Back in September we got super excited at the prospect of our first foreign travel trip since the Covid pandemic brought travel to its knees, and we’d booked ourselves on our first post-lockdown trip abroad … to the Moroccan Anti-Atlas mountains in early December for 10 days of glorious trad climbing before Xmas.
Then, with a rapidly rising number of Covid infections in the UK, Morocco closed its borders to travel from the UK!
We rethought our plans and changed our flights to Athens, Greece with the intent of a return visit to the amazing sport climbing on offer in Leonidio.
The Moroccan team had been myself, Laetitia, Steve, and Nick. But for one reason or another (mostly Xmas being so soon after the trip) Laetitia and I moved our dates a bit earlier, while Steve and Nick stuck with the original dates. However, this move made it possible for Laetitia and I to join in with the accommodation plans of Richard and Jo. All very sociable. Which is welcome after such a long period of forced social distancing! 🙂
Of course before we got to Greece, we had to negotiate the process of leaving the UK during a pandemic! We booked lateral flow Covid tests, sorted our Greek passenger locator forms, and downloaded our NHS vaccination passes. All set? Nope! The government went and changed the requirement for day-2 lateral flow tests upon return to the more expensive PCR test due to rising anxiety over the new Omicron variant. Luckily Boots were helpful and gave us a £21 voucher each for the unused lateral flow test kits.
All that remained was for Zac to drop us off at the airport…
Plaka
Unfortunately our first day in Leonidio was rainy. Just like home! 🙁
Laetitia and Jo resolved to make the best of it though and go swimming in Mediterranean…
Douvari
Our first day on the crags was at Douvari. We’d been to Douvari on our previous trip to Leonidio, so we knew it would be a great place to get “tuned in” again to foreign sport rock climbing after our long break from travel thanks to Covid…
Geraki Wave
Day two was accompanied by a threat of the odd rain shower. So we opted to head out of Leonidio a bit and check out a new area to us and go to the stunning Geraki Wave. The crag is set in a vast flat area full of lovely well maintained olive groves. All very beautiful!
Panagia
David Simmonite and Steve Coughlan had arrived in Leonidio and so they joined us at the Mad Wall sector of Panagia for our next climbing adventure…
Hospital
Why is this sector called Hospital? Who knows! 🙂
After such a great day at the Hospital crags we got a bit carried away with the alcohol! I blame Steve and his thirsty-gene! It all stared at a very traditional Greek bar in town … carried on before dinner with very large G&Ts … and ended drunkenly with more beer back at our apartment. The room was spinning when I went to bed!
Bella Vista
After the previous night’s drinking the crag was spinning for me when we arrived at Bella Vista. Needless to say it was a slow day! But it was nice to see Steve Scott and Nick Wharton there who had also now arrived. They, of course, were up and climbing from day-break! It’s likely that one of the dark pixels on the crag in the photo below of me slowly approaching the crag with a stinking hangover is Nick already climbing his 10th route of the day – and that’s just before lunch. 😉
Arcadia
Our last climbing day was at Arcadia, another new crag to us, and what a great place – although it is mostly north facing and sees little direct sun.
Getting Home
Of course Covid, and our “Trolley” led government, had not given up on making the trip a good deal more problematic. Just days after we got to Greece, on top of the change from simpler lateral flow tests to PCR tests on day-2 upon return, there was now another change … we now needed a negative test within 48 hours of leaving for the UK as well!
We’d been recommended a medical centre in Leonidio centre. What a great place with a super helpful and friendly doctor-in-charge. Our lateral flow tests were €10 (compared with £21 in the UK!) each.
So we’re safely back in the UK now and Xmas is saved from Covid … and hopefully safe from the “Trolley” too! But I worry that he’ll concoct another lie or new rule he can break while we are taken for fools. 🙁
Excellent account of an adventurous trip. Enjoyed the pics and reading.