Andalucia is a massive province that stretches down the eastern coast of southern spain. We are based in the hills, 30 minutes north of Malaga in the small town of Villanueva del Rosario.
The mountains around Villanueva del Rosario offers some brilliant venues for rock climbing with both sports and traditional climbs up to 300m high. Villanueva del Rosario itself shot to fame a couple of years ago when a route was bolted in a large cave on the outskirts of the town and claimed as the worlds hardest route - 'Chilam Balam 9b+'.
The main climbing areas are listed below:
Villanueva del Rosario. The cave of Chilam Balam is impressive, but the hills behind the town hide a labyrinth that is full of crags. The most impressive area is the massive buttress of El Corral, but there are several other great areas together with some quite extensive limestone bouldering. The area is quite high and is perfect on hot days. All grades from long mountain scrambles upwards. No published information - local info only
Villanueva del Cauche. A great crag with good bolted 6's and 7's and a couple of 8's. Basic, but outdated info in David Munilla's Andalucia guide. The upper cave is currently being developed as a dry tooling venue. 10 minutes drive.
Archidona: A steep, rain-proof cave with 7's and 8's or long walls with good 5's and 6's.
Loja: A really good set of crags. Everything you need; sun or shade, vertical or steep, 6's, 7's and 8's. Reasonable info in David Munilla's Andalucia guide. 25 minutes drive.
EL Torcal. Limestone that thinks its gritstone. Limestone towers in a lovely area. Info in Munillas guide or in the upcoming Rockfax guide. 25 minutes drive
Desplomilandia. An outlying area of El Chorro - lots of potential and the current routes are pretty good. 1 hour
Turon: A great crag, largely unknown to UK climbers, but that will no doubt change with the new Rockfax guide. 1 hour
El Chorro. A world class area that is a bit too popular and a bit too polished in places, but is still very good. 1 hour.
Valle de Abdalajis. A large expanse rock above this old village. Largely 4s-6s on slabby rock. Online guide here. There are some amazing steep cliffs being developed above this area - local info only at the moment.
There are lots more crags within easy driving distance; Monte Frio offers great 6s and 7's in a beautiful, hidden location; Cahorros is a surreal valley on the outskirts of Granada with loads of climbing at all levels and the worlds hardest grading system. Also close to Granada are Cogollos (Steep 7s) and Alfacar (6s)
There are lots of other activities to do on rest days - mountain biking, canyoning and hiking - or the beaches on the coast.