Tag: Travel

Via ferrata

Wire and War – the top five vie ferrate for WW1 history

Vie ferrate have much of their origins in war.  As the Italians and Austrians fought a war of attrition in the passes, summits and ridges of the Dolomites, they built vie ferrate to help the movement of troops and supplies.  Now these routes are a major leisure activity, with climbers clipping to metal cables fixed to mountainsides to protect them as they climb ladders and scramble over rock.  Via ferrata are an incredibly fun way to explore the mountains and in the Dolomites they also provide one of the best ways of learning about an aspect of World War 1 of which many people are unaware. Continue reading Wire and War – the top five vie ferrate for WW1 history

Unknown's avatarthe Severe climber16 Comments
Rock climbing, What they don't tell you in the guidebook

Climbing in the Palms – Sport Climbing on Gran Canaria

Rain, or the threat of it, is a big part of the life of an English rock climber.  A fair amount of time is spent planning how to avoid rain, waiting for rain to stop, finding somewhere that it isn’t raining or just being rained on.  In 2012, I seemed to spend far more time than usual in this dance with the rain and so wanted somewhere for my honeymoon in November where I could climb without having to worry too much about rain driving me off the crag.  Gran Canaria, the biggest of the Canary Islands, was the destination my wife and I settled on. Continue reading Climbing in the Palms – Sport Climbing on Gran Canaria

Unknown's avatarthe Severe climber10 Comments
Via ferrata

Vie Ferrate on Gran Canaria

I never would have guessed that an island in the Atlantic, off the coast of Africa, has incredible vie ferrate – the cabled climbing routes more normally associated with the Dolomites and the Alps.  But Gran Canaria has several vie ferrate that give interesting, hard climbing on volcanic rock and which take you through wild country with stunning views of mountains and sea.  Two of the vie ferrate on this Spanish island have even been listed in the top ten in that country and I fully understand why. Continue reading Vie Ferrate on Gran Canaria

Unknown's avatarthe Severe climber25 Comments
Via ferrata

One of the most photographed views in the Dolomites…in cloud

It’s been said that the view across Lago di Misurina to the Sorapiss group of mountains is one of the most photographed in the Dolomites.  The full mass of these mountains reflected in the quiet, clear waters of Lago di Misurina is a view to make you sigh and stare as you try to take in the glory of it.  During my time in Misurina, this view was in cloud. Continue reading One of the most photographed views in the Dolomites…in cloud

Unknown's avatarthe Severe climber8 Comments