Roca Verde

Las mejores guías de Escalada Deportiva de la Cordillera Cantábrica. Sport climbing guides to north-west Spain: Asturias, Leon, Cantabria. Me contacten / Contact me: richie@rocaverdeclimbing.com

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You are here: Home / Archives for Caroline Ciavaldini

Bouldering at El gacho with James Pearson + Caroline Ciavaldini

February 3, 2020 by Roca Verde Climbing Leave a Comment

El gacho es uno de los sitios más guapos y duros para hacer búlder en Asturias. En este pequeño video James + Caro conocen la zona y prueben sus joyas! Encuentras más sobre las zonas de búlder asturiano en el libro Roca Verde disponible en rocaverdeclimbing.com
El gacho is one of the most beautiful and brutal places to boulder in Asturias. In this short video James Pearson + Caroline Ciavaldini get to try some of the brilliant problems there. You can see more about Asturian bouldering in my Roca Verde guide available at rocaverdeclimbing.com

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Filed Under: Blog, Bouldering, Climbing, Escalada, escalada deportiva, Teverga Tagged With: Asturias, bouldering, bouldering videos, Caroline Ciavaldini, Climbing in Teverga, climbing northern spain, Cordillera Cantabrica, escalada asturias, escalada deportiva, escalada roca verde, james pearson, rock climbing, spanish climbing, sport climbing, Teverga

James Pearson Guest Blog – Roca Verde Road Trip – Day 6 – Bouldering

January 30, 2020 by Roca Verde Climbing Leave a Comment

“Sometimes our trips are meticulously planned and sometimes they just happen, often at the whim of others. Our Roca Verde road trip was the latter. Touching down at night in late October to Santander after a week of work in England we were looking forward to a climbing break – but we hadn’t a clue what to expect – all we knew was that we had seven days guided round the region.  

Our good friend Richie Patterson, the author of the first English language guide to a block of north-west Spain he’d christened Roca Verde, had invited us; but we didn’t really know where we were going or what the area encompassed. We’d actually not climbed in Spain for a while as we are always looking to go a little ‘off-piste’ and the crowds and polish of the major destinations, however good the climbing, don’t really appeal. So when Richie promised unpolished rock, empty crags and plenty of great routes to go at – we were intrigued enough to give it a go!”

Day 6 – Bouldering – El Gachu, El Cantu and Cabo Negro – Central Asturias

Although not perhaps the strong point of Asturias, Richie was keen for us to sample some of the bouldering, and he’d planned out one long, crazy day to take in all Asturias had to offer. Knowing me quite well I think he knew that I’d appreciate it a bit more than Caro, and promptly warned her that it would be somewhat of an acquired taste…English style!

We began the day at El Gachu, a hidden gem, tucked away on a hillside, halfway up the 1200m pass of San Lorenzo.  It’s a super steep wall of quartzite that reminded me heavily of the Bowderstone in the Lake District, with a load of hard problems up to 8b+, 50 meters long and overhanging in its entirety, the problems climbed really well, even if they were not the most inspiring of lines. The location however was a spectacular, isolated from the rest of the world as you look down on the Teverga spread out far below.

Caro on one of the super steep 7a+ boulders of El Gachu

Once again pushed for time, we hopped in the car and dropped back down to Teverga. El Cantu is a somewhat more typical bouldering area; a jumble of big limestone blocks on the slopes below the crags. With around 100 problems of all grades spread over a wide area, there are plenty of things to go at. El Cantu is superb, compact, grey limestone, which forms frustrating slopers in equal measure to tiny crimps.  One of my favourite problems from El Cantu was Houdini, a rather short, 5 move 8a, which ended with a spectacular sideways double dyno!  The easier problems are just as good, and brought with them something that limestone bouldering so often lacks – lines… After a few more problems across the various blocks we settled for lunch of fresh cooked empanada, a local treat of a flat bread filled with chorizo, and chilled out as the sun danced across the hillside opposite lighting up the sectors we’d climbed on previously.

Tired but happy we dozed in the car as Richie drove us North to the coast, to the last venue of the day, and the trip. Very much a coastal region, Asturian climbers had been exploring the cliffs and boulders next to the Atlantic for many years and found some impressive venues. Cabo Negro was one of the most famous and popular, a bunch of rough black boulders sat on a wide tidal ledge, just above the pounding sea. Facing west there were views of the port of Aviles and Richie swore it was perfectly placed to enjoy superb sunsets!

Walking down to Cabo Negro

Arriving at the boulders after a short walk along the cliff top path, it was atmospheric to say the least.  Substantial waves were crashing in, over the ledge, and sending plumes of spray 10 metres into the air. Sadly, this combination of wind and waves meant that much was too wet to climb, and we began to get a little nervous as we realised the tide was already on its way back in.

James on the classic 7a, waiting for the promised sunset on a cloudy day…

Then, whilst traversing the thinnest part of the ledge to check out the furthest boulders, I turned back as I heard a high-pitched scream and several choice French curse words. For a moment Caroline disappeared behind a huge wall of spay, luckily to re-appear a second or too later, although by now soaked to the skin! At this point we decided that discretion was the better part of valour, and that perhaps we should cut our visit short. I was reluctant to leave without trying a single problem, and so grabbed my boots to quickly play on a few of the drier boulders as Caro shivered semi-naked!!

A bit posed but we had to show the scale of the waves – the day was pretty frightening tbh!!

Day 7 – Homeward bound

Settling down on the plane and thinking about the week that had whizzed by, I thought back to Richie’s emphasis of the ‘difference’ we’d find in the north of Spain. This was Spain, but not as we had known it before: the crags were empty and unpolished, the climbing superb, and the ambience was like a snapshot of the rural past, all in the most spectacular, and very, green settings!

Caro had christened it ‘tufaland’ on day one as we marvelled at the amount of rock in La Hermida but the truth was that there seemed to be a bit of everything, especially in the west.  With Quirós and Teverga providing complementary and contrasting venues so close together, there are a ton of great routes across all grades and styles, enough for even the pickiest of climbers.

Although far too short, our trip had given us a taste of these “new” regions of Spain, and all they have to offer – and we hadn’t even made it to Leon (the remaining third of the Roca Verde guide) We left surprised, happy and content, knowing that Roca Verde was one part of Spain to which we cant wait to return.

Sunset at Casa Quiros on James and Caro’s last night!!

You can check out James and Caro’s adventures in northern Spain in a short series of movies they made about the place: their Roca Verde Road Trip.
They’re all on Epic TV so here’s some links
Part 1 – https://youtu.be/n5bil2d1Br4
Part 2 – https://youtu.be/yq37n0zej9A
Part 3 – https://youtu.be/HQ6RheBVFog

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Filed Under: Blog, Bouldering, Climbing, Escalada, escalada deportiva, Quiros, sports climbing, Teverga Tagged With: bouldering, bouldering videos, bulder, Cabo negro, Caroline Ciavaldini, Climbing in Teverga, climbing northern spain, Cordillera Cantabrica, el cantu, El gachu, escalada roca verde, james pearson, northern Spain, Picos de Europa, roca verde climbing, rock climbing, rock climbing asturias, spanish climbing, sport climbing, Teverga

James Pearson Guest Blog – Roca Verde Road Trip – Day 3 , 4 + 5 Valles de Trubia

January 26, 2020 by Roca Verde Climbing Leave a Comment

“Sometimes our trips are meticulously planned and sometimes they just happen, often at the whim of others. Our Roca Verde road trip was the latter. Touching down at night in late October to Santander after a week of work in England we were looking forward to a climbing break – but we hadn’t a clue what to expect – all we knew was that we had seven days guided round the region.  

Our good friend Richie Patterson, the author of the first English language guide to a block of north-west Spain he’d christened Roca Verde, had invited us; but we didn’t really know where we were going or what the area encompassed. We’d actually not climbed in Spain for a while as we are always looking to go a little ‘off-piste’ and the crowds and polish of the major destinations, however good the climbing, don’t really appeal. So when Richie promised unpolished rock, empty crags and plenty of great routes to go at – we were intrigued enough to give it a go!”

­­­Day 3 – El Covachón – Teverga – Central Asturias

We woke up in the quaint, forgotten village of Aciera below Quirós, and enjoyed a slow Spanish style breakfast and coffee on the terrace of Richie’s guest house (www.casaquiros.co.uk), we flicked through the guide book. We decided on Teverga, perhaps the largest separate area, home to more than 25 sectors and nearly 500 routes of every style.  Richie suggested the super steep cave of El Covachon, as a good friend of his would be there, trying his project.

If the cave looks steep in the guide, it’s nothing to how it looks in real life!  The lip of the roof is actually lower than the apex of the cave, meaning you are actually climbing downwards for the last few meters.  As seems to be the norm in this place, a beautiful view down the valley and onto the town is reward for anyone brave enough to come climbing here.  El Covachón is one of the more hard core venues in the guide, with routes only beginning at 7a+, but if you’re climbing these grades is well worth a visit.

 

Day 4 – Quirós – Central Asturias

It wasn’t by chance that Richie’s guesthouse was located in Quirós.  The hills around the village are covered in rock, and we soon discovered that Quirós was the first ‘big’ crag of Asturias and has been climbed on since the 60’s!  The majority of routes are off-vertical long wall climbs, fitting to the climbing style of the time.  Even the eccentric Brit John Redhead made his mark by establishing Placa John, the first 7a of the region; but it wasn’t until 1987 that Fran Blanco moved away from the slabs to take on one a short steep roof, giving Asturias its first 8a in the form of Rompedor. Always psyched to add a bit of history to the agenda we headed up to check it out.  The crags of Quirós are only a short distance from the village, and walking up from the house the beauty of the area and the attractiveness of the situation was continually evident. Overlooking a lake and at the bottom of an amazingly verdant valley Quirós is now considered an everyman crag, with over 300 routes, most of which are below 7a.

 

Rompedor was a great little climb, and nothing at all like what we had expected.  A boulder problem in the sky would be the best way to describe it, not at all like the other harder routes we had climbed in the region.  Its easy to understand why, as at the time of tiptoeing up vertical walls, people really didn’t know if roofs like this were even possible.  It’s logical to start with a small challenge, a few moves of overhanging terrain to test the water, and slowly move on from there.  As much as these routes can seem strange to us in an age of 50m long overhanging pump-fests, we should not forget that they were in fact the beginning of it all.

Having said all that, Quirós is really best for its stunning wall climbs.  La Amarilla is one of the better known sectors, with top quality, 35m long slabs on immaculate white and blue rock. Que la fuerza te accompañe 7b, and Cada loco con su tema, 6c,7a are worth a particular mention, and really showcase what climbing in Quirós is all about.

Day 5 – More Bóvedas – Teverga …!!

Teverga was just too good to spend only one day, so on day 5 of our trip, both skin and muscles sore, but psyche incredibly high, We found ourselves under just another tufa filled cave, and just another selection of incredible 5* routes.  Bóvedas, in two parts is literally the central part of the Teverga massif, and is a jam packed collection of great looking sectors: Bóvedas, Pared Negra, El Canal, Pingalagua are all as good as each other, yet cover a huge variety in climbing styles.  From 3 bolt 8bs to 40 metre 6bs, and crimpy off vertical walls, to pumpy overhanging tufas, La Cueva ticks all the boxes.

James on Dragon de Comorr, 7b+(7c) Bovedas.

We chose La Cueva, which was home to a bunch of the best mid grade 6’s I have ever climbed.  From the belay of these routes, it is possible to continue up through the roof and steep wall above, where things suddenly get a lot more serious! Dragón de Comorr, is a 7b+ extension to an already amazing 6c, that follows a single, eye-catching tufa all the way to a technical and balancy finish on the slab way above.  An amazing route, and perhaps a little tough for the grade… after all, it was the only route I fell off all week!

You can check out James and Caro’s adventures in northern Spain in a short series of movies they made about the place: their Roca Verde Road Trip.
They’re all on Epic TV so here’s some links
Part 1 – https://youtu.be/n5bil2d1Br4
Part 2 – https://youtu.be/yq37n0zej9A
Part 3 – https://youtu.be/HQ6RheBVFog

 

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Filed Under: Climbing, escalada deportiva, sports climbing Tagged With: Asturias, Caroline Ciavaldini, Cordillera Cantabrica, escalada deportiva, escalada roca verde, james pearson, northern Spain, Quiros, roca verde climbing, rock climbing, rock climbing asturias, spanish climbing, sport climbing

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Instagram post 2340800312708699958_1398545702 Conocí nuevos amigos hoy en el monte! #serpientes Made some new friends while out hiking today 😮 #snakesalive
Instagram post 2340681506791535402_1398545702 Meteo / Weather Teverga y Quirós  27062020 Día muy bueno. No hace demasiado calor pero después de la lluvia siguen muchas vías mojadas. Igual un día para hacer placas...
Great day but lots wet after the heavy rain. Slab day. #teverga #climbing #rockclimbing #escalada #escaladaenroca #escaladadeportiva #asturias #rocaverde #weather #meteo @grupoagujasobia @teverga_paraiso @turismoasturias #cordilleracantabrica @casa_quiros
Instagram post 2338667219273363300_1398545702 Meteo Actualizado - Granizo gigantismo y más agua  la vez que nunca he visto en mi vida!!
Weather Update - Giant Hailstones and more water than I've ever seen fall in a 10 minute burst!!!
#tiempo #weather #asturias #rocaverde #paraisonatural #meteo @casa_quiros
Instagram post 2338502249520574559_1398545702 Meteo / Weather Teverga y Quirós 24062020 Otro día espectacular pero con esta ola de calor será otro día caluroso. Buscas sombra y bebes mucho (agua o cerveza @cervezaasgaya me da igual)🍻🍻 😜😜👍
Brilliant day but super hot. Go somewhere shady and drink a lot - waters probably best but beer may do the trick. 🍻🍻😂😂
#rockclimbing #teverga #climbing #escalada #escaladaenroca #paraisonatural @casa_quiros #climbinglife #sportclimbing @grupoagujasobia #asturias #rocaverde #meteo #weather #cordilleracantabrica #climbing_is_my_passion #klettern #desnivel #escalar
Instagram post 2336407444217037434_1398545702 Noticias Importantes sobre el acceso y aproximación de la escuela de Llombera, León 
Buenas a tod@s, siguiendo recomendacciones de la Junta de Castilla y León, queda prohibido escalar o pasar por debajo del sector pricipal de Llombera, espero que seamos conscientes y respetemos, hasta finales de agosto está restriccion, se puede acceder por el camino del respiradero de la mina, o bordeando por el sector Pioneros, es un poco más largo pero igual de efectivo, espero que tod@s seamos conscientes y respetemos la restricción, la foto croquis espero que os sirva de referencia, las otras dos fotos es del Camino que lleva al respiradero, se sigue recto y luego se puede ganar altura hasta la pared, un saludo.
Instagram post 2335650082610917227_1398545702 Árbol...
Instagram post 2335649673129451203_1398545702 Libertad...
Instagram post 2335611712765459457_1398545702 Meteo / Weather Teverga y Quirós 2062020 Perfecto. Vete a escalar!!! Sin más...👍
Perfect day. Go climbing, that's it, that's the message.
#rockclimbing #teverga #climbing #rockclimbing #escalada #escaladaenroca #escaladadeportiva #asturias #rocaverde #weather #meteo @grupoagujasobia @teverga_paraiso @turismoasturias #cordilleracantabrica #climbing_is_my_passion #klettern #desnivel #escalar #spain
Instagram post 2334882550564018588_1398545702 Meteo / Weather Teverga y Quirós  19062020 Que buen día. Más o menos perfecto para escalar, correr hace bici: cualquier cosa!! No demasiado calor ya y hay viento fresco.
Perfect climbing day. Cool fresh and sunny.
#rockclimbing #teverga #climbing #rockclimbing #escalada #escaladaenroca #escaladadeportiva #asturias #rocaverde #weather #meteo @grupoagujasobia @teverga_paraiso @turismoasturias #cordilleracantabrica @casa_quiros #climbinglife #sportclimbing
Instagram post 2332716913019586026_1398545702 Meteo / Weather Teverga y Quirós 16062020 Nubes, niebla, lluvia anoche y goteando ahora mismo. No me parece como junio pero es lo que hay. Hoy sitios protegidos o nada...18° a las 12...
Clouds mist, rain last night and spitting now so less like June, than December but hey ho...18° at midday!!! #teverga #meteo #weather #asturias #rocaverde @casa_quiros #climbinglife #sportclimbing #paraisonatural #climbing_pictures_of_instagram @tenayaclimbing #climbtheworld @beta_climbing @turismoasturias #escalada #escaladaenroca #climbingrocks #escaladadeportiva
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