Is it to the Ben or El Chorro I go? David’s post had really fired me up for the Ben but I also fancied El Chorro, since I had bought the guide. In the event, El Chorro won out.

We stayed in Alora, about 15Km south of El Chorro. This is a charming white-painted village, with ancient fortifications on the hill.

Needless to say, the village had a copious population of cats.

But all the climbing is around El Chorro, one of the most concentrated and awe inspiring rock climbing areas I have ever seen.

The gorge itself is pretty scary. Just walking up to the entrance gets the adrenalin going. Amazing exposure and poor protection!

There is no cable on the really steep and exposed first bit. You have to clip bolts and hand grips for protection. It was very precarious indeed, and serious because the protection is sometimes spaced. I was really frightened.

At the other side, the rock formation changes to conglomerate. Just look at this amazing architecture.

But the gorge is only a tiny part of the action. The biggest crag in the area is Frontales, which has many sectors.

Here is Terry on a route on sector Austria…..

and Vikki too!

She also demolishes a 6a on sector Castrojo….!!

A little further afield was the very amenable crag at Valle de Abdalajis with numerous nice crack lines…

All this, plus the superb weather made for a very productive and enjoyable short break