Although Slovakia borders some frequently visited countries like Austria, relatively few people visit for tourism. Anybody that does visit Slovakia will be pleasantly surprised as the country has lots of beautiful nature, impressive medieval castles and many interesting places to visit. For climbing, Slovakia has several well established and good quality venues and surely much more areas that haven’t been developed yet.
Slovenia is a relatively small country, but it packs in an incredible amount of beautiful natural spaces for its size. A climber will have a choice of long mountain routes, abundant sport climbs and bouldering. Slovenian climbers are known for being very good and have made an incredible mark on the competition scene. The routes are of a similarly high standard and there aren’t any soft grades here. The country has lots of outdoor activities other than climbing and Slovenian people have a great love of the outdoors.
Frankenjura is a well known climbing destination, although perhaps it is less popular now than areas like Kalymnos or El Chorro. The routes are old school, often being sportingly graded and sportingly bolted. Needless to say any route you climb near your limit, you will feel you’ve earned. Don’t be discouraged by this, endless amounts of quality rock make Frankenjura a really special place.
Bulgaria might not be the first place that springs to mind when you think of a climbing trip abroad. However, anyone that visits is bound to be impressed by the quality and quantity of climbing the country has to offer. Bulgaria has a great landscape for climbing and mountaineering, as well as a strong scene of dedicated local climbers. Aside from climbing, there are lots of interesting and beautiful places to visit and enjoy.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a beautiful country, with relatively few tourists compared to nearby Croatia. Sadly, when some people think about Bosnia and Herzegovina, the war is what comes to mind. What most people don’t think about is gorgeous mountains, crags and crystal clear rivers. So we don’t want to talk about the war, which so many already know of, we want to talk about all the great things on offer for climbers and tourists today.
Albania is a beautiful country, often overlooked and underestimated. The landscape has everything from dramatic mountains to white sandy beaches. Albania has a fascinating history and rich culture, there is a lot to love about this country. Anyone visiting, for climbing or otherwise, has a lot to look forward to.
Montenegro is a small and interesting country, popular with tourists for the beautiful coast. As well as the coast, Montenegro has lots of beautiful mountains, valleys, lakes and rivers. This makes it a great choice of destination for outdoor enthusiasts. There is plenty of great climbing developed in the country already, with the potential for much more.
If you haven’t read part one yet, which is all about the fantastic climbing on offer in Turkey, you can read it here.
This article is going to be about the culture, activities and traditions you can enjoy whilst you’re taking a rest from climbing. Much like the climbing on our trip, this will focus mainly on the Antalya area. However, there are places we visited further a field, all of which are worth the journey.
Climbing in Turkey revolves around Antalya. When climbers think of Antalya, one name springs to mind: Geyikbayiri. To most climbers this is what puts Turkey on the climbing map. This is the hub of climbing in the country, with the highest concentration of routes and easy access. However, not exploring Turkey’s other offerings would be a mistake. Çitdibi and Olympos are both fantastic places to climb, easily done in a day trip from Geyikbayiri. There are also other areas spread throughout the country, such as Datça, Izmir and Bafa Gölü. We spent three months climbing, mostly based in Geyikbayiri and this will be the main focus of this article. Part 1 will concentrate purely on the climbing and crags, while part 2 will focus on culture, history and rest day activities.
The Crag Journal 