FINALE Climbing - 134 crags - Marco Tomassini by Versante Sud srl

COLLANA LUOGHI VERTICALI

Marco Tomassini

FINALE Climbing

EDIZIONI VERSANTE SUD

First edition November 2011 ISBN 978-88-896634-33-2 Copyright © 2011 VERSANTE SUD S.r.l. Milano via Longhi, 10, tel. 027490163 www.versantesud.it All translation, reproduction, adaptation and electronic registration, either totally or partially, by any methods, are rights reserved for all countries.

Cover

Monica Fama, Avaria, 7b+, Falesia del silenzio (ph. Pietro Bagnara)

Text

Marco Tomassini

Translations

Melanie Roberts

Drawings and topos

Iacopo Leardini

Area map

Sara Bini and Roberto Grossi

Symbols

Iacopo Leardini

Printed by

Monotipia Cremonese

Aknowledgments I would like to thank in particular a number of people who gave decisive help in the writing of this guidebook: Alessandro Grillo, Mauro Borra, Cesare Marchesi, Luciano Pizzorni, Giovanni Rocca, Matteo (Donde) Felanda, Giorgio Delfino e Elena Troiano. For the equipment given to me for the bolting and re-bolting of routes that has been done more recently I thank the Comune di Finale Ligure and in particular Massimo Gualberti (councillor for sport) and Giorgio and Ivana Scarrone of the agriturismo A cà de Alice No less important and in alphabetical order, listed below are the names of all the other people who have helped me with important information, who have made themselves available for photos and in many cases have equipped crags and routes in the Finale area. Adriano (Sguara) Giovani, Alessio Chiappino, Andrea Costaguta, Antonio (Beroldo) Punturo, Artur&Helmut Wundlechner, Chiara Minetti, Christian Roccati, Davide Allegretti, Davide (Zak) Zaccone, Daniele (Jack) Canale, Note Climbing is a potentially dangerous sport, and those that partake do so at their own risk. All the descriptions in this guide have been based on information available at the time, but this should always be evaluated for yourself or by a qualified person before undertaking any climb.

Dimitri (Dimi) Frascio, Domenico (Domingo) Spatari, Elena Carpignano, Eugenio (Euge) Gardella, Fabio Pierpaoli (associazione Outdoor Liguria), Francesca Vallarino, Franco Rolando, Gerardo (Gerry) Fornaro, Gianni Duregato, Gianni Ghiglione, Gianni Salvarani, Gino (Pitta) Pittaluga, Guido (mattonella) Jafelice, Leonardo (Leo) Castagnoli, Lodovico Spiota, Luca Fida, Luca Lenti, Lucia Brignola, Marco Pukli, Marco (Zamba) Zambarino, Matteo Caropreso, Mauro (Maurino) Carena, Micol (Miky) Schiaroli, Monica Fama, Pier Carlo Franco, Piero Favetta, Renato (Biro) Berruti, Riccardo Giovannetti, Riccardo (Ricky) Negro, Roberto Bolzan, Silvio Ivaldi, Simone (Gunter) Baglietto, Tommaso Sciannella and Vincent De Bentzmann. Also I thank all those people who have helped me occasionally but unfortunately I don’t know the names of and those that I may have forgotten… THANK YOU.

GPS indications of all the approaches to the crags can be downloaded from www.versantesud.it In collaboration with Garmin

Marco Tomassini

FINALE Climbing 134 crags

EDIZIONI VERSANTE SUD

Introduction by the author 4

The Finale area is magical and inimitable: wild, harsh and with an exceptional landscape. These white limestone rocks that emerge from the luxuriant and deep green vegetation are unique for the whole western region of Liguria. The Finale area is a place to be explored that offers even today after 30 years of climbing and trekking, surprising views for climbers, trekkers and bikers… and for anyone who feels like walking around these valleys. The wild nature of the Val Cornei and the Val di Nava, the solitary and majestic imposingness of Monte Cucco, of the North face of Perti and of the Bastionata di Boragni, the beauty, the colours and the views from Rocca di Corno, the vertical walls of Lacremà and its ancient Borgo, Noli and the sea ruffled by the North wind, make this region a unique place. For these reasons the Finale area is frequented by lovers of nature and outdoor sports from all over Europe. The paths of Finale are travelled not only by climbers, but also trekkers, bikers, birdwatchers, archaeologists and pot-holers. With respect for this diversity, everyone needs to approach this territory with care and show consideration for other visitors. Finale Ligure, that from 2010 has been bestowed with the title “Capital of the Outdoors”, has finally set up a series of continuative round table meetings with the various associations that are involved with outdoor sports (and are active in the region) to increase, promote and harmonise tourism

Marco “Thomas” Tomassini

possibilities. With this intent and with the important contribution and enthusiasm of the current Councillor for Sport, the Council has financed the first bolting and re-bolting projects. With this renewed interest in climbing, 2011 has already been a turning point with the award of the prize “A life for Finale” to Alessandro Grillo, making a well deserved, if late, gesture of thanks to a personality whose life has been indissolubly linked with the rock of Finale. My work has also been part of this renewed interest. It has two very important aims: above all to make these splendid crags accessible to everyone to allow them to experience the emotions of climbing routes that offer new perspectives not only of the surrounding territory. This guidebook is an attempt above all to thank and acknowledge all those people like Alessandro Grillo, Gianni Calcagno, Vittorio Simonetti, and the brothers Gian Luigi and Eugenio Vaccari who, in far off 1968 with mountaineering boots on their feet, discovered Finale starting its vertical history, to the many young, and not so young, people today that still bolt, clean paths and keep this legend alive. A tribute to all the bolters, from the glories of the past to the new generations, without which my work would not exist.

Tre Frati (ph. M. Tomassini)

Technical Introduction 6

Finale Ligure, thanks to its micro-climate, has the huge advantage that you can climb the whole year round, and it is for this reason that it is very well known and popular with climbers from all over Europe. The rock in Finale is a marine limestone characterised by pockets and drops created by dripping water, vertical walls and slightly leaning slabs are the predominant style of climbing. For several decades now stainless steel glued bolts have been used due to the proximity of the sea, which with its salt air would corrode at great speed any non-stainless steel anchors, and also due to the porosity of the rock that makes expansion bolts less reliable. The predominant style of climbing is technical on vertical fingery walls, almost always with a hard single that is found in most cases in the last few meters of the route. There are however overhangs and roofs to be discovered with other types of holds like stalactites, or horizontal edges; cracks, arêtes and corners are found especially on the classic multi-pitch routes. The existing crags in the Finale area are numerous and year-by-year they grow in number; currently there are about 2700 routes divided between the 160 sectors facing in different directions. It is rare to find belay chains with a carabiner, usually there is a closed maillon rapide (blocked so that it cannot be opened) and even more often there is not even a chain but two fixed anchors “French style”. The distance between the anchors is not normally that great, the average bolting leaves about 2 meters between one protection and the next, but given that there are many bolters who have made some sort of contribution in the Finale area over the years, it is possible to come across crags where the bolts are more widely spaced. 26 sectors have been omitted from this guidebook as I considered them currently unreachable due to the dense vegetation or dangerous due to obsolete bolting. This decision was made both for reasons of safety

and to avoid confusion and pointless loss of time in the search for cliffs, that even if reached, would then be unclimbable. In the next edition they will be inserted only if rebolted and cleaned. There are in any case, between the routes bolted safely with modern equipment, some pitches that are equipped with the original material such as bolt hangers on expansion bolts of various types and dates; others equipped with pegs and slings in threads or to be integrated with trad. gear. The routes with these characteristics are however always indicated in the short description of the route and, in some cases, not recommended. In Finale Ligure it is also possible to climb on crags situated on the sea cliffs experiencing the “thrill” of climbing with the sea beneath your feet; the crags in the Capo Noli area (Dancing dalle, I Pilastri, Nolitudine and Easy dalle) have this characteristic and also the peculiarity of climbing on a type of limestone that is very different from the rest of the Finale area. A couple of crags can be reached on foot from the railway station: Paretina di Finalborgo (20 minutes) and Rocce dell’Orera (50 minutes). The average length of the footpaths to reach the crags is 20 minutes, only in rare cases 10 or 40 minutes. In about 15 minutes it is possible to drive from one crag to another. The general difficulty of the routes goes from 3a and reaches 8c+, most crags have routes going from 6a to 7a and the really easy routes are unfortunately very few and scattered here and there in various sectors. It should also be noted that specific signs to reach the crags are practically non-existent and the widest and most obvious paths are those that lead to the more popular crags. The numerous junctions and forks, combined with the dense vegetation, do not help on reaching the sectors. For this reason, it was decided, in this guidebook, to pay particular attention to the description of the approaches and to include GPS points for each crag. There are numerous sectors that are particularly

beautiful, either for the quality of the rock or for their location, and that merit being visited. Some of these should absolutely not be missed: Grotta dell’edera, Grotta della Strapatente, Bric Scimarco, I Tre Frati, Montesordo and Rocca di Corno. Useful phone numbers and addresses

Medical emergencies and ambulance service 118 Road police +39 019 681501 Urban police +39 019 691380 Urgent medical care (Guardia Medica) 800556688

Tourist Information Office for Finale Ligure +39 019 681019 Fax +39 019 681804 www.inforiviera.it e-mail: finaleligure@inforiviera.it

Chemist: Farmacia Del Borgo (Finalborgo) +39 019 690623

Salewa mountain shop +39 019 6816230

Santa Corona Hospital (Pietra Ligure) +39 019 62301

Breakdown service, A.C.I. +39 803116 Mountain Rescue Finale Ligure 118 www.soccorsoalpinofinaleligure.it Carabinieri 112 Police 113 Fire Brigade 115

Chemist: Farmacia Della Marina (Finalmarina) +39 019 680474

San Paolo Hospital (Savona) +39 019 84041 Taxi service +39 019 692461 If you want to contact the author: Marco (Thomas) Tomassini +39 346 6932376 www.finalebythomas.com e-mail: info@finalebythomas.com

Bibliography La pietra del Finale, guida alle palestre di arrampicamento Finalesi, Gianni Calcagno, Alessandro Grillo, Vittorio Simonetti, Siag Genova, 1975 La pietra di Finale, guida alle arrampicate e alle escursioni, Andrea Parodi, Alessandro Grillo, Microlito editrice, 1983 Finale, Andrea Gallo, Giovanni Massari, Melograno edizioni, 1987 Finale,1200 vie di arrampicata, Andrea Gallo, Melograno edizioni, 1990 Finale, 1500 vie di arrampicata, Andrea Gallo, Idee verticali edizioni, 1994 ALP arrampicata Monografie: il Finalese, 30 anni di passione, Torino, Vivalda Editori, mensile anno XIII, numero 162, ottobre 1998 Finale Y2K, Andrea Gallo, Idee verticali edizioni, 2000 Finale by Thomas, Un viaggio tra le vie del Finalese che più amo, passo per passo, metro per metro, Marco “Thomas” Tomassini, Le Mani Edizioni, 2007 Finale 007, Andrea Gallo, Idee verticali edizioni, 2008

Index and topos 8

ARENE CANDIDE 1 Cava di Rio Fine 2 Il Cimitero

18 20

ROCCE DELL’ORERA 3 Rocce dell’Orera settore sinistro 4 Rocce dell’Orera settore destro

22 26

FINALBORGO 5 Paretina di Finalborgo

ROCCA DI PERTI

6 Parete delle gemme 7 Placca dell’oasi 8 Settore delle ombre blu 9 Scimmiodromo 10 Placca del gibbone 11 Placca Piotti 12 Pancia dell’elefante 13 Testa dell’elefante 14 Grottino di Perti 15 L’Olimpo 16 Settore centrale 17 Il giardino 18 Falesia dei tre porcellini 19 La cengia degli androidi 20 Settore settentrionale 21 Versante nord 22 Grottino del Bric della Croce 23 Grotto di Perti 24 Tigrotto ROCCA CARPANEA

42 46 50 56 58 60 70 74 76 78 80 88 92 96 100 112 122 126 130

25 Terzo livello 26 Placca delle case valle 27 Zambaland 28 Le rovine 29 La grotta di Sant’Antonino 30 Bric Scimarco settore Antri rossi 31 Bric Scimarco settore superiore 32 Bric Scimarco settore inferiore 33 Parete dimenticata 34 Grotta dell’edera 35 Placca d’angolo 36 Lo specchio 37 I coralli 38 Monte Sordo settore centrale

138 140 144 146 148 150 154 158 162 166 170 172 176 178

134

39 Placca e pilastro di Mu 40 Alveare 41 Le tecchie 42 Pilastrino mirovino 43 Grotta della Pollera 44 Paretina di Pian Marino 45 Bric del frate settore ovest

182 186 188 192 196 198 202

VALLE AQUILA

206

46 Bric Grigio settore il grottino 47 Bric Grigio settore destro 48 Tre Frati 49 Kattedrale 50 Sakrestia 51 Konvento 52 I Missili 53 Bric Pianarella settore monotiri 54 Bric Pianarella settore paretone 55 Placca dei maleducati 56 Superpanza 57 Il sasso

212 214 216 220 224 226 230 232 234 254 262 268

MONTE CUCCO

270

58 Cucco 2 59 Grottone 60 Settore orientale 61 La torre 62 Settore centrale 63 Anfiteatro 64 Campanile 65 Settore Machetto 66 Attico

274 276 280 282 286 292 296 300 304

VALLE DI RIAN CORNEI 67 Un domani 68 Buridda 69 Falesia dell’invidia 70 Gelateria del bosco 71 Italsider settore inferiore 72 Italsider settore superiore 73 Falesia degli amici 74 Ciappo delle conche sett. superiore 75 Ciappo delle conche sett. inferiore 76 Bocca di Bacco 77 Placca Graziella 78 Falesia del gufo 79 Falesia del delfino 80 Falesia del ragno

308 316 318 320 322 324 328 330 332 336 338 340 342 344 346

81 Gola dei briganti settore inferiore 348 82 Gola dei briganti settore superiore 352 83 Falesia della formica 358 84 La goletta 360 85 La consolle 362 86 Cordon bleu 364 87 Placconata centrale di Rian Cornei 372 88 Avancorpo della placconata centrale 376 89 Falesia dell’eco settore superiore 378 90 Falesia dell’eco settore inferiore 382 91 Falesia della tranquillità 388 92 Falesia del guru 392 93 Camelot 2 396 94 Camelot 1 400 95 Falesia del nirvana 404 96 Falesia di Parsifal 406 97 Falesia dell’orso 408 98 Falesia del silenzio settore superiore 412 99 Falesia del silenzio settore inferiore 416 100 Striature obese 422 101 Tempio del vento 424 102 Falesia del cinghiale 430 103 Falesia della volpe 434 104 Falesia del lupo 436 105 Falesia del geko 440 BORAGNI E VAL DI NAVA

442

106 Avancorpo 107 Il pilastro 108 Skarafonia 109 Sasso Scorpion 110 Sasso Crazy brothers 111 Bastionata settore sinistro 112 Bastionata settore destro 113 Grotta della Strapatente 114 Domus aurea 115 Estathe 116 Il vascello 117 Falesia della luna 118 Falesia del sole 119 Grotta dei pipistrelli

446 450 456 458 460 464 472 476 480 484 486 490 492 496

VALLE SCIUSA E VAL PONCI

498

120 Lacremà settore basso 121 Lacremà settore La nuvola 122 Rocca di Corno - Ghiro (est) 123 Rocca di Corno - Futura (est) 124 Rocca di Corno settore sud-est

502 506 508 512 516

125 Rocca di Corno settore sud 126 Rocca di Corno - Zona rossa 127 Rocca di Corno settore ovest ALTOPIANO DELLE MÀNIE

520 526 530

128 Museo dell’uomo 129 Monolocale 130 Mesa verde

536 538 542

CAPO NOLI

544

131 Dancing dalle 132 Easy dalle 133 Primo e secondo pilastro 134 Nolitudine

546 550 552 556

534

THE PROTAGONISTS Fulvio Balbi - Falesia della Tranquillità Renato (Biro) Berruti - Pilastrino mirovino Andrea Costaguta - Falesia dell’invidia Giorgio Delfino - Falesia dell’orso Gianni Duregato & Matteo Caropreso - Grotta della Pollera Matteo (Donde) Felanda - Domus aurea Gerardo (Gerry) Fornaro - La cengia degli androidi Andrea Gallo - Grotto di Perti Alessandro Grillo - Monte Cucco Luca Lenti - I missili Outdoor Liguria - Cordon bleu Luciano Pizzorni - Rocca di Perti Versante nord Marco Pukli - Bric Scimarco Lodovico Spiota - Konvento Marco (Zamba) Zambarino - Kattedrale

PARIGI 927 km

MONACO 755 km

MILANO 195 km TORINO 160 km

VENEZIA 457 km GENOVA 74 km

MARSIGLIA 335 km

ROMA 584 km

112

86 113 111 114 87 109 110 88 89 115 108 107 90 59 69 67 106 91 98 68 92 58 60 119 70 99 100 61 71 93 116 118 62 72 75 85 94 95 101 117 63 74 84 96 102 103 64 73 77 97 104 105 65 76 78 81 56 66 79 83 82 55 80 53

45 50 51 49 43 44 42 47 40 39 46 41 38 48 37 3635 31 21 54 32 20 17 22 23 34 30 52 19 16 24 33 29 18 15 28 6 8 27 14 13 26 25 12 11 7 9 10

4 2 1 10

127 121 120

122 123 124

130 129 128

27 126 125 134 132 131

133

Exposure of crags

BORAGNI SETTORE AVANCORPO BORAGNI BASTIONATA CENTRALE (still to be re-bolted) BORAGNI BASTIONATA SETTORE DESTRO BORAGNI BASTIONATA SETTORE SINISTRO BORAGNI GROTTA DELLA STRAPATENTE BORAGNI IL PILASTRO BRIC DEL FRATE CENTRALE (still to be rebolted) BRIC DEL FRATE SINISTRO (still to be re-bolted) BRIC GRIGIO DESTRO BRIC GRIGIO IL GROTTINO BRIC GRIGIO INFERIORE (still to be re-bolted) BRIC GRIGIO SINISTRO(still to be re-bolted) BRIC GRIGIO SUPERIORE (still to be re-bolted) BRIC RESEGHE (still to be re-bolted) BRIC SCIMARCO INFERIORE BRIC SCIMARCO SUPERIORE BURIDDA CAFFETTIERA (still to be re-bolted) CAPO NOLI EASY DALLE CAPO NOLI NOLITUDINE FALESIA DEGLI AMICI FALESIA DEL BRUCO FALESIA DEL CINGHIALE FALESIA DEL FALCO FALESIA DEL GEKO FALESIA DEL LUPO FALESIA DEL SOLE

FALESIA DELLA FORMICA FALESIA DELLA LUNA FALESIA DELLA VOLPE FALESIA DELL’INVIDIA GELATERIA DEL BOSCO ITALSIDER INFERIORE ITALSIDER SUPERIORE KATTEDRALE KONVENTO LACREMÀ ALTO (still to be re-bolted) LACREMÀ BASSO LACREMÀ LA NUVOLA LE ROVINE MESA VERDE PARETE DELL’AQUILA (still to be re-bolted) ROCCA DEGLI UCCELLI (still to be re-bolted) ROCCA DEGLI UCCELLI AVANC. (still to be re-bolted) ROCCA DI CORNO SETTORE DEL GHIRO ROCCA DI CORNO SETTORE EST ROCCA DI CORNO SETTORE FUTURA ROCCA DI CORNO SETTORE SUD-EST ROCCE DELL’ORERA SETTORE DESTRO SAKRESTIA TERZO LIVELLO TRE FRATI UN DOMANI ZAMBALAND

BOCCA DI BACCO BORAGNI SASSO CRAZY BROTHERS BRIC DEL FRATE DESTRO NORD (still to be re-bolted) DIMENTICATOIO (still to be re-bolted) ESTATHE FALESIA DEL CASTAGNO (still to be re-bolted) GOLA DEI BRIGANTI INFERIORE GROTTA DEI PIPISTRELLI GROTTA DELL’EDERA

I MISSILI GROTTO DI PERTI IL VASCELLO LA GOLETTA LA GROTTA DI SANT’ANTONINO OMO ORA (still to be re-bolted) PLACCA GRAZIELLA ROCCE DELL’ORERA SINISTRO TIGROTTO VERSANTE NORD DI PERTI

ALVEARE ANTRO DELLE STREGHE (still to be re-bolted) ATTICO AVANCORPO DELLA PLACCONATA PRINCIPALE BORAGNI SETTORE SASSO SCORPION BORAGNI SETTORE SKARAFONIA BRIC DEL FRATE OVEST BRIC PIANARELLA CENTRALE BRIC PIANARELLA PARETONE BRIC PIANARELLA MONOTIRI CASA DEL VACCHÈ (still to be re-bolted) CORDON BLEU FALESIA DEL GURU FALESIA DEL NIRVANA FALESIA DELLA TRANQUILLITÀ FALESIA DELL’ECO INFERIORE FALESIA DELL’ECO SUPERIORE FALESIA DELL’ORSO FALESIA DI CAMELOT 1 FALESIA DI CAMELOT 2 FALESIA DI PARSIFAL GOLA DEI BRIGANTI SUPERIORE I CORALLI IL GIARDINO IL GROTTINO DI PERTI IL SASSO LA MANSARDA (still to be re-bolted) LE TECCHIE LO SPECCHIO L’OLIMPO MONTE CUCCO ANFITEATRO

MONTE CUCCO CAMPANILE M. CUCCO PICCOLO CANYON (still to be re-bolted) MONTE CUCCO CENTRALE MONTE CUCCO CUCCO 2 MONTE CUCCO GROTTONE MONTE CUCCO LA TORRE MONTE CUCCO MACHETTO MONTE CUCCO SETTORE ORIENTALE MONTE CUCCO CANYON (still to be re-bolted) MONTE SORDO CENTRALE PANCIA DELL’ELEFANTE PARETE DELLE GEMME PARETE DIMENTICATA PARETINA DI PIAN MARINO PILASTRINO MIROVINO PILASTRO DI MU PLACCA DEI MALEDUCATI PLACCA DELLE CASE VALLE PLACCA DELL’OASI PLACCA DI MU PLACCONATA SETTORE PRINCIPALE ROCCA DI CORNO OVEST ROCCA DI CORNO ZONA ROSSA SCIMMIODROMO SCOGLIO DI AVALON (still to be re-bolted) SETTORE CENTRALE DI PERTI SETTORE OMBRE BLU SETTORE PLACCA PIOTTI SETTORE SETTENTRIONALE DI PERTI SUPERPANZA TESTA DELL’ELEFANTE

BRIC SCIMARCO ANTRI ROSSI CANAZEI (still to be re-bolted) CAPO NOLI DANCING DALLE CAPO NOLI PRIMO PILASTRO CAPO NOLI SECONDO PILASTRO CAVA DI RIO FINE CIAPPO DELLE CONCHE INFERIORE CIAPPO DELLE CONCHE SUPERIORE FALESIA DEL DELFINO FALESIA DEL GUFO FALESIA DEL RAGNO FALESIA DEL SILENZIO INFERIORE FALESIA DEL SILENZIO SUPERIORE

GROTTA DEI BALCONI (DOMUS AUREA) IL CIMITERO LA CONSOLLE L’ORIZZONTE (still to be re-bolted) MONOLOCALE MUSEO DELL’UOMO PARETINA DI FINALBORGO PARSIFAL (still to be re-bolted) PIETRA DEL SOLE (still to be re-bolted) ROCCA DI CORNO SETTORE SUD STRIATURE OBESE TEMPIO DEL VENTO

TREKMAP ITALIA, THE RESULT OF THE PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN GARMIN AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES

BirdsEyeTM: THE DATABASE OF THE BEST SATELLITE IMAGES COMPATIBLE WITH GARMIN HANDHELDS

TrekMap Italia is the new national digital topographic map system, developed by Garmin and available for outdoor handhelds.

The agreement signed between Garmin and DigitalGlobe means that owners of Garmin handhelds can access BirdsEyeTM Satellite Imagery, the new worldwide database of satellite images, from which you can download the best high resolution “shots” and use them on your Garmin handheld.

The world’s leading mobile navigation device company continues with its development program for the Italian region, or more precisely the topographical maps of the national area. TrekMap Italia covers footpaths and trails, as well as having lots of tourist and outdoor information, and Garmin will release continually updated versions thanks to the new data from other local organizations. At the moment TrekMap Italia makes available 73,000 kilometres of footpaths, bike trails and cycle paths, and over 50,000 tourist or trekking landmarks. It is the result of the collaboration with four Regions, two Provinces and three sections of the Club Alpino Italiano (CAI) that have contributed to enhancing TrekMap with the information in their possession on local footpaths. In the TrekMap Italia package there are two DVDs and a memory stick. On one DVD the maps, that can be installed on your computer complete with the software indispensable for their use. On the second DVD all the tourist information required for “life out in the open air” are made available by the local authorities that are partners in this project: information cards on itineraries and landmarks, road-book, pictures, printable maps, actual “books” in pdf form, films, MP3 audio guides… and much, much more. On the memory stick you will find the maps ready to be used Garmin handhelds.

DVD cover TrekMap Italia

The world of satellite navigation is making giant steps and new products often take even the most devoted fans of GPS by surprise. DigitalGlobe® is the owner of BirdsEyeTM Satellite Imagery, the most important photographic database of satellite images: all the photos are georeferenced and images depict actual buildings, vehicles, roads, trails, mountains and land features. A real life representation of the surroundings, exactly as the user of the handheld sees it. With BirdsEyeTM Garmin users can download high definition aerial and satellite images onto compatible handhelds, using Garmin’s Base Camp software. Outdoor enthusiasts can also overlay Garmin vector maps onto compatible handhelds to be able to better assess the terrain. The data from Garmin’s topographic products, like terrain contours, rivers and roads remain visible above the satellite image, uniting the intuitive “real” image from the satellite with the advanced features of automatic route planning and search for landmarks, characteristic of Garmin vector maps. This imagery is compatible with all the handhelds from Garmin’s Outdoor Series of navigators: Oregon, Dakota, and Colorado.

Display with satellite image

GARMIN “CUSTOM MAPS”: THE MARRIAGE BETWEEN ELECTRONIC AND PRINTED MAPS

BASECAMP: EASY AND FUN TO PLAN ADVENTURE

On last generation Garmin handhelds from the outdoor series it is also possible to use printed maps and integrate the scanning of these with digital maps. A Garmin exclusive that gives value to the paper map resources of all outdoors enthusiasts.

Garmin presents BaseCamp, the evolution of the original map software MapSource that will allow you to prepare trips and manage topographic map data and the route in 3-D.

www.garmin.it - info@garmin.it

The world’s leading mobile navigation device company introduces the new feature “Custom Maps” that allows you to integrate on your outdoor handheld paper maps with digital maps. Thanks to the Custom Maps process developed by Garmin, it is possible to convert maps that everyone owns in paper form into maps that can be downloaded onto Garmin Outdoor handhelds. With a few simple operations, it is in fact possible to transfer the details of paper or non-Garmin digital maps onto the Oregon, Dakota and Colorado models. This service is free and works with both PC and Mac. The new Custom Maps feature opens up the field to until now un-thought of applications. In fact, aside from the traditional uses aimed at outdoor navigation, potentially Custom Maps could be used to “explore” your neighbourhood park or by someone who needs to find a restaurant and only has directions drawn on a piece of paper, or by a progressive tourist who wants to visit an archaeological site described in a magazine.

Hiking is a natural and simple discipline: walking on footpaths, through valleys and woods is in itself a priceless emotion, but with the last generation technology it has become safer and even more fun. Garmin is the leading company in this revolution and the latest new product by the world leader in satellite navigation is called BaseCamp, software that allows outdoor enthusiasts to prepare trips by creating waypoints and routes on your computer and then load them onto your Garmin GPS handheld and vice versa. There are many features that BaseCamp offers to users, like the display of topographic maps in 2-D or 3-D. It is also possible to view elevation profiles in the context of a route at every step. Also, thanks to the Track Draw feature, hikers can trace their intended path and obtain an immediate estimate of the difficulty of the route. The revolutionary software BaseCamp manages the maps and route data through a simple interface that can be rotated and viewed from any angle, as well as the “playback” feature that guarantees the experience of virtual navigation in 3-D along routes.

Display with Custom Map

Screenshot of computer BaseCamp

Redpoint (8a+ - 8c+)

8c+ 8c 8c 8c 8c 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b+ 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8b 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+ 8a+

COCK-TAIL Grotto di Perti Gianni Duregato 2007 SILENZIO TOTALE Grotto di Perti Gianni Duregato 2008 SENZA CHIEDERE PERMESSO I missili Luca Lenti 2000 UNIVERSO PROIBITO I missili Luca Lenti 1999 ROSEMATIX Monolocale Gianni Duregato 2007 URKA (CATMAKER) (Rotkeirs) Museo dell’uomo Klem Loskot OMBRA Scimmiodromo Andrea Gallo 1988 TRANS CABONI Grotto di Perti Andrea Gallo MESSER WOLF Bric Grigio Il grottino Guido Cortese BIRBO I missili Luca Lenti 2000 NON PENSARCI DUE VOLTE I missili Luca Lenti 2000 ROBIN HOOD Cucco Grottone Gianni Duregato 2010 EN ATTENDANT BERHAULT Grotta della Strapatente Christian Brenna 2003 NAZGÛL Il vascello Gianni Duregato 2008 BIGNAMIKA Cucco 2 Gianni Duregato MOSS KIITOS Monolocale Gianni Duregato HUECA SOLO (L2) Settore Centrale di Perti Andrea Gallo …POI CAPACE Il giardino superiore Andrea Gallo CABONI SESI… GEI CANTASA Grotto di Perti Andrea Gallo MANI PRECISE Tigrotto Gianni Duregato 2008 TZUNAMI Parete dimenticata Gianni Duregato 2010 HYAENA Alveare Andrea Gallo 1986 FUGA DA BERLINO Falesia delle tecchie Gianni Duregato 2000 BELGARATH Bric Grigio Il grottino Guido Cortese WOLF Bric Grigio Il grottino Gianni Duregato 2006 NON È VERO MA CI CREDO I missili Luca Lenti 2000 BARBAGIANNI Superpanza Gianni Duregato 2010 THE WALL Cucco Grottone Gianni Duregato 2010 BLOCK TROTTER Cucco Grottone Gianni Duregato 2010 CUCCO IN ALTO (L1) Cucco Grottone Gianni Duregato 2010 LECCA LECCA Cucco Grottone Matteo Caropreso 2011 PASSANDO PER VIENNA Cucco Orientale Luca Lenti 1996 FURORE Il vascello Filippo Larceri AVADA KEDAVRA Il vascello Guido Cortese NU’ CASE Sasso Crazy brothers Guido Cortese SENZA CRAZY (SENZA TABU’ + CRAZY MIX) Sasso Crazy brothers Gianni Duregato ARIAL Parete dimenticata Gianni Duregato 2010 BOMBAY Alveare Andrea Gallo PER FORTUNA CI SEI TU Grotta della Pollera Gianni Duregato 2010 VAI AVANTI TU CHE MI VIENE DA RIDERE I missili Luca Lenti 2000 LA PIÙ BELLA DEL REAME Cucco Grottone Gianni Duregato 2010 IO SONO PRONTO (L2) Cucco Grottone Matteo Caropreso 2011 GATTOLARDO Cucco La torre Guido Cortese JAMIN-A Gola dei briganti inf. Andrea Gallo BRAILLE Striature obese Luca Lenti 1994 DI PIÙ Estathe Klem Loskot SPAZZOLAMI Lacremà settore basso Luca Lenti 1996 EQUILIBRI IMPOSSIBILI* Avan. Rocca degli uccelli Luca Lenti 1997

* Well protected pitch but at a crag where most of the pitches are bolted dangerously and therefore not described in this guidebook. 16

Rocca di Perti

Number of pitches

5a 5b 5c 6a 6b 6c 7a 1 2

1 2 5

8 7

Placca dellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Oasi 180m

Altitude

450m

Orientation

Beauty Wonderful

Nice

Worthy

Equipment

Terrible Be careful Good Perfect

Number of visitors

Low Medium High Overcrowding

Comfort

Uncomfortable Uneven Comfortable

Parking

Difficult Sufficient Good Very good

Not exciting

Beginners School Possible when raining Fit for family

No signal

Arene Candide Cava di Rio Fine 18

GPS N44 09.715 E8 19.503

<4 4a 4b 4c 5a 5b 5c 6a 3

2 2 1

Cava di Rio Fine SW 100m

This is the only sector that exists at the moment in Finale with easy and well-bolted routes. The routes go from leaning slabs to short overhangs. The place is not particularly nice, being an abandoned quarry, but it has a wonderful view and is very comfortable at the base. All the routes are equipped with a closed “maillon rapide”. The routes were equipped in 2004 by Fulvio Scotto with glued bolts or bolt hangers.

Approach Taking the Finale Ligure Motorway exit after 800 meters there is a Stop sign. From here, turn left downhill in the direction of “Finale L.- Via Aurelia SS1-Calice L.”. After 1.3 kms at the miniroundabout continue straight on for another 1.5 kms until another Stop sign keeping to the right and going in the direction of “ImperiaBorgio V.”. Continue for 2.4 kms going through a tunnel and at the traffic light stay to the right in the lane signed Borgio Verezzi where there is a level crossing. Turn right and cross over the railway and then go up to the right towards “Verezzi” (via Nazario Sauro). After 100 meters there is a road that is a dead end that goes down (via della Cornice); follow this for another 500 meters passing between the houses and then going up until a hairpin bend to the left. At this point a dirt road continues straight on (GPS N 44 09.635 E 8 19.160), follow it for 100 meters coming to the first parking possibility for three cars on the left (Arene Candide car park 1). The dirt road continues for another 100 meters following the way marks “one red circle” until another parking area again on the left for about three cars (Arene Candide car park 2). From here it is better to continue on foot if you don’t have a 4-wheel drive because the road becomes very uneven. However continuing for another 150 meters there is an additional parking area on the left for another three cars (Arene Candide car park 3). After 100 meters there is an obvious fork where you go right and shortly afterwards another (GPS N 44 09.787 E 8 19.389) where you again go right on a level path reaching the wall in 200 meters. It takes 5 minutes from car park 2 to the wall.

1 BORDER LINE 4c 8m Vertical with steps 2 NELLE FAUCI DEL PIRANHA 5a 10m Vertical with steps 3 ROLLING STONE 3b 8m Slightly leaning and steps 4 STARGATE 5b 8m Vertical with steps with slight traverse to the left to exit 5 BRAIN STORMING 6a+ 8m Short overhang with many pockets to start, then vertical 6 LEGATO MA LIBERO 5c 8m Similar to the preceding but less overhanging 7 LA BRANDLER 6a+ 8m Starts on a slight overhang with edges, then leaning slab 8 BLUMOUNTAIN 5a 7m Starts on a slight overhang with edges, then leaning slab 9 ROCKSTORE 4c 6m Vertical with pockets and edges 10 GRAZIE A.I.B. 3c 5m Similar to the preceding

CAVA DI RIO FINE

6a+ 5a

5b 1

6a+

3b 3 4

Arene Candide Il Cimitero

GPS N44 09.879 E8 19.493

<6 6a 6b 6c 7a 7b 7c 3

3 3 7

1 1

Il Cimitero S 210m

Nice crag with mainly vertical routes on rock that is often very distinctive, the most spectacular routes are however those that follow the roof that marks the middle part of the crag. Fulvio Balbi and Diego Nesi equipped all the routes in 1991. Nearly all the routes are equipped with glued bolts; the numbering of the routes goes from left to right.

Approach At the second turn for the Rio Fine quarry (N 44 09.787 E 8 19.389) go up to the left for 40 meters following the “one red circle” way marks and reaching an obvious widening on the left. From here take the path that forks off to the left going uphill with the same way marks as before and with a red arrow (turn 1 for Cimitero GPS N 44 09.774 E 8 19.466). Continue going up for 250 meters reaching another turn where you go right continuing for a farther 100 meters. At the next turn go left continuing uphill for 70 meters reaching the final turn where you go right coming to the extreme right of the crag. The path from the Arene Candide car park 2 to the Cimitero crag is about a 10-minute walk.

L’orizzonte

Pietra del sole Parsifal

Cimitero

Canazei

Cava di Rio Fine

P P

shack P

tarred road

Via della cornice zi

rez io Ve Borg

dirt road footpath

1 VATICANO 6c+ 10m Small pillar, slab start and climbs a small overhanging corner 2 TOSTAU 5c+ 15m Leaning slab and small corner 3 UN METRO SOTTO 6b+ 15m Slightly overhanging start, then moves onto slab 4 TOMBA LA BOMBA 6c+ 15m Slab start on large pockets, then vertical 5 CLIC SI GIRA 6b 20m Slab with small pockets, then slightly overhanging 6 PSICOLOGICA 6a+ 20m Vertical on white wall, then featured on grey rock 7 ULTIMA ALBA 7a 20m Vertical start on two white stalactites, then slightly overhanging 8 EASY TO REMEMBER 7a 20m Vertical on small red pockets, then roof 9 ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE 6c+ 15m Starts on stalactites then roof 10 FLAUTO DI VERTEBRE 7a+ 20m First bolt really high, watch out! Starts on stalactites then roof 11 SACCO Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;OSSA 7b+ 15m Dangerous bolting! Starts on stalactites then roof and traverse to the left 12 SEPPIA GRASSA 6b 15m Vertical on pockets with overhanging exit 13 COSETTA 5b 10m Featured slab with pockets 14 BAMBINO 4c 12m Featured slab with pockets 15 CONSIDERAZIONI DI UN DISTRATTO 6c+ 15m Dangerous bolting! Grey overhang 16 STAFF 6b+ 15m Follows a red overhang to the left hand side of a cavern 17 THE RETURN OF JEDI 6b+ 15m Slab start then overhang and dark grey stalactites 18 THE DARK SIDE OF THE FORCE 6b+ 15m Slab start, then overhang with stalactites 19 THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK 6b 15m Starts on obvious stalactite, then featured

IL CIMITERO

6c+ 6c+

5c+

6a+

6b+ 5

1 2

6c+ 7a

7a+

8 9 10

6b 7b+ 5b 4c 11 13 14

6c+

17 18

6b+ 6b+ 6b+ 15 16

6b 19

Car park Arene candide

Rocce dell’Orera Rocce dell’Orera - Settore destro 22

GPS N44 10.366 E8 19.049

3c 4a 4b 4c 5a 5b 5c 6a 6b 1

3 9

Rocce dell’Orera Settore destro E 300m

The Rocce dell’Orera is a crag with easy routes situated above Finalborgo. The type of climbing goes from featured slabs with pockets to vertical walls with the length of the routes often not longer than 15 meters. At the moment it is one of the easiest sectors in Finale and also one of the few where it is possible to climb in the summer months as it goes into the shade in the afternoon. The routes are not exceptionally nice but they are particularly suitable for beginners and children given the difficulty, the inclination and the morphology. Discovered at the beginning of the ‘70s by the renowned climbers Calcagno, Grillo and Simonetti, it was re-appraised many years later by Fulvio Balbi. The routes are all equipped with glued bolts apart from the part on the extreme left that unfortunately remains equipped with old pegs and bolt hangers and so we recommend not climbing these routes.

Approach Two approaches in fact exist, the first is a shorter walk, the second is longer but if you don’t have a form of transport it is the easiest as you leave directly from Finalborgo. Approach 1 Take the Finale Ligure motorway exit and at the STOP sign turn right going up in the direction of Calizzano. Continue for 1.3 kms coming to the square in Gorra (Piazza San Bartolomeo) from where, doing a U-turn, you go back towards the motorway but, after 50 meters, take the second road going up to the right (Via Bracciale). Follow it for 2 kms until a junction where you go left and park in the marked parking areas (Verezzi Car park N 44 10.187 E 8 18.621) that you find just before the Borgata Crosa. Continue on foot entering into the small town along the road “Via alla Chiesa” and passing under a small vault. Continue uphill until reaching the church of San Martino. From here continue following the paved footpath leaving the church to the left, then descend skirting the cemetery (way marked with a red rhombus and a red circle). The path passes next to a field with football goal posts; from here follow the way marks of three red circles. Continuing for 200 meters you note 5 paths within 10 meters of each other that go down to the left. Take the last of these five paths going downhill (Left hand junction 5 for Rocce dell’Orera N 44 10.187 E 8 18.621). This last junction is very important as it is very easy to confuse it with the other four preceding paths. The key reference points are, just where the correct path starts to go down to the left, a cairn and a way mark (three red circles) at foot

level on the sides of the path where it starts. Now continue along the path for 320 meters and at the junction take the level path to the right. After a few meters, at the next junction, go right again. After another few meters the path widens, a trail goes down to the left near rocks protruding from the ground (N 44 10.358 E 8 19.028). Follow this trail for 40 meters coming to the righthand sector of the Rocce dell’Orera. The path from the Verezzi car park to the righthand sector of the Rocce dell’Orera is about a 15-minute walk. Approach 2 Leave Finalborgo through Porta Testa and cross the medieval bridge; at the mini roundabout cross the road and turn left towards the coast (Via Caprazoppa) following the main road for 100 meters until coming to an obvious dirt track that goes up to the right with a no entry sign and a chain. Follow the dirt track, taking immediately (before the no entry sign) a path that goes up steeply and passes above netting that protects against rock fall (way marks three red circles). After 15 meters, on the left there is a small cave with writing (F.76). Continue for another 250 meters

coming to a stone wall on the left, and a path on the right that goes up; here go up to the right (Lower Orera junction 1). After 20 meters there is another junction (Lower Orera junction 2) where you continue right. After 900 meters there is a junction that goes up to the left (Lower Orera junction 3) where instead you go straight on for a farther 160 meters until the following junction (Lower Orera junction 4) where there is a trail that goes up to the left and one that goes down to the right with a large rock in the middle of the junction. Go down to the right continuing for 90 meters. A large boulder is now visible on the left and immediately after a path goes up steeply to the left. Instead go down to the right (Lower Orera junction 5) walking for another 180 meters and coming to the extreme left of the right-hand sector of the Rocce dell’Orera; up to the left you can make out the routes Azzurra (no. 18) and Giulia (no. 17), with the rest of the crag continuing to the right. Going to the left you find the first routes of the left-hand sector. The path from the main road to the right hand sector of the Rocce dell’Orera takes about 45 minutes.

Finale Ligure motorway exit Gorra

Finalborgo

Verezzi (borgata Crosa) S. Martino church

Rocce dell’Orera

Rocce dell’Orera Rocce dell’Orera - Settore destro

1 L’APPRENDISTA 4a 12m 2 MORO 4a 12m 3 CONFUSIONE 3c 18m 4 LUNA 5c 15m 5 COBRECESI 5c 20m 6 PEDRO P1 6a 20m P2 4c 10m 7 CHIACCHIA P1 4a 20m P2 5a 15m 8 SONO GINO 4c 20m 9 CAMALLI 4c 20m 10 STRINGILE FORTE 6a+ 25m 11 STRINGILE PIANO 6a 20m 12 MADDALENA 6a 90m 13 FUORIVIA 6a+ 15m 14 DIEDRO DELLE SITUAZIONI DIFFERENTI 6a 70m 15 I DIEDRI OBLIQUI 5c 70m

Slab with many features and large pockets Slab with many features and large pockets, short traverse to the right to exit Starts on thin crack, then slab and ledge before exit Leaning and featured slab, goes diagonally quite far right, then sequence on small pockets Vertical wall with many features with strenuous moves Fingery vertical wall with short traverse to the left and easy slab to exit Slab with many features Slab then corner Technical vertical wall Leaning slab needing good movement Leaning slab and technical vertical wall Slightly overhanging start on good pockets, then slab Featured slab with cracks Old and dangerous bolts, arête Nice vertical wall, sustained for fingers Corner and vertical wall. Old and dangerous bolts, not climbable Delicate and elegant climbing. Climbs a series of cracks and diagonal corners situated a few meters to the left of the Diedro (Corner) delle Situazioni Indifferenti; re-bolted with bolt hangers. The second, third and last pitches need to be integrated with trad gear

ROCCE DELL’ORERA SETTORE DESTRO (RIGHT HAND SECTOR)

6a+ 6a+

6a 6b 18 17

6a+

14 15

6a6a+

6a 6

5c 5c 3c 5

4a 4a 2

16 VIA DEGLI URLATORI 6a+ 80m Old and dangerous bolts! Technical and vertical wall, starts in a gully 17 GIULIA 6b 10m Dangerous bolts! Vertical wall with fingery single 18 AZZURRA 6a 10m Dangerous bolts! Vertical wall with fingery single 19 CICINO 6a+ 50m Old and dangerous bolts! Technical and vertical spur

Rocce dellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Orera, Elena Troiano, I segni del tempo, 6a+ (ph. M. Tomassini)

Rocce dell’Orera Rocce dell’Orera - Settore sinistro 26

GPS N44 10.352 E8 19.195

4a 4b 4c 5a 5b 5c 6a 1 1

1 6

Rocce dell’Orera Settore sinistro E 900

A recently bolted cliff, equipped by the renowned Fulvio Balbi and by Roberto Bolzan, it offers 13 routes that are perfectly equipped with stainless steel glued Raumer bolts on new rock with many features. Corners, slabs and long traverses are generally the type of climbing that can be found here. All the belays are stainless steel glued Raumer bolts and placed in the French way. For Fuoco (no. 3) we recommend not linking the two pitches to avoid rope pull. For Razza bastarda (no. 8) and Zanzibar (no. 11) it is easier to descend from the last pitch along a path instead of doing an abseil. For Razza bastarda (no. 8) it is possible to use a 70meter rope to link the three pitches as the route traverses a lot and so the abseil is much shorter than the total length of the climb. However we do not recommend linking the pitches to avoid rope drag. For Trocadero (no. 12) the first part can be avoided starting to the left and little bit farther up (stainless steel bolt hanger) lowering the grade to 4a.

Approach From the Verezzi car park (see the approach for the right hand sector of the Rocce dell’Orera, Approach 1) continue on foot entering into the small town along the road “Via alla Chiesa” and passing under a small vault. Continue uphill until reaching the church of San Martino. From here continue following the paved footpath leaving the church to the left, then descend skirting the cemetery (way marked with a red rhombus and a red circle). The path passes next to an obvious field with football goal posts; from here follow the way marks of three red circles for 580 meters with a long dry stone wall. The path from being level starts going gently uphill and goes downhill in the last section until reaching a widening with a votive niche made from stone painted salmon pink (Votive niche, GPS N44 10.337 E8 19.256). From here zigzag down following the main path (way marks three full red circles) for 60 meters; at a point where the path makes a bend to the right, a trail goes off to the left going briefly downhill and entering the wood. Follow this trail for 130 meters until a junction near a small red cliff that forms a small roof (on the left). Now go up steeply to the left for 50 meters coming to the left hand sector of the Rocce dell’Orera near the route Trocadero. To reach the routes nos. 1, 2 and 3 it is necessary, at the last junction near the small red cliff, to go downhill for 60 meters; the three routes can be found about 20-40 meters from each other. Continuing in this direction you reach the right hand sector and so link up with the path that goes back to the Verezzi car park. The path from the Verezzi car park to the left hand sector of the Rocce dell’Orera is about a 20minute walk.

1 CIELO 5a 17m Wide and leaning corner, continues on a very leaning slab with large pockets; same belay as Bosco 2 BOSCO 4b 13m Slab with large pockets going diagonally slightly right, near the exit becomes a lot less steep; same belay as Cielo 3 FUOCO P1 6a 13m Short slab, then vertical with diagonal ledge, exit on slab and reaches a comfortable ledge P2 5c 19m Vertical start with many pockets, continues on slab with huge jugs and reaches a comfortable ledge; we recommend not linking the two pitches to avoid rope drag 4 NUVOLE 4a 9m Easy slab with many pockets and small ledges; belay on only one Raumer anchor that can be opened 5 VARIANTE CICINO 5b 10m Short slab with small pockets with final mantle, brings you to the last pitch (not re-bolted) of the route Cicino… a Finale classic in the right hand sector. 6 L’ANGOLO NEL CIELO 6a 33m Nice route, sustained, with short overhang and always on good holds; vertical start on red rock with large pockets, not trivial 7 I SEGNI DEL TEMPO 6a+ 35m Superb; goes diagonally decidedly right on technical slab, it is best to clean the draws by seconding it 8 RAZZA BASTARDA P1 4c 25m A teaching route in classic style; diagonally to the right on steps and many holds P2 4c 6m Right again, short pitch with nice exposed traverse P3 4c 15m Vertical exit on fantastic rock, belay on boulder in wood 9 DONNE, CRAVE E OCHE 6a 20m The first 10 meters are slightly overhanging on large pockets and strenuous (if you don’t find the right sequence), continues on leaning slab 10 FANNI E DESFA P1 5b 15m Goes diagonally to the left with demanding traverse on slab with crack P2 5b 15m Prominent corner-chimney with many holds; we recommend not linking the two pitches to avoid bad rope drag 11 ZANZIBAR P1 5b 14m Starts on a slab with cracks and flakes, then becomes less steep; satisfying route on good holds but never trivial P2 5b 20m Nice pillar, follows a featured wall on positive pockets; belay on boulder in wood, it is possible to link the two pitches

Rocce dell’Orera Rocce dell’Orera - Settore sinistro

31 TROCADERO 5b 15m Small pillar, the first 5 meters are superb, then becomes less steep with climbing on large holds 32 DURBEGA 6a 16m Slab, initially leaning on good holds, then vertical with strenuous exit

ROCCE DELL’ORERA SETTORE SINISTRO (LEFT HAND SECTOR)

4c 4c 5b

6a 5b

car park Verezzi

5b 8 10 9

5c 4b

4a 4

6a+

6a 3

5a 1

right hand sector

Schweiz / Gimmlwald / Sektor A - Roger Schäli, alpineXtrem Team Photograph: Claudia Ziegler

SALEWA MOUNTAIN SHOP FINALE LIGURE Via Nicotera, 6 17024 Finale Ligure (SV) Tel.: +39 019 6816230 email:mountainshop@sportart.it www.salewa.it •

•

Finalborgo Paretina di Finalborgo

GPS N44 10.630 E8 19.423

5b 5c 6a 6b 1

1 7

Paretina di Finalborgo SW 40m

A great technical wall with particularly compact rock, the small cliff of Finalborgo, of a limestone similar to that of Capo Noli offers a type of rock that is very different to the rest of Finale. For many years this cliff lay forgotten due to the state of the bolts and so the rock has maintained an excellent friction. From October to November 2010, the rebolting and the creation of three new routes have enhanced the characteristics of this cliff and made it very popular. The fact that it can be reached in only ten minutes on foot from Finalborgo has contributed to making it one of the most visited winter crags. The Comune of Finale Ligure contributed to buying the necessary equipment: Marco (Thomas) Tomassini and Daniele (Jack) Canale of the association TOTHEMASS took the time to restyle the crag, with help from Simone Baglietto, Max Stefanutti and Natalino Odasso. In the winter months the crag gets the sun from about 9am to 2pm.

Calice Ligure

A10

Finale Ligure motorway exit

Finalborgo Finale Ligure

Gorra Colle del Melogno

Castel San Giovanni

Finalborgo

Approach Taking the Finale Ligure Motorway exit after 800 meters there is a Stop sign. From here, turn left downhill in the direction of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Finale L.- Via Aurelia SS1-Calice L.â&#x20AC;?. After 1.3 kms at the miniroundabout turn left in the direction of Finale Borgo, Calice Ligure and Perti, cross over the medieval bridge turning immediately left and then entering the car park in Piazza Porta Testa (Porta Testa car park, GPS N44 10.532 E8 19.559). Continue on foot entering into the old walled town of Finale Ligure (Finalborgo) through the Porta Testa gate, walk along Via Nicotera for 90 meters and then turn left into Via del Municipio. After walking for 70 meters along this road you come to Piazza del Tribunale. From here, go up along the winding brick road (via Berretta), following the way marked path (two full red circles) from Finale Ligure to Pian Marino, for 280 meters until an old gate to the town in the form of half an arch (Half Arch gate, GPS N44 10.615 E8 19.517). Go up for a farther 90 meters until a hairpin bend to the right where a path starts behind the low wall at the edge of the road (Junction 1 for the Paretina di Finalborgo, GPS N44 10.634 E8 19.469). Follow this path for 10 meters and immediately take a path on the left going slightly downhill and then on the level for 50 meters. At the junction near a boulder go down another 35 meters until a rocky step, where there is a fixed rope, to scramble down for 10 meters. At the base of the step, continue downhill skirting the cliff, passing a level section and passing over an area of scree. Climb up a short ramp with two trees at the top reaching the extreme right of the crag. The path from the Porta Testa car park to the Paretina di Finalborgo takes about 10 minutes.

1 ICH HABE EINEN BANDWURM 6a 20m Easy base, then vertical, technical and sustained on good holds with a move difficult to work out half way up 2 TIRA DRITTO FURBACCHIONE 6a 20m Easy base, then vertical, technical and very sustained on positive holds 3 CUSSULÈ STU CASINU 6a 20m Diagonal ledge, delicate slightly leaning slab, then vertical and technical on good holds 4 IL MAGO DI WORD 6a+ 20m Diagonal ledge, then slab with technical climbing requiring balance and good movement on positive edges, very sustained 5 IL RAGAZZO CON L’ORECCHINO DA PIRLA 6a+ 21m Varied climbing requiring good movement on slightly leaning slab with pockets and positive edges 6 IL LABIRINTO 6a 21m Vertical requiring good movement on positive holds, final fingery wall 7 SGRILLETTAMI 6a+ 21m Easy start, a bit of intuition necessary to pass the short technical fingery slab and to position well on the final short wall 8 DECIMINO 5b 12m Starts from a rocky pulpit: climbs a leaning slab with big holds with a more technical move on the vertical wall half way up 9 MEDCAMALIA 6b+ 18m Balancy start on leaning slab, easy section with good holds with traverse to the right, short difficult overhang with edges to finish

PARETINA DI FINALBORGO

6a+ 6a

6a+

6b+

6a 6a+ 8

5 4

Finalborgo

Rocca di Perti GENERAL APPROACH TO THE CRAGS ON THE WEST FACE OF THE ROCCA DI PERTI The general approach means from the nearest motorway exit to the most convenient parking area for the crag. The West face of Rocca di Perti area includes the following crags: 1 Parete delle gemme (GPS N44 11.502 E8 18.645) 2 Placca dell’oasi (GPS N44 11.351 E8 18.754) 3 Settore delle ombre blu (GPS N44 11.529 E8 18.710 ) 4 Scimmiodromo (GPS N44 11.267 E8 18.940) 5 Placca del gibbone (GPS N44 11.258 E8 18.947) 6 Placca Piotti (GPS N44 11.474 E8 18.775) 7 Pancia dell’elefante (GPS N44 11.499 E8 18.738) 8 Testa dell’elefante (GPS N44 11.502 E8 18.751) 9 Grottino di Perti (GPS N44 11.517 E8 18.736) 10 L’olimpo (GPS N44 11.585 E8 18.624) 11 Settore centrale di Perti (GPS N44 11.630 E8 18.625) 12 Il Giardino (GPS N44 11.699 E8 18.612) 13 Falesia dei tre porcellini (GPS N44 11.637 E8 18.581) 14 La cengia degli androidi (GPS N44 11.695 E8 18.570) 15 Settore settentrionale di Perti (GPS N44 11.651 E8 18.571) Take the Finale Ligure motorway exit and at the STOP sign descend towards the coast. After 1.4 kms at the mini-roundabout turn left towards Finale Borgo, Calice Ligure and Perti, crossing the medieval bridge and going immediately left following the signs for Calice Ligure. After 3.2 kms take the road going uphill on the right signed “Palestra di Roccia Rocca di Perti”, and follow it passing through a tunnel underneath the motorway and coming to a large open dirt area on the right where there is the first opportunity to park (Perti motorway car park, GPS N 44 11.557 E 8 18.380). At the next junction, continue to the left for 300 meters: at a hairpin bend to the right, there is a second opportunity to park along the side of the dirt road (Perti 1 car park, GPS N44 11.694 E8 18.388). At this point the condition of the dirt road worsens considerably and so if you don’t have a 4 wheel drive it is best to continue on foot. From here it is necessary to look at the specific approaches for each sector on the relevant pages. The Settentrionale (Northern) sector of Perti and Il giardino, even though they make up part of the west face, are more easily approached from the north side; however all 19 sectors of the Rocca di Perti are linked and can be reached from both sides.

GENERAL APPROACH TO THE CRAGS ON THE NORTH FACE OF THE ROCCA DI PERTI The general approach means from the nearest motorway exit to the most convenient parking area for the crag. The North face or the Rocca di Perti includes the following crags: 16 Versante Nord di Perti (GPS N44 11.751 E8 18.651) 17 Grottino del Bric della Croce (GPS N44 11.676 E8 18.757) 18 Grotto di Perti (GPS N44 11.664 E8 18.838) 19 Tigrotto (GPS N44 11.663 E8 18.832) Take the Finale Ligure motorway exit and at the STOP sign descend towards the coast. After 1.4 kms at the mini-roundabout turn left towards Finale Borgo, Calice Ligure and Perti, crossing the medieval bridge and going immediately left following the signs for Calice Ligure. 2 km from here, on the right a road goes up (Via Don Mario Scarrone) signed Perti Alto, Osteria Castel Gavone and Zona Monumentale Perti. Take this road for a farther 1.3 km until a small square (Piazza Martiri Perticesi) with a church (S. Eusebio); here it is possible to replenish your water supply from the fountain on the left. Continue straight on passed the church and after 1 km pass in front of a group of ochre coloured houses situated on the right. Continuing uphill for a farther 1.1 kms park in an open dirt area with a picnic table and benches (Perti North car park, GPS N44 11.844 E8 18.583); there is another fountain here in stone where it is possible to replenish your water supply. From here follow the specific approaches for each crag on the relative pages. The Grotto di Perti can be reached more directly from the Monte Sordo car park. Both the Settentrionale (northern) sector of Perti and Il Giardino can be reached more easily from the Perti North car park even though they are on the West face of Perti.

Perti Nord

12 15

11 13

10 3 1

car park Perti 1

9 8 7

4 5 2 33

Genova Calice

1 Parete delle gemme 2 Placca dell’oasi 3 Settore delle ombre blu 4 Scimmiodromo 5 Placca del gibbone 6 Placca Piotti 7 Pancia dell’elefante 8 Testa dell’elefante 9 Grottino di Perti 10 L’olimpo 11 Settore centrale di Perti 12 Il giardino 13 Falesia dei tre porcellini 14 La cengia degli androidi 15 Settore settentrionale di Perti 16 Perti - Versante nord 17 Grottino del Bric della Croce 18 Grotto di Perti 19 Tigrotto

A P 15 16 17 P 18 12 14 19 11 13 10 8 PB 1 9 7 P 6 D 3

A10

Finale Ligure motorway exit

PE 4

Gorra

42 46 50 56 58 60 70 74 76 78 80 88 92 96 100 112 122 126 130

Castel Gavone Finalborgo

P A Car park Perti nord (I cianassi) B Car park Perti motorway C Car park Perti 1 D Car park Le gemme (only 4WD) E Car park Scimmiodromo (only 4WD)

Borgio Verezzi 34

Finale Ligure railway station

iKer poU, shot BY daMiano leVati on the doloMites, italY see the fUll storY on thenorthface.coM

the north face速 trailhead app

THE PROTAGONISTS 36

Very well known throughout Italy in all sectors concerned with sport climbing, Andrea certainly has no need to be presented. Even though it is currently difficult to bump into him at a crag or even casually, a large part of both his amateur and professional life is based on the Finale area. Excellent photographer and a very strong climber from the 1980s, he is the author of all the guidebooks to Finale published between 1987 and 2007 as well as many other guidebooks to the outdoors. Despite the fact that he was not an excessively prolific bolter with respect to others, he bolted some important routes such as Ombra at the Scimmiodromo and Hueca solo at the central sector of Perti, put up at the end of the ‘90s and extreme for their time. He continued with All’incomincio and Poi capace at the Giardino and with sectors such as the Grotto di Perti, notable for its very strong overhangs and roofs. He bolted and made the first free ascent of Hyaena at the Alveare. His merit is without doubt that of having promoted Finale around the world, not only by his extreme climbs on the first grade 8 routes in the Finale area, but also because of his many publications, articles and photographs. And thanks to the material offered by his shop, the first shop specialising in climbing gear to be opened in Finalborgo, the bolting and maintenance of many famous sectors was possible.

Gerardo Fornaro

Rocca di Perti

Andrea Gallo

Gerardo “Gerry” Fornaro Gerardo Fornaro, better known as Gerry, was born in Genoa in 1960 where he currently lives and works, employed in access work where mountaineering rope work is required. He started climbing in 1977, at first everywhere and then mainly in Finale, always with his favourite climbing shoes (EB)… still considered alien objects at that time! In Finale the crags are still an almost unknown world and the equipped and climbable routes very few indeed. Gerry became a keen bolter and wandered in search of cliffs and new lines, in the course of thirty years he has put up more than 200 new routes in the Finale area. In the beginning he placed a quantity of bolts that were barely sufficient and very widely spaced, now he has become the creator of safe lines completed with stainless steel glued bolts. Amongst the more interesting exploits on his curriculum we find: the discovery of the Rian Cornei valley, the Val di Nava and the creation of the route Tempio della gioventù psichica, definitely the hardest route on the Paretone of Pianarella (initially opened from the ground up and re-bolted afterwards) and still to be freed… Outside of Finale he has drilled holes in rocks on all the continents, bolting at Toirano and the Albenga area and opening pioneering routes in Sardinia and Corsica. Gerry wanders with his nose in the air, hunting the perfect line… He has published articles in several specialist magazines.

Luciano Pizzorni El Conde de Montesordo y Perti Luciano Pizzorni was born in 1957, at the beginning of the summer, in the old-fashioned way at Prato del Re; it was immediately clear what his path would be, caught between the austere glance of Castel Gavone and the sad face of the Rocce dell’Orera. He learnt to walk on a field that had just been ploughed, and with his small steps began to wander between the caves, the castles, and the grey rocks of the Rocca di Perti, but his first route was the cherry tree, then the peach tree, the plum tree, the dry stone walls of the terraces, the ruined walls of the castle. He met Nico Ivaldo, Guido Grappiolo, and together they explored the caverns of Finale, but one day, having daringly climbed the Torre dei Diamanti of Castel Gavone, they were enraptured by the vision of the sad face of the Rocce dell’Orera. Fatal attraction, the siege began. They threw themselves at the conquest of that outcrop, and the more their fingers were peeled, the more they yearned for this scrabbling, maybe it was the smell of the rock, with its aromatic herbs that made them drunk or the roughness where their fingers spread out? One day they conquered the summit. And so they started, free from any tradition or any constraint. When they met Vittorio Simonetti, and as a consequence Gianni Calcagno, and Alessandro Grillo… they were already clear about how to do things. The meeting was decisive for their growth, the enthusiasm of Vittorio for the new young climbers from Finale led to the birth of the mountaineering group Purchin; on that route on North face of the Rocca di Perti that is the Camino dei Purchin, the first route put up by purely “finalese”, Sandro opened their minds, opening the way for climbing shoes, waist harnesses and the new Californian tendencies. Gianni, with his charisma, his alpine routes in a day, and the feat of Tirich Mir (lightweight expedition, there was him and G. Machetto! 1975), broadened their horizons. All the while the tribe of “Rampigninisti” grew with Raffaele Santoro, Sandro Piccinino, Gianni Perotto and many others. With them Luciano (Luk) started to discover the Maritime Alps, one of his first peaks was Corno Stella which deserves a description. The story goes that Luk and

his companions, having reached the hut in tracksuits and tennis shoes, were seriously reprimanded by a well-known climber of the time. In the morning our heroes stayed late beneath the covers, and then headed for the start of the climb. The well-known climber was starting his route when the two tracksuits started the, at that time, revered route Campia… with tennis shoes! They quickly reached the first belay and just as quickly gained height and disappeared from his sight. Having reached the summit they lost no time, their pot-holing roots giving them maximum speed in the abseil descent, and once at the base, they re-started on the route of the well known climber, reaching him as he was going towards the abseils, overtook him and… go, abseils with counter weight! The legend recounts that once at the hut they turned round and saw the mistreated climbers still half way through the abseils. They looked each other in the eyes, smiled and headed for home, before someone could insult them. At that time in Finale there were no single pitch climbs, so you climbed on multi-pitch routes, and it was normal to climb in a day, three, four, or maybe more routes, and there were no discounts for anyone. Gianni Perotto started with the one hundred and fifty meters of the Via del vecchio, three months later he was with Luciano on the thousand meters of the South ridge of the Aiguille Noire, climbed at night with a full moon in about 9 hours, in fact they reached their tent in Val Veny in the early afternoon. Luk has many of these exploits hidden in his drawers, all the fruit of methodical and constant training. In those few months they had prepared themselves to climb at night, with rain, cold, nothing was left to chance. And on that very occasion Marta Rivarola appeared, they started climbing together, and between one route and the next they found time to sacrifice a Sunday to get married. In 1979 they were invited to join the climbing school of the Italian Alpine Club (C.A.I) of Savona, the commitment was taken seriously, in a short time becoming the driving force of the school. By now Finale had been discovered, and every weekend it was invaded by hundreds of climbers, some small accidents occurred, like at Monte Cucco, where everyone at the crag stopped climbing to help the injured party, or on Bric Pianarella, when more than once someone remained stuck on the wall 37

Rocca di Perti THE PROTAGONISTS

after dark… a series of phone calls and every one was ready to intervene, with enthusiasm and competence. The nearest Mountain Rescue was in Savona, and so they proposed the creation of a branch section at Finale with Luciano as the head, but without the necessary equipment; one of his interventions involved cutting down a tree to make the stretcher! After numerous requests, one day a small pack arrived containing insignia and badges! Luciano, who was living his period “everything and now”, picked up the phone swore and left the Mountain Rescue, even though he continued to be involved in helping those in difficulty… as it is a duty of every mountaineer to bring help to someone in need. One day my parents took me to visit our cousins in Finale, and so I finally got to know this reckless cousin of mine who wondered round the house attaching himself to doorjambs. He seemed a bit strange but likeable, he let me play with his carabiners and he took me to visit Castel Gavone. A few months later my father had a job offer in Savona and so we moved. I was in my first year of university when

Luciano Pizzorni

I lost my mother and remained with a seriously ill father: Luk took my life into his hands, and I entered into his world. I started to climb, often with him; crags, the Alps, Mont Blanc, but more often with books his help was also economic. When I returned to climbing I often found him trying to teach people who didn’t deserve it and, as a consequence, losing fitness, both mental and athletic. The next time however he would be vibrant and irrepressible, dragging me round the Alps ignoring the weather, and I got my own back trying to teach him martial arts where still now I can keep my own. It was a gentle way to beat him a little, an innocent vendetta against the effort, the bad weather, to the four walnuts (two a head!) that he made me suffer in those long days where time did not find peace even when the sun went down. If he had been more constant and less eclectic, concentrating his energies on more concrete objectives, who knows where he would have ended up, with his elegant seamlessly effortless climbing on slabs and corners. For me he remains the point of union between the elegance of Gianni Calcagno

and the magnificence of Patrick Berhault, and those who have seen Luciano in form will certainly confirm this. Between highs and lows he has always conveyed his honest and clean style; a little reserved, he doesn’t like talking about his climbs, and if he does it is because he respects you, trusts you, you’re close to his heart, he lives them as an inner adventure, intimate, with feeling… “it’s like courting a young woman, you watch her, and then you go near and look for her hidden sides, the colours that vary from face to face, her winds, and clouds, her smell”… he replied to my question “why do you want to climb that mountain?” I had the fortune to share with him some great classic climbs and I still live that person, tireless, always on lead, the impressive calm in the storm and the eyes that in the mountains change and, become one with the environment, at times his eyes are ice, other times like the wind, but then when he hugs you, at the end of the descent (the route does not finish at the summit) you feel his joy and the huge passion that sets his heart on fire. Luk has a curriculum of important climbs and also some great extra-European experiences, he has dedicated a lot of time, in my view too much, to the climbing school of the Club Alpino Italiano, and he became a National Instructor at a young age. For years he lived roaming between schools, not finding the right atmosphere that fitted with his vision, in fact leaving them, often deluded, finding colleagues that didn’t follow their objectives with passion, but with that form of personal gratification, from a title or a position, the status. From these experiences he also obtained a lot of satisfaction from his students, and recently, the creation of the Mountaineering School in Finale Ligure dedicated to Gianni Calcagno, an idea that finds its origins and its spirit in the beginnings of climbing on the rock of Finale and of its Fathers. In him, the teacher and mountaineer, he feels a very strong tie with the area of Finale. In his past he has dedicated a lot of his attention to visiting the historical archives looking for ancient documents both in Italy and in Europe. On the Finale area, thanks to his great knowledge of the territory that has allowed him subtle insights, he has a lot of material ready for publication: “but that’s how he is… “I’ll think about it”… the routes that he has put up in the Alps, do you think he has published a topo? No! I am

aware of his routes on Mont Blanc, on Mongioie, in the Maritime Alps and at Castell’Ermo (where all the routes are his); between the valleys of Albenga and the Finale area I think that there are at least forty unknown routes, and not only rock climbing routes; ice falls in the Valle Pennavaire and in Valle d’Arroscia; on Bric Agnellino (the Ben Nevis of Finale), they have all been explored by him many, many years ago. This reticence of his is not to keep these places for himself and a few intimate friends, on the contrary, hit by an unexpected raptus for some place, he is capable of dragging there everyone around, friends, acquaintances, unknowns and with his captivating enthusiasm even some insignificant place can be spectacular. At the moment something is changing in him. Even though he is often listless and slow, every now and then he produces a new route and incredibly, a topo. Obviously he is going against the current, while everyone else is over-bolting single pitch routes, he is dedicated to multi-pitch routes, dosing carefully the glued bolts, leaving space for traditional protection and the fantasy of those who repeat the route. He has recently started a project to restore the classic routes, not only looking at the cliffs; as the Finale area is full of surprises, peculiarities, endemic characteristics, pre-historical and historical sites, in fact a huge open air museum, every cliff hides archaeological finds and signs of the past, and it is here that the future of Finale lies. The last time I came to Italy and Finale I saw a lot of environmental deterioration, dirty with tins, plastic, used glue cartridges, defecation at the base of routes, right there where the rope runs, paper, bottles… it’s a sad fact because we are the creators of this degradation… Finale has always given expression to innovative ideas, and it gave a lot to develop dynamic climbing: now it is time to move away from this moment, minds must return to releasing that vital energy that is hidden in the high plateaus of the Finale area. The climbers of Finale to drag this idea along exist, and definitely Luciano is one of them. Forza Purchin. Patricia Pizzorni from Ushaia, Argentina.

The Old Man

by Alessandro Grillo

have created a serious threat for all those who afterwards would have climbed the route or found themselves at the base of the cliff. And at that point we didn’t even imagine how many people would have shown up in the years to come. Torio, expert quarryman, rapidly thought of a solution. He told me to climb up to the right of the boulder and set up a good belay a little above it. I climbed up; it was like walking though a minefield. I remember that in that year winter had not yet finished, the cliff, West facing, was in the shade, and a cold North wind infiltrated between the boulder and the cliff, creating mournful whistling sounds. The scene was perfect for a film… Terror on the Cliff. I heard creaks every second and it seemed like the whole hill was moving in the wind. It was one of the few times in my life that I climbed with a lady by my side… Fear. I

Alessandro Grillo 1974

Seen from Calice Ligure, the Rocca di Perti looks like the immense prow of a warship from another century, with the elegant North ridge that seems to surge through the waves. It is the hill with the richest number of stories and legends in the Finale area. In 1973, its West face, almost two kilometres long and over five hundred and fifty meters high, did not have any routes at all on it and this made it extremely interesting for us. We had to climb that cliff, if possible along a route that led directly to the highest point on the summit. Not an easy job, as the hill in question is made up of high cliffs interrupted frequently by grassy ledges and small hanging gardens. Look from far off, look from close up, finally the line is singled out. We left for a first attempt, me and “Torio” Simonetti, taking all the gear necessary up to a small cave. We started in an overhanging corner and a U-shaped piece of iron, knocked in at the right point, allowed us to get through the most strenuous point. Above, the climbing was more enjoyable and exposed, not difficult but nice. After three pitches, we needed to climb an exposed traverse to the left that was dominated by a huge pillar that was completely detached from the cliff and leaning strangely against the rock. The parallelepiped was more than three meters high, about one meter long and half the width. At the base it became really, really small and rested on a tiny step. To pass beneath it, with all that stuff above your head, required more recklessness than courage. The fantastic system of supports and friction that held this huge boulder almost suspended in mid-air seemed like a miracle. We remained dumbfounded at the belay, watching this balance artist that more and more began to look like a… coffin. At all costs this thing had to be removed if we wanted to go ahead with a minimum of tranquillity, also because it would

Rocca di Perti

found two good pockets and fixed the pieces of wood and two long iron bars and belayed on two etriers. I was a little higher and to the right of the boulder. Torio climbed up calmly and having reached the top of the monster he told me to fix the rope. “Now I’ll show you how you do it” he exclaimed, smiling. He extracted from his backpack a fist-sized stone and pushed it between the boulder and the cliff, then he levered with the handle of his hammer. The “coffin” moved imperceptibly, but the stone slipped down a little. He levered again and the stone slipped down a little more. At that point, Torio, hanging on the end of the rope, back against the cliff, planted his boots against the boulder and gently pushed. Gradually, like in a film in slow motion, the boulder began to move, and in a cloud of wind and dust, fell towards the ground. It hit the cliff, described an arc and with an indescribably deafening noise hit the ground where it broke in two. One part broke up farther and stopped, but the other, rounder, started to move unhurriedly and subtly towards the valley. It entered a holm oaks wood, where we thought it would stop. But to our unbelieving eyes it appeared to be a projectile travelling at unbelievable speed. It entered the olive groves below, passed really close to some small houses where the farmers lived, bounced down the cultivated terraces, flew over the road works of the motorway under construction and the main road from Calice to Final Borgo, ending its headlong

run in the riverbed with a huge splash. We were terrified. We were shaking like leaves. With the courage that remained we descended hand over hand the entire trail of the boulder in search of damage and… victims. The area, at that time, was almost deserted, but occasional farmers or woodsmen could have been working in the woods or the olive groves. By an incredible stroke of luck, the only damage was a few broken trees and grazed olive trees. The following morning, after a sleepless night, we read through the local news in the newspapers: no reports of falling rocks in the Finale area! A few weeks passed, having regained some courage, we returned to the scene, this time with us the faithful Armando, called “Monsieur Luc”, il Vecchio or the Old Man, to friends. He had just turned… 50. We climbed the traverse and quickly reached the summit. Warm hugs for il Vecchio, but between Torio and me only a handshake. Our scared glances were those of two possible and potential assassins. The only thing missing was De Andrè singing “Il pescatore”! From that day on, never again, during the first ascent of a route, have I thrown even the smallest stone from the cliffs of Finale, apart from one occasion, but that’s another story.