Bouldering in Hampi, India

Hampi is India's largest World Heritage Site thanks to the most beautiful and evocative of all temples and ruins in the Karnataka region. Once the capital of the Vijayanagar kingdom, Hampi is full of delightful surprises, such as the King's Balance - a huge archway where kings were weighed against grain, gold or money which was then distributed to the poor - the Queen's Bath with its arched corridors and projecting balconies, the huge Elephant Stables, the ancient Virupaksha temple and so much more....

The landscape spreads out over circa 300 sq kilometers and seen from a height there is a wonderful view of ricefields and granite boulders scattered in every direction. It comes as no surprise therefore that Hampi is also referred to as being a paradise for climbers.

Over the decades Hampi has been visited by many climbers, such as Kurt Albert, Johnny Dawes, Jerry Moffat to name just three, but it wasn't until 2003 and the climbing movie Pilgrimage featuring Chris Sharma that the area became world famous. Since then many others have followed in their footsteps and Hampi now has over 700 boulder problems ranging from Fb4a to 8a+.

	BOULDERING IN HAMPI, INDIA