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 – it was impossible to sit at the computer and focus). July was warm but not unseasonably so, and August was ideal: the light northerly breeze, the meltemi, was a constant companion; in fact, some days were quite windy and belayers needed long sleeves in the shade. By summer climbing standards, conditions this August were optimal and humidity remained low throughout the summer. We saw plenty of climbing families and there were several climbers trying 8as and 8bs. After last year’s unusually hot and humid summer, we worried that climbers would hesitate to visit Kalymnos again this year, but thankfully that didn’t happen. In fact there seemed to be an increase in summer climbers this year, especially in August; also, we noticed a greater diversity: besides Greek and Italian climbers (who traditionally take time off in August) we also met climbers from the United States, Canada, Poland, Germany, Austria, France, Switzerland and Argentina, to name a few.

Other summer highlights:

– Kalymnian photographer Nikolas Smalios (whose photos grace the pages of the Kalymnos guidebook) won first prize in a National Geographic / Nova TV channel photography competition. The theme was ‘Life as never seen before’ and Nikolas won a 10-day private safari in Kenya! We can’t wait to see his photos from that trip. The winning photograph, pictured left, was of course shot in Kalymnos. Some of Nikolas’ photos were also featured in a Climbing Magazine photo gallery earlier this summer.

– Newer crags have begun to host more and more climbers, like The Beach (for obvious reasons) or Arginonta (although it’s not a summer crag, the quality / variety of routes and short approach seem to compensate).

– The fall climbing season is expected to be busier than ever before. Many of the rental studios and hotel rooms are fully booked through the end of October, so we’d encourage you to book your accommodation ahead of time if that’s when you plan to visit. By extension, more businesses plan to stay open in November this year.

– We were pleasantly surprised by our visit to Palionisos beach a few weeks ago. Palionisos is a small seaside hamlet on the island’s NE coast; just last year we had written in guidebook that ‘the hamlet and beach of Palionisos are in a remote area of wild beauty…the area looks particularly beautiful from a distance. It could have been a perfect spot for swimming and hanging out after a climb, but sadly, the adjacent land is somewhat untidy and in need of a good clean-up’. Well, we are happy to say that this summer the beach has been cleaned and a couple of small café-restaurants have appeared on either side of the bay. Even on a day with choppy seas, the water at Palionisos bay was green and calm. It was one of our best swims this summer. We hope the residents keep the beach clean and inspire others to do the same at different parts of the island needing a good cleanup.

Other blogs you can browse to read about climbers’ experiences & see photos from Kalymnos are here (in English) and here (in Catalan). We’d like to close with an excerpt from an email we received from Alex, a London-based climber who visited Kalymnos for the first time this summer. We’d be happy to hear your own summer stories from Kalymnos as well!

‘If I had to describe the trip with one word it would be disappointing… disappointing that I ever had to leave that is! It was absolutely A M A Z I N G! Had such bad blues when we had to go – where did the week go? I didn’t end up doing half the things that I absolutely wanted to do on my “1st” of now many trips to Kalymnos! …So yeah, over all, I was amazed and fell in love at first sight with the place. The colours, the natural beauty, the feel and shape and grip and colour of the rock, the quietness of scorching summer noons, the smell of thyme as you gently brush it with your legs careful not to disturb the busy bees…. the FOOD! Ahhhh speaking for me, all senses were in ecstasy! We had a 0.7kg “sinagrida” (i.e. seabream) fresh as you like for my birthday at ‘Sevastos’, complete with simiako (i.e. baby shrimp), salad and all the trimmings… heaven!’