17th May 2015
Cala Mancina

April Skies – 5c+ – Lead (with Chris)
Beautiful Hamster – 5a Lead  (with Chris)
Ritter Sport – 6a+ Lead  (with Chris)
Lions, Tigers& Bears – 5b – lead  (with Chris)

For a first day out in sunny Sicily you would expect  scortching temperatures and dust. We got gloopy weird mud which stopped our car dead and was a real hazzard to walk on. If it rains the track leading in from San Vito becomes a mess.

We parked the car on the road and walked in which wasnt too bad and saved me stumping up for the excess. Finding the access point takes a while. Despite the compact nature of the climbing around San Vito Lo Capo, its not always easy to get your bearings. In this case you head for the bottom end of town and go left at a V junction up a slight hill. This gets you round the back of the crags so you can approach on the beach.

Cala Mancina

The seafront is peculiar as well. Endless thistles and dried out grasses and spiky bushes. It looks a bit man made, but is obviously the result of years of neglect 🙂 I could imagine peasant farmers using this area for thousands of years as it has natural coral’s.

The ubiquitous Thistle

Anyway, to the climbing. It’s limestone and its great fun. A little dirty on occasions, but in general not too much polish and good steep routes. My first route, April Skies reminded me how steep these routes can be and quickly got me back into the groove.

Chris on something steep

Of the four climbs on this day, Ritter Sport was the best providing a good workout, but there are so many to choose from. All you need is unlimited energy…

View accross the bay to Monte Cofano

Rosario Stinky’s apartment, Casa Coral is a great place to return to at the end of the day. A nice terrace (OK the view is limited) provides a good excuse to bury a few beers and the kitchen is well kitted out so we had no problems cooking during the week.