Bavarian Rhapsody ( 6a+, 6a obl., 95m)
Sector: Sina wall – Vasilia/ Karsiyaka, NE facing
Details:
1st pitch: Grade: 5c+, 15m. Gain the flake from the left-hand side of the dihedral feature, a committing mantle will take you up the main face of the climb. Follow the diagonal crag to the right for about 10m and then traverse left to gain the anchor.
2nd pitch: Grade: 6a, 25m. From the anchor, follow the obvious diagonal crack, up and left, a series of committing moves, follow the crack up to a small ledge and the second anchor.
3rd pitch: Grade: 6a+, 30m. Follow the dihedral crack up to the small ledge. Few exposed moves to the left will help you gain the hanging flake and a series of hidden good holds on the left side of the dihedral. Continue the last positive section to gain the stance and the anchor. Take care at the stance, loose blocks and vegetation.
4th pitch: Grade: 5b, 20m. Follow the groove from the stance to gain a series of ledges and the exit of the route. Belay stance up to the left on the final ledge just before the ridge.
Descent: scramble up the ridge for about 20m, when the ridge descents in the col an anchor can be seen. Abseil to the ground and descend the rocky gully to the base of the route.
Gear: 2 x 50 m ropes, one set of cams (worth taking some extra medium size cams), 1 set of nuts, 1 set of offwidths, slings, extenders, quickdraws.
Approach: From Vasilia/ Karsiyaka car park ( https://goo.gl/maps/4Nxhhqa7fGntDpY27 ) follow the Besparmakl hiking trail (marked with green dots) westwards, passing through the cathedral climbing sector, 200m uphill, gain the buttress that provides views over the west. Once you gain the buttress, a small minor path that traverses the rock faces to the east will lead you to the bottom of a rocky gully (500m to gain the gully). Scramble up the dry river bed of the rocky gully until you reach a meadow with cedar trees (Be careful with loose rocks on the steep slopes). From the meadow move directly uphill to gain another steep gully (150m to the base of the second gully). Follow the second gully uphill to the base of the route (300m) https://goo.gl/maps/ZY8QbR8gdzC7WpiX7 .
Our story:
On the 29th of April we woke up at the beautiful camp spot in Vasilia, in front of us the bright blue sea and behind us the impressive limestone walls of the west range of Pentadaktylos.
During our last outing to this beautiful range (an almost alpine-feeling scramble of the ridge) we spotted a very attractive looking line on the NE facing walls that make up the higher part of the ridge, good quality rock, cracks, a little roof at the top – so we decided to come back!
The summer heat had a premature spike in April and the first part of the approach is in the sun, so the shade of the rocky gully was more than welcome by us (top tip: take off your shirt for the approach -> Andreas, or start the climb a bit soggy -> Jenny). Having arrived at the base of the climb we made a little attack plan, feeling sure about the diagonal crack of pitch 2 and 3 , the most obvious feature of the climb and feeling undecided about the start of pitch 1 and the exit underneath the roof of pitch 3. We started cleaning the greens underneath (April is nettle season, so be prepared), tried a few moves at the base of the route and finally Andreas committed to an exciting mantle move to get on top of the first section, placed a cam and we were on! Now, I don’t know if many of you have ever been involved in the first ascent of a multi pitch route but this was my first time and I was definitely surprised by the amount of gardening involved in this activity! Bush after bush after bush came flying past me, accompanied by some singing and shouting – Andreas was absolutely enjoying himself. After a short while he reached the first stance, hauled up the drill and in no time we had our first bolted anchor! I followed up, enjoying the varied climbing of pitch 1, passed over gear, flaked the ropes and what followed was a long round of belaying, enjoying the gorgeous views of the sea below us while Andreas threw more rocks and bushes. Only a few times he would shout ‘watch me’ followed by a delighted cackle. After a while the second anchor was set up and I got to climb the diagonal crack, which is sustained in its superb climbing with beautiful delicate moves. On to pitch 3! Andreas cruised the first part, a dihedral crack leading up to a roof. Having arrived at the roof we had a little discussion on where to continue, the options were straight up over a very overhanging bulge, to the right under the roof without much prospect of gear or to the left to exit the dihedral via a thrilling hanging flake. After weighing the options the decision was to go to the left. Watching Andreas exiting the corner from below, I bet both our heart rates went up a bit! After the exit he went out of sight, a few more bushes and rocks came flying down and shortly after the third anchor was established. This pitch was definitely the highlight of the route for me, bridging in the dihedral and technical climbing to exit it, followed by a committing move to step out left with the whole route appearing below you. Joined up again at the anchor we did some more gardening and exchanged our beta for pitch 3. Both buzzing from the climbing we got a new burst of energy and finished pitch 4 in no time, which involved only some minor bush and rock throwing. And there we were! Bavarian Rhapsody had been established and we couldn’t have been happier with it, the line turned out to be sustained in its technical and superb climbing while being well protected on gear. We placed a total of eight bolts at the four anchors, which should be obvious to find as the pitches follow natural features. Delighted and fulfilled we scrambled along the ridge to find the abseil on top of ‘Sea to Summit’, rappelled down this route in one go and landed in a bed of nettles at the base of the route!
‘Bavarian Rhapsody’ is certainly worth coming to Vasilia for, the climbing is excellent, the views are stunning and you will find yourself in a remote and tranquil spot with shade all day long!
