Varasova

massif rising to 917m on the west coast of Greece, across the water from the city of Patras. Its south and southwest faces form an impressive promontory the end of which drops directly into the sea. Greek climbing took its first steps here in 1958, so Varasova has a special place in the hearts of Greek climbers. Coupled with Meteora, it is one of the most popular and historic climbing venues in the country, especially when it comes to multi-pitch routes. But don’t worry, you won’t run into any crowds. Varasova is mainly a weekend venue, so if you are here mid-week you are very likely to have the crag to yourself. The approximately 200 routes of Varasova include single- and multi-pitch sport routes. There are also several mixed-character ‘adventure’ routes with as many as 18 pitches and, although these usually have a few bolts per pitch (mainly on solid sections of rock) plus fixed belay anchors, they will also require placement of nuts or other trad gear (usually in cracks). In spring, many features are obscured by vegetation, so be prepared to do some ‘gardening’. Some parts of the multi-pitch routes are runout, but most anchors are bolted and set up for rappelling. There is still vast potential for new routes in Varasova, especially for bolted sport lines. Grades range from very easy to very hard, the majority being in the mid-grades (5c-6b).