Meteora
Driving through Trikala up to Kalabaka, the flat plain gives way to a valley dominated by a cluster of towering pillars of rock, some of which rise to 250m. The tops of these pillars were originally inaccessible except to climbers equipped with ropes and ladders, and the first people who dared to scale them were religious hermits seeking to withdraw from a fallen world. From the ninth century monasteries were built, often lifting people and goods up to the tops by means of rope baskets and pulley systems. At one time as many as 20 monasteries were occupied, but now only five remain, usually with only a few monks or nuns to look after the place.
Nowadays the monasteries are more like museums, or exhibits in a theme park than places of religious retreat, and the tour busses that wind their way along the road circling the rocks dispel the otherworldly quality that the area must once have had. The approach to the remaining monasteries has been made easier by steps cut into the rock. Despite this, the area is still a feast for the imagination as well as offering some amazing and quite distinctive climbing.
The first people to begin developing modern climbing in the area were Dietrich Hasse and Heinz Lothaz Stutte, who first visited Meteora in 1975. Over the following years the pair set up routes on all of the 80 rocks, except the 5 which have working monasteries. The two have also produced two excellent guides to the area: "Meteora a Landscape to be Experienced," and the "Meteora Climbing and Hiking Guide."
The rocks are an aggregate of pebbles, of varying sizes, and sandstone. Climbing in the area requires a careful choice of which pebbles to use as pinch grips and footholds. With little opportunity for routes requiring big arms, all that is usually called for is judgement and balance. Loose pebbles and crumbly sandstone can sometimes be a problem but on the more popular routes most of the loose pebbles have already popped. There are no cracks to climb, and so there is also little opportunity for placing your own protection with nuts and hexentrics. Generally you have to rely on the pre-placed bolts, although the distance between these can sometimes feel a little excessive.
Getting to Meteora without a car is easy thanks to the train from Athens that stops in Kalabaka immediately south of the rocks. Accommodation can be found in Kalabaka or, preferably, in the village of Kastraki, a couple of kilometres to the north, where the campsite Camping Vrachos comes recommended.
If, despite the crowds, you decide to come in mid summer, it is not difficult to find routes to do in the mornings or the late afternoons that are in the shade. Otherwise the best times to come are April to June and late September to early November. |