participative mode and some thinking required, the anti-colonial Como Construir Catedrais, and the what we called the "Green Room", also interesting conceptually and aesthetically.

For me, if an artwork is not aesthetic, it looses a part of its original appeal - I am probably conservative in this respect, but i cannot admire something that is not aesthetically appealing as well as conveying a message. That is one of the reasons many post-modern works appeal so little to me and my dumb aesthetic standards. But Cildo managed to surprise, thus a visit that is worth your time! Pictures of his art are definitely not very representative, as his work has to be seen to be understood and to give you the surprise factor, thus i will stop my musings here and let you visit an expo instead!