Greece: Varassova

Varassova is a limestone cliff in Greece, east of Missolonghi. This 900m high promontory that drops into the Ionian Sea is the home of Greek climbing. Its south and southwest faces form an impressive promontory, the end of which drops directly into the sea. Greek climbing began here in 1958, so Varassova has a special significance for Greek climbers and is one of the most popular cliffs in the country. Consequently, Varassova is mainly a weekend venue, and mid-week it is usually deserted. In 2003, we went climbing there with Muni and Rose.

The Routes

There are over 200 routes, some sports routes of 3-4 pitches on the south face near the sea and some much longer trad climbs of up to 18 pitches on the south-west face. The rock is very solid, relatively sharp, and mostly grey or yellow limestone of outstanding quality. We climbed a lot of routes at VS standard with a couple of longer, more serious climbs. Scharlie also had an adventure climbing to the mountain’s summit on her own one day.

History

Greece has declared the mountainous region of Varassova a historical area of special natural beauty. Byzantine churches, monasteries and hermitages were built on the hard-to-reach slopes of Varassova, but today are all abandoned.

We visited Missolonghi, where Byron had died of a fever fighting for Greek independence, and Nafpaktos, where Cervantes had lost an arm fighting in the sea battle of Lepanto in the Gulf of Corinth. We also went to Delphi, where Rose and Scharlie had a race around the 400 m stadium track.

Published 15 Jul 2018, 40 pages, ISBN 9781912460212.