By Francis Haden Kalymnos, the Greek climbing mecca… Another Kalymnos bolting trip and my return to the South Face of Telendos, which has always held anappeal for developing […]
Ourania is a massive cave near the village of Kamari. It is included in the 2019 Kalymnos guidebook as a sub-sector of Symplegades (p. 374). At the time, […]
Urs Odermatt and Peter Keller—Swiss mountain guides, good friends of Kalymnos, and equippers extraordinaire—are back with a new sector: Griffig. The new sector was developed in spring 2022; […]
Pezonda is an extensive new sector located midway along the Arginonta-Vathy road, in one of the wildest and remotest parts of the island. It takes its name from […]
Little Eden is a new, dreamy crag on the east coast of Kalymnos, near Rina/Vathy. It is a short photogenic cliff that sits just above a quiet beach […]
Sector Heroes is the latest addition to Kalymnos climbing. It is a small and short crag (by Kalymnos standards), with routes up to 20-25m long. However, most routes […]
Our 2019 order of bolts and anchors for the cliffs of Kalymnos has arrived. These are bolts that we at Climb Kalymnos buy once a year, on average, […]
“It’s funny to say, but it [the Kalymnos guidebook] may seriously be the best guidebook in the world. Thank you for all the hard work in new routing […]
Just two years after it was equipped, Arginonta Valley is already one of the most popular crags on Kalymnos (shade all day & well-bolted, easy to mid-grade routes). […]
[Originally posted on July 07, 2011] Do you feel safe lowering off a half-worn carabiner? No, neither do we. On Kalymnos, despite the best efforts to keep […]
Text and photos: Gordon Jenkin, Francis Haden Staggering along with heavy loads of gear in the deep heat of the South Face after spending a week […]
Another year, another festival! The dates this year are 7-9 October, and the event is organized by the Municipality of Kalymnos. The phenomenal climbers Angy Eiter, Roger […]
Arginonta Valley and Black Buddha are two newly-developed sectors across the road from the popular red cliff of Arginonta. Both new sectors were developed as part of […]
After a winter that never was, spring has sprung and Kalymnos is at its very best. Bright, fresh, and smelling “like an herb garden”, it is gradually […]
In 2014, when Gordon Jenkin and Francis Haden bolted the multi-pitch Eterna on the South Face of Telendos, we wrote: “It took the equippers six unglamorous days […]
The rebolting project we wrote about a few months ago started in Kalymnos earlier this week. The project was delayed for a few months as the economy […]
[UPDATE: The new guidebook is now available at many points of sale in Masouri, Kalymnos.] The all-new Kalymnos guidebook is on its way to the printers at last! […]
Hi everyone! How is summer treating you? We have been inactive for a while, but we are back today with a guest post written by two climbers who […]
Multipitch routes Wings for Life (2008) and Wild Country (2010) are the most popular long routes on Kalymnos/Telendos, with fantastic, moderately easy, well-protected climbing. The bolts, however […]
After the coldest, rainiest, windiest winter in recent memory, the weather in Kalymnos has done an about-face and now the sun shines bright and (too) warm. The […]
Leros is a quiet, quaint island just north of Kalymnos. At their nearest point, the two islands are just 2km apart. Less populated than Kalymnos, Leros […]
Eterna 6b+ (6a+ obl.) is a brand-new multi-pitch route on the South Face of Telendos between Wild Country and Wings for Life. It took the equippers […]
The 3rd and final “edition” of the North Face Kalymnos festival is over, and Kalymnos is back to its usual October self: perfect weather, lots of […]
After many months of fieldwork, trial and error, and endless hours in front of the computer, we are thrilled to announce the upcoming publication of our […]
An accident at View of Chapel St Photis last week (involving a very large loose block) once again emphasizes the vital importance of proper route equipping. To a […]
The third and final Kalymnos Climbing Festival by The North Face is two months away (9-12 October 2014). The official festival page has not been updated yet, but […]
We were hoping this day would never come, but unfortunately the first fatal climbing accident on Kalymnos happened today. A Swiss climber lost his life this afternoon at […]
After last year’s Three Stripes, this year the growing repertoire of multi-pitch climbing on Kalymnos has been enriched by Space Walk: a seven-pitch route equipped in May 2014 […]
One of the latest additions to Kalymnos climbing, sector Prophitis Andreas has everything it takes to become one of the major climbing crags of Kalymnos. It is a […]
Today was the second time within a week that the Kalymnos Rescue Team was needed. This afternoon at sector Odyssey the team administered first aid to a climber […]
As most of you know, access to one of the island’s most popular crags, Arginonta, was restricted for several months. A severe thunderstorm in November 2013 and the […]
Earlier today, the relatively new Kalymnos Rescue Service was summoned to Grande Grotta by a couple of climbers in need-and it rose to the task. When the UK […]
Hello and kaló mína everyone! The first day of spring is officially here. The weather is overcast, but ideal for fantasizing about cliffs while we’re hard at work […]
There was plenty of drilling activity on Kalymnos this fall. The Bolting Event announced a year ago brought several equippers to the island in late October / early […]
Following a severe thunderstorm a couple of days ago, there was a big rock fall at sector Arginonta, specifically at subsector Infrared Wall. In the picture below you […]
Though there are a few densely bolted and safe multipitch routes on Kalymnos, the vast majority of routes on the island are single pitches. The same cannot be […]
Kalymnos is widely considered one of the safest climbing venues in the world, largely thanks to the excellent rock quality, dense bolting with stainless-steel bolts, and overall […]
It took Alex Megos a little over three hours to do all four routes of the Men’s PROject Competition. What more can we say? In ‘superior style‘, as […]
Kalymnos ‘veterans’ Peter Keller & Urs Odermatt have enriched the island with some of its most sought-after climbs, and there’s no stopping them. The latest product of their […]
This coming Saturday morning, September 7th at 09:00, locals and climbers will come together to clean the roadside between the villages of Masouri and Arginonta. Initiated by a […]
One thing you know for sure when climbing in Kalymnos is that you will meet fun, interesting people from all over the world. Two of the awesome climbers […]
The few climbers visiting Kalymnos this month have been very lucky. With climbing conditions unprecedented for this time of year, during the first three weeks of July we […]
You think Telendos is overshadowed by the popularity of Kalymnos? Not so. The little island has its own devout followers, and for good reason: with spectacular cliffs, very […]
On occasion you may have noticed a ‘spinner‘ when you climb – in other words, a loose hanger. This happens when the nut attaching the hanger to […]
Saint Photis, a crag next to a quaint whitewashed chapel by the same name, was originally equipped by the Remy Brothers in 2002. The setting of both crag […]
The Kalymnos new route updates a lot of you have been asking about are now online. You can download the list here or click on the Alex Megos […]
Hi everybody! The North Face has started preparing this year’s Kalymnos Climbing Festival with official dates 10-13 October 2013. According to the North Face team in charge of […]
Jens Larssen, founder and editor-in-chief of 8a.nu, is a regular visitor and friend of Kalymnos. He’s been to the island more than five times already (most recently for […]
The end of a slower-than-usual fall season in Kalymnos brings news of yet another agreement between Kos and Ryanair as well as a bolting event initiated by a […]
Updated Oct 15th | Sector Psili Riza, also unofficially known as ‘The North Face (TNF) Crag’, was bolted specifically for -and unveiled during- the 2012 TNF Kalymnos Climbing […]
Perhaps you’ve heard of Secret Garden – an important recent addition to Kalymnos climbing, already widely considered as one of the major crags on the island. With […]
Saturday, DAY 3 | Last day of the PROject Competition in unseasonably hot and humid conditions. Neither of the hardest routes was done by the athletes (Men’s […]
Autumn has officially begun, and so has the countdown to the North Face Kalymnos Climbing Festival! The festival opens on Thursday at 5pm. The vibe in Kalymnos […]
Good morning from beautiful Kalymnos! After three hot days, August is back to its breezy self and perfect summer climbing conditions. So far August was nearly perfect, […]
Everybody on Kalymnos knows Andrea Di Bari as the man who discovered the ‘huge climbing potential on this Greek island’, and we eagerly look forward to seeing him […]
As Kalymnos is gearing up for the September climbing festival by The North Face, fresh updates are being added to the festival’s official page, such as a super […]
By Urs Odermatt “There are two lights on the Telendos summit.” It’s almost midnight now, and there shouldn’t be any lights on the summit at this time of […]
Swiss mountain guides Urs Odermatt and Peter Keller have been to Kalymnos so many times they’ve lost count. But mostly their names are connected to Telendos. Telendians love […]
The North Face people spent quite a lot of time on Kalymnos over the spring preparing for the September climbing festival (September 26-30, 2012). More info can be […]
Sticking to their yearly routine, the Remy brothers have just left Kalymnos after a month spent equipping new routes. Some are at established sectors such as Panorama, Iannis […]
You know those young people you sometimes meet who seem to burst with potential? So that later, when you find out they’re doing really well for themselves, you’re […]
Kalymnos is very lucky to count some great climbers among its loyal friends. Surely one of the most prominent and dedicated is Neil Gresham, the well-known all-around climber […]
As climbing on Kalymnos continues to grow, so does the need to protect and improve it. We recently shared some thoughts about Kalymnos on 8a.nu. Among other things […]
Also known as the cover model on the 2010 Kalymnos guidebook, Greek climber Thanassis Sotiropoulos is one of the top in the country. He comes from […]
We are happy to share this post today with Lee Cujes, a great climber and coach from Australia who calls himself a resident of Kalymnos (on his Facebook […]
*Updated Jan 8th* To all climbers: please read this entire post for a list of routes with potentially bad bolts. A batch of defective bolts sold between […]
This autumn the 15 year-old Ukrainian climber Zhenja Kazbekova came away from Kalymnos with an impressive tick list including the onsight of Super Priapos 8a+ at Grande […]
Sector Arginonta has decidedly become one of the most popular climbing crags in Kalymnos. Gorgeous village and bay views aside, the markedly short approach and abundance of […]
The next Kalymnos climbing festival (Sept 28-30, 2012) was announced in a municipal press conference last week. For the next three years starting in 2012, in collaboration […]
In our previous post we made special mention to Palionisos and the improvements made there this year. We didn’t mention though that Palionisos also features a new […]
In one word, fantastic! This summer the weather in Kalymnos was perfect and a lot of climbing was done (which is why we are posting so late […]
Mathieu Bouyoud, the 21-year old climber and college student from Chambéry, France, was in Kalymnos last month. Several of his days were spent at sector North Cape equipping […]
Yet another multi-pitch route comes to join the popular Wings for Life and Wild Country on Telendos, the trademark small isle opposite the west coast of Kalymnos. Inspiration, […]
The fifth climbing festival of Kalymnos, featuring special guests Nicolas Favresse and Patxi Usobiaga, came to an end Sunday night. While not as busy as Easter, the ‘climbing’ […]
(Post updated May 16th to include Festival schedule; see below). It has been officially announced that Kalymnos will host a climbing festival between May 18-22, 2011, featuring Patxi […]
Claude and Yves Remy have made it their habit to spend several days on Kalymnos each year equipping new routes; you have surely climbed some of their […]
This year’s Easter in Kalymnos was, arguably, the busiest so far in terms of climber arrivals, breaking all previous records for this time of year and confirming […]
Since the publication of the 2010 Kalymnos guidebook last October, more than 80 new routes have sprouted up on Kalymnos. We compiled all these new routes (late October […]
St. George is a new climbing sector recently ‘discovered’ and equipped on the southeast tip of Kalymnos by Chris Craggs, Colin Brinks and Sherri Davy. As you […]
Updated Feb 27th 2011: This information courtesy of 8a.nu, according to which Kalymnos is currently the most popular climbing crag in the world! In addition to Ryanair’s year-round […]
Named an Adventurer of the Year 2010 by National Geographic, 25 year-old speed climber and extreme soloist Alex Honnold is spending all of February in Kalymnos with […]
The 2011 Outdoors Show in London last week (13-16 January) had a distinctive climbing character; it hosted the 2011 British Bouldering Championships in the Junior and Senior […]
Happy New Year everybody! In Kalymnos, the year started with a fresh and interesting climbing development: the island’s first indoor climbing gym, ‘Climb in’. Of course, most […]
The weather sabotaged him for five whole weeks, but at the end Pirmin Bertle had his chance. As his last day on Kalymnos dawned, so did the […]
**Updated Wednesday, Dec 15th: This year’s maintenance of 100 climbing routes, funded by the municipality of Kalymnos, has been completed at sectors Symplegades, Ghost Kitchen, Arhi, Galatiani, […]
Those who have seen him climb say his climbing future is very bright. We are talking about Alexander Megos, the 17-year old athlete from Germany, who also speaks […]
*Updated 10 Nov 2010* The new Kalymnos Climbing Guidebook is now printed and available for sale. Despite our best efforts to keep it light and compact, the […]
Here’s more Adam Ondra to inspire us mortals. This 10-min feature filmed by 9b during the 2009 Kalymnos climbing festival is worth watching for the first three minutes […]
The peak of the Kalymnos climbing season is coming up, and for many climbers traveling to Kalymnos the best option is to fly to the neighboring island […]
After endless hours of fieldwork, writing, and trial & error to create the new Kalymnos guidebook, we are this close to the finish line… The book will soon […]
The July / August issue of the French online magazine Passion Grimpe features an article about Kalymnos by Sylvain Bachimont and Hugo Houel. It is a tale […]
For fans of Adam Ondra, Kalymnos, or both, our friends over at 9b have just sent us a short preview of “‘Impossible’ love?”, a film about Adam soon […]
(By Carl Dawson) Can you climb in Kalymnos in summer? This was the question I wanted answering: but too late, I was on my way, already on the […]
We get a lot of emails from climbers / frequent Kalymnos visitors asking us about new sectors and routes worth visiting, particularly in the mid-grades (6a-6b), which appeal […]
E.T. is the latest addition to Kalymnos crags suitable for climbing on hot, sunny afternoons. Sector E.T. is located in the fertile valley of Vathy (or Vathys), […]
Wild Country (6a, 265m, 9 pitches) is the latest multi-pitch route opened by Swiss mountain guides Peter Keller and Urs Odermatt on Telendos in May 2010. It […]
Early last month two American climbers, Sanam Pejuhesh and Nicky Dyal, fed up with the scene of “plastic bottles, trash, and cigarette butts drifting across the […]
On a recent trip to Kalymnos, Matthieu Selme from France made some panoramic photo compositions by joining together multiple images. While most of us would agree that […]
Issue #36 (Feb 2010) of Urban Climber magazine featured an article on Kalymnos climbing called Ode on a Grecian Tufa. The feature was written by Dawn Glance […]
The UIAA Management Committee will be meeting in Kalymnos on May 6th-9th 2010. This is the first time the island of Kalymnos hosts the UIAA; the venue […]