Varasova - Kryoneri

Kryoneri is a small coastal settlement in Aetolia-Acarnania, located west of Varasova. Above Kryoneri is the main 600-meter limestone wall of Varasova, which hosts more than 120 climbing routes on its impressively textured limestone.

The village of Galatas is also located a short distance away. The wider area of Galatas and Kryoneri was historically significant, as indicated by the location of the hermitage of Saint Nikolaos at the base of the South Ridge. Later, it served as a special transfer station for the Northwestern Greece Railway, from which both passengers and rail cars would embark toward Patras by ferry. The old railway station is preserved by the village.

Kryoneri is practically synonymous with climbing on Varasova, since from the settlement at least 120 routes are accessible, ranging from 32m to 900m in height and graded between UIAA III and IX, as well as dozens of sport and bouldering routes, offering the full spectrum of climbing styles and terrain. With a western orientation, the wall is climbable year-round, except during hot summer afternoons.

Due to the proximity to sea water, extra caution is advised when relying on fixed protection.

Access

Access to Kryoneri is possible via the Ionia Odos (A5), taking the exit of Evinochori, 22Km from Antirrio.

The sectors of the main wall run parallel to the settlement for roughly 700m.

The return after completing most of the routes is usually done by rappelling from neighbouring ones that have been properly equipped for this purpose. Such routes are “Africana”, “Tower”, “Kalidonische pfeiler” and others. Alternatively to these rappellings, we can walk on the large ledge in a southerly direction, in order to descend from the climbing path.

Some routes lead to the summit, so from there we can descend following the marked summit path, which however requires caution, especially at night, because we can lose it at the points where it turns. The descent to Kryoneri takes about 2 hours. Alternatively, a descent path starts from the ridge to Ano Vasiliki, to the east of the mountain, which takes about 1 hour.

Climbing history

Modern climbing on Varasova began in 1958, overturning the then-prevailing view that climbing areas should exist only in the mountains, not in “seaside vacation spots.” In 1962, a team effort by prominent Greek climbers followed, establishing five new lines. During this attempt, the team of Zacharanis - Xinos became trapped on the wall for 37 hours and was rescued by a team led by M. Kottaris. Four years later, Zacharanis and Kottaris returned together with Idosidis to open the route “Skoupa” (V, 220m), dedicating it to that incident.

In the late 1970s, interest in Varasova was rekindled, with significant new classic sixth-grade routes such as “Africana” (VI, 200m) by D. Korres - John X., “Kolofotia” (VI, 170m) by D. Hasse - S. Eichinger, and “Rubicon” (VII-, 420m) by E. Mailander - N. Mailander - E. Weiss. From that point onward, development was rapid, with at least 20 new routes established up to the mid-1990s, with steadily increasing difficulty. A milestone moment was the free ascent of “Spider” (VIII A1, 85m) by Giannis Torelli in 1992, which he graded IX (7c), becoming the first Greek climber to succeed at that grade.

With the rise of sport climbing, the area continued to evolve with numerous new routes. However, interest in the headwall gradually declined due to the development of many new climbing areas throughout Greece, resulting in several older lines becoming overgrown with vegetation.