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| Climbing on Kalymnos, Greece |
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 Getting there:
The airport at Kos is currently being built and is due to be opened in summer 2006. At present Kalymnos is reached by boat from the closest island, Kos. Fly to to Kos direct (in high season) or fly to Athens and then continue to Kos (1 hour flight). From the Kos airport catch a taxi to the small port Mastichari. From here take the ferry to Pothia (circa 1 hour). Take care not to arrive too late: the ferry usually waits for the last flight from Athens, but not always...
From Pothia we recommed you travel by bus or taxi to Masouri, the small village ideally located on the western seafront beneath the vast majority of crags. Rent one of the numerous studios (small apartments with kitchen facilities and terrace).
Ferry times are as follows:
Kos - Kalymnos: 09.00, 17.30, 21.30 or 22.00 (the ferry waits for the last flight from Athens).
Kalymnos - Kos: 07.00, 16.00, 19.30.
Best time of year
Climbing is possible all year round, though due to its southern location just off the Turkish coast the summer months tend to be hot. The famous Meltemi wind offers welcome relief in summer. Mid-season is highly recommend (September, October, April, May).
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KALYMNOS rock climbing guide - Review by Federico Furia
Nowadays it's almost impossible that climbers haven't heard of this rocky island immersed in the Aegean sea, cooled by it's light breeze and surrounded by a splendid sea...
Since 1999 Kalymnos has become an important destination for those in search of peace, tranquillity and climbing. New routes multiply from one year to the next and, given the new route potential, the island will continue to be developed for years to come. It's because of this that the new guidebook replaces the old one, published just 3 years ago but already obsolete!
The new guidebook has been compliled once again by Aris Theodoropoulos and published by the Acharnes Alpine Club. Unsurprisingly it's a mine of information about the sponge diver's island and contains all the latest additions: 43 sectors and 850 routes (of which over 400 around the 6a mark making Kalymnos a paradise for mid-grade climbers).
The guidebook is bilingual (English-Greek) and is easy to understand with plenty of obvious symbols and photos. Every crag has a brief description, access info, orientation, climbing style, first ascent info etc. Photo topos have been used which render things even clearer, and each route has a star rating and a brief description.
At the back of the guidebook there is a alphabetically-listed route check-box - for those all-important holiday ticks! Excellent.
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