Kompanj sport climbing in Istria, Croatia

During the last couple of years one of the most popular climbing areas in Croatia’s Istria region is Kompanj, close to Buzet. Kompanj is one of the most important crags in the area, both in terms of number and quality of the routes. Facing south, on good weekends in winter this area is so popular that it can sometimes even be overcrowded.

Kompanj is not an old crag. Local climbers somehow overlooked its potential for years and concentrated their effort on other crags that, nowadays, have become less popular. The history of Kompanj is interesting: Austrian climber and filmmaker Leo Baumgartner visited Istria and, in particular, the Buzet area while scouting for a location to film Perfume, the movie based on the bestselling book by German writer Patrick Süskind. Baumgartner fell in love with the village Roč and ever since then he has been a regular visitor and important driving force in the discovery of new crags close to Roč and Buzet. Leo and his friends have put a lot of work and effort into Kompanj, preparing the paths and bolting the routes. All job is done with love and care and all the climbs are perfectly bolted.

After Leo & Co’s efforts, two sectors on the lower part of Kompanj were cleaned and bolted by a group of Italian climbers. Later some local Croatian climbers and German visitors established some new routes to increase a total number to climbs to over one hundred.

The best part is definitely the Main Sektor where almost every route is a three star climb. It is very hard to single out any of them in particular, but routes such as Shit winter 6b+, Truffelschwein 7a and Beastiqueen 7a+ are absolute musts. The only drawback is that on good weekends you may need to wait in a queue!

For the harder routes Leo had an ace up his sleeve: his friends Gerhard Hörhager and Markus Bock. They bolted and climbed some harder stuff such as the classic Rocket max 8a+ or the even more difficult Hard sun 8b+. Gerhard in particular, just like Leo, fell in love with the place and comes regularly.

The path that leads to the right leads past the sectors Hund and Krankenhaus. Hund was developed recently by local climbers and now hosts the fantastic Pilates line 7b+ as well as some pleasant easier routes. Sector Krankenhaus is very popular because it hosts some easier climbs and also some fantastic mid-grad outings such as Krankenhaus 6c+ and Asylantin 7a.

The last sector is called Olymp cave. Full of tufas, this small overhanging sector is interesting for stronger climbers. After approaching via a small ferrata you will reach a good ledge below the overhangs where you can enjoy a fantastic view and stunning sunsets. For strong climbers Der Berg ruft 8b is a must!

TOPO: Kompanj, Istria, Croatia