Climbing

For the more adventurous, the area’s range of climbing venues may be of greater appeal. The following are the best areas for climbing:

VALLAT CLIMB

The Vallat climbing venue, featuring a profile with a multitude of needles, channels and spurs covered in lines of anchors, make it one of the most eye-catching. The rock, like in all of the valley, is limestone and consists of vertical walls featuring roofs, slabs and overhangs. Its orientation is north-west, meaning that the climber is accompanied by shade until midday.

TORRECHIVA CLIMB

The Peñas Altas climbing area consists of a collection of low-medium grade routes over very interesting limestone rock of exceptional quality thanks to its adhesion and great variety of handholds it offers. Its setting and lush surrounding pine forest are unbeatable. It is orientated to the south-west, meaning that the sun is present almost all day. In this area, the Zócalo sector is ideal for beginners as it features easy, short and wellsecured routes with a spacious starting area that is ideal for visits with children. This is the sector where new generations of climbers from the area learn to climb.

TALES CLIMB

This area is ideal for spending a few hours or all day climbing. Its range of grades, proximity to parking and surroundings are more than enough reason to make a visit. It is divided into two very different sections: the left half of the wall is orange limestone with overhangs and plenty of climbing holds to help progress quickly, the right half is dark grey limestone and features slabs with the odd vertical section and a lot of natural edges. It is orientated to the south-east so, on hot days, it is recommended to climb in the cool of the morning or evening. All of the routes are equipped with stainless steel M12 and the belays are not lowering stations, but abseilable.

FANZARA CLIMB

In the Chalavasar climbing area, the wall is peculiar, both for its shape and location. The limestone is dark on the vertical sections and orange on the overhangs, creating horizontal bands that give rise to a wide variety of handholds. The rock offers a multitude of styles of climbing: areas where the grade is maintained and there are good edges, sections with large cracks and more difficult sectors with greater distance between small edges. It is orientated to the west so there is shade in the morning and sun in the afternoon.

AYÓDAR CLIMB AND FUENTES DE AYÓDAR CLIMB

At Peña Zamela and the narrows, there are two welldefined areas that can be accessed on foot from the car park. The routes are equipped with M10 and M12 and some of them in the narrows are stainless steel. It has intense routes surrounded by spectacular scenery. The starting area features a number of natural pools of great beauty ideal for enjoying a dip between the climbs you choose. This is a climbing area of outstanding natural and scenic beauty. It is very important to tackle the climbing with respect and awareness in order to ensure full enjoyment of a special place. The rock in the entire area is dolomite limestone with great adhesion and reliability on all of the equipped routes, and climbing is predominantly on a wall featuring crimpers and holes, but with some good quality cracks as well. As Peña Zamela’s routes are of greater length, there are numerous paths with good continuity, while, in the narrows, explosiveness is required. Most of the walls are orientated to the south and the narrows to the north, making them ideal for visits on hot days.

Other less well-known areas for climbing include Cova Negre in Ribesalbes (top rope climbing), Fuente de San Pedro in Alcudia (top rope climbing), the El Estrecho reservoir in Benitandús (boulder climbing) and Fanzara el Turio in Espadilla (ridge climbing.

The area also offers via ferratas in Benitandús and Espadilla (Estrecho Río Chico) and an extensive range of equipped routes such as La Escaleta in Fanzara, Azud in Ayódar, Cova Negre in Ribesalbes and Castillo in Espadilla.