Parle and Magical Mystery Tour Calpe
On Thursday I as showing Wayne around the fantastic sea cliffs of Sierra de Toix.
Best known for lots of fine and easy access low - mid grade climbing, Toix is situated on the outskirts of Calpe. We know the crags there really well, having visited many times.
For those in search of more adventure, a walk under the main crags and down to the sea cliffs are in order. That is what Wayne was looking for today, and not one but two of these magnificent routes.
I predicted Parle would offer us more morning shade so despite this being a much more difficult route, we started with that.
The abseil into these climbs is for many the most memorable part of the day, each time I look at the Parle abseil I see why. It's crazy!!
Wayne took this in his stride, and once he was back in the swing of abseiling on a GriGri came down super smooth. We alternate led the route, with Wayne taking 2 pitches while I just led the middle pitch. I don't know how long we took, but not long.
After lunch we walked the very short way to reach the abseil for Magical Mystery Tour and Candelabra Del Sol. Another wild abseil onto ledges above the sea. There was already an abseil rope in place, but this had not been properly equalised so we set up our own using 3 bolt anchors.
After the initial scrambling we climbed the route in 3 pitches, all of which are bolted these days. The belay ledges were sociable as we kept meeting up with a couple of friendly climbers from Benidorm. It was noticeably hotter on this route and we were glad of the easier climbing and even happier to emerge back at the top where cool drinks and comfy shoes waited for us.
Both these routes make for a fantastic day out as does doing them during a single visit. Both a in very atmospheric settings and offer wonderful climbing on excellent quality rock. Both are extremely exposed though, so if that isn't your thing, it would be worth getting more used to exposure prior to a visit.
These are bolted routes, just don't expect a bolt every couple of metres, the well spaced bolts make sure the adventure element is well and truly retained.
Locating the abseil stations are probably the most difficult part of climbing on a sea cliff. These ones are relatively straightforward to find, but can still give some confusion. If considering having a go at these routes but feeling unsure about route-finding / logistics, why not hire a guide for the day. We know these and many more routes really well, will deal with rope management and setting up the abseils, leaving you to simply enjoy the journey.
For more inspiration for adventurous days in Costa Blanca check out our new Cicerone Guidebook here
Thanks to Wayne for the climbing and to all those reading 🙂
Mark
