Essential Beta

How to get there:

Access via a car is pretty much a pre-requisite; Rio Cannas being about an hour drive from Sardinia’s capital, Cagliari.

When to Visit:

Late autumn through to late spring is probably going to be the best time. Even then, sunny, hot days will scupper any real chances of pulling down hard.

Where to Stay/Shop:

This is an ‘off the beaten track’ venue so it probably best to drive in and out. Cagliari is, as you’d expect, well-stocked with accommodation and retail opportunities and is therefore the place to stay. More accommodation details can be found on www.sardiniapoint.it.

Which Guide:

Pietra di Luna by Sardinian activist Maurizio Oviglia, currently in it’s 3rd edition, covers all the climbing on the entire island and therefore has details of sport climbs, trad climbs, multi-pitch climbs and last but not least, bouldering. A functional guide, it’s an essential text for visitors; especially those on a whistle-stop tour. More details on Sardinia’s latest climbing developments, including the bouldering, can be found on www.sardiniaclimb.it.

Photos:

Main: Paul Reeve on Dream Time (Font 6b).

Secondary: Paul, again, on Adrenalina (Font 6c+).

Download:

November 2006 Factfile.pdf

Sardinia

is now firmly established on the European hot-rock destinations list. And like many Mediterranean destinations, it has a nearobscene amount of rock to occupy climbers. Images of sun-kissed, sea-weathered and sculptured granite boulders beneath deep azure skies backed against turquoise seas first appeared in the climbing press over a decade ago. Since then, Sardinia has developed at a pace. Now home to anything from multi-pitch sport classics on monster limestone cliffs to bouldering on drop-dead granite boulders, Sardinia is a ‘must-visit’ venue.

Featured Problem(s):

Dreamtime (Font 6b) and Adrenalina (Font 6c+) are just two of the numerous quality problems at Rio Cannas. Both demand a competence in the subtle and blended use of rounded nothings and gnarly small crimps.

Tips:

Avoid the midday sun and pay close attention to sloping footfolds. The landing are generally quite good and it is possible (though not recommended) to have several hours fun bouldering oldskool, i.e. sans pad! Climbers on routing

Clips:

Bouldering accoutrements only are required; i.e. pads (if you have one), brushes and buckets - of chalk obviously.

Crag Info:

Rio Cannas lies deep in the Sarrabus hills in Sardinia’s south east region. It is simply a collection of giant egg-like granite boulders in a riverbed location just yards from the adjacent road.

Alternatives:

Several dozen problems exist at Rio Cannas ranging from the easiest to mid-grade. The current guide records plenty of ‘projects’ though. Within a fifty mile radius (say an hour’s drive) there are half a dozen or so more bouldering venues on which you might ply your skills. Few though have the aesthetic appeal of Rio Cannas, nor the easy of access which is quite superb!