Winter Sun in El Chorro
As winter approached, we found ourselves seeking a sunny escape from the chilly weather. After considering various options, we settled on El Chorro in southern Spain as the most affordable destination for a month-long climbing trip. With great public transport links from Malaga airport and a good selection of routes for our climbing level (6a for Andy and 5a for Rachel), El Chorro was the logical choice.
Our First Impressions
When we arrived in El Chorro, we were immediately struck by the stunning rock formations and the sight of huge griffon vultures soaring overhead - a spectacle we had only ever seen on TV. The town itself was smaller than we had expected, consisting of a train station, a station bar, one restaurant, and a small shop to stock up on essentials. We made our way up the hill to the Olive Branch, a B&B popular with climbers, where we had booked a private room for the duration of our stay. The Olive Branch also offered camping and bunkhouse accommodation (for those on a tighter budget), as well as the option to cook for ourselves or enjoy breakfast and evening meals provided by the hosts.
Climbing in El Chorro
On our first day of climbing, we decided to tackle easier routes at Escalera Arabe - Suiza. However, we soon discovered that our lack of training and lingering fatigue from Covid-19 was going to be a challenge. After struggling with a few 4s, we decided to stick to easier crags such as Rocabella and Serena for a couple of days. With time and perseverance, it wasn't long before Andy managed to climb back up to 5c, and Rachel reached 4c.
Over the following days, we explored different areas- all within reasonable walking distance from our accommodation. We tackled our first multi-pitch sport route on Corral East, and Rachel led her first 5a route of route of the trip. Andy was able to get his grade back up to 6a. Here is our review of each area we climbed at and our favourite climb at each:
Corral East
Offers a great introduction to multi-pitch. The multi-pitch routes have an added sense of adventure due to needing to abseil 30 metres off the other side.
Rachel started one of the single pitch routes at this crag, La Tumba (5b) and could not locate any bolt after the second one. Definantly one to watch out for!
Best Climb - Three Sixty, 4c.
Escalera Arabe
This is one of the main areas people go to with a lot of climbs at all grades, including some big multi pitch routes. Many options for all weather climbing.
Best Climb - Blade Runner, 6a.
Rocabella
Great beginners crag, with plenty of short routes to get you warmed up. It is in the shade for most of the day, so great on really hot days.
Best Climb - Conejo al tomilo, 4b.
Serena
This also is a great beginners crag, with a lot of bolts per route. It also has a section of cable at the top of one of the faces so you can safely teach people how to strip routes.
Best Route - Pumkin pilav, 5c.
Los Perros
A new crag developed by the guys at the Olive Branch, with each climb being named after a dog at the B&B.
Best Climb - Sami, 6a.
Bedees/Cocina Caliente
These are great evening venues if stopping at the Olive Branch or La Finca as they are just across the road. They offer a wide variety of grades.
Best Climb - Pie Slice, 5a.
During our final week, we had the pleasure of meeting Ruth and James, a couple who own a charming accommodation in Keswick. They had been sensible enough to hire a car- something which is handy in El Chorro. Ruth and James took us with them to a few crags outside walking distance, allowing us to explore Türon, a slabby area that Andy found challenging, and Valle de Abdalajis, where Rachel took her biggest fall of the trip and Andy finally got to try an offwidth.
Türon
This area is full of big slabs so excellent if you are more into balance climbing.
Best climb - Julay lama.
Valle de Abdalajis
This area was quite polished, probably due to how close it was to the parking and town.
Best Climb - Fisura devorador.
Rest days
When the weather turned rainy, we took time off from climbing and had a couple of rest days. On the first, we ventured into the nearby village of Álora for some sightseeing and food shopping. The village is perched on a hill, and the walk up from the train station is steep, but the sights are well worth the effort. The supermarket in Álora offers a much larger selection of food than the smaller one in El Chorro, and the prices are lower.
On our second rest day, we hiked up La Huma (1187m). It was a fantastic walk, despite the cloudy views at the top! We did struggle to find a map for this route- we picked one up in the shop at a nearby campsite, La Finca, but it was quite different to the OS maps we are used to using. We found FATMAPS to be much more useful and ended up using that instead.
We also conquered our first via ferrata,
Via Ferrata EL Chorro, V3A. This route included a double-cable bridge, a V-bridge and a zip wire. Despite Rachel's initial anxiety about a zip line, she breezed through it without any issues, and the double-cabled bridge turned out to be the most challenging of the obstacles.
On our final rest day, we jumped in the car with Ruth and James and visited a local town called Rhonda. Lots of 'churros con leche' and sightseeing.
Our Final Climb
On our last day, we returned to Escalera Arabe to climb the iconic tooth and get our picture taken at the top. Despite Andy's tired arms and struggles with a 6a route (Blade Runner), James offered a bold finish to complete the climb. Rachel led the tooth with ease, and we got our iconic picture. We spent our final two nights in Malaga, enjoying the nightlife and celebrating the end of our climbing adventure. El Chorro provided us with a
fantastic month of climbing, and we left feeling fulfilled.
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