Summer climbing destinations in Europe

Ok, we’d complained enough about long, daunting, grey cold winters, and hey, summer is finally here. But with temperatures soaring up to a never before 37°  and more in the shade in the 3rd week makes you press the sweat out of your pores with every movement you make. Impossible! And if you can’t leave your fingers off the crags in this heat and settle for a break at the riverside or lake, here’s a few summer climbing destinations on how to survive the “Dog Days” in summer with a few north, or east/west facing crags over the places we’ve seen through the years:

Germany:

Frankenjura – famed  for its little crags and caves in the woods, Vodoomassiv, Flintsbach, Morsbach, Friedhofswand in Oberammergau, Idealwandl, Bergen in Chiemgau, Jachenau, Demmelspitze in Brauneck, Kraftwerkswand in Füssen, Schellneck, Kastlwand – Sector Kühlschrank, etc

France:

Val Durance, Grenoble, Aix les Bains, Gorge du Blavet near Frejus, St. Leger north sector, Trois Rivieres and Malaucene in the Vaucluse region,

Switzerland:

Vättis, Lehn, Simplon, Voralpsee, Schlengen, Gimmelwald and plenty more… yes, the swiss, they are infamous for their high mountains ;-)

Spain:

Catalunya – ok, not quite cool with 40° in summer, but there are shady crags with lovely winds in the late afternoons, like Tres Pons and Camarasa, or the Gorges in the Granada Region. But more likely you will find the spanish folks in Frankenjura or at the beach instead. Head for the Pyrenees, and avoid lower regions e.g. Tarragona.

Austria, Tirol

Sparchen, Niederthai, Laimo, Prutz,  Bürs,  Götterwandl, Monkey Island, Bergstation, Oberried, Unteres Ennstal, Moasnkogel, Stoißengraben, Höllental, Maltatal, Kanzianiberg, Halltal

Italy:

Sella Nevea, Covolo, Dolomites…

Last but not least:  Magic Places, Silvretta and Blauseishütte for bouldering.

The principle goes – the higher the cooler, the darker the better ;) And for the rest of you who absolutely loves the sun while climbing, there’s really no need to list em all here. Keep on rocking the summer!