A vertical adventure in Greece

We organised a climbing trip to Meteora, Greece, a truly magical place. In the end, we spent five days there, walking through the woods to discover hidden towers and monasteries.

Towers of rock rise from the valley floor in many shapes. Monasteries were built on the top of some of the pillars, adding a layer of mysticism to the fascinating environment. In addition, Meteora is a UNESCO site, but despite the high number of tourists it maintains a wild and unspoiled atmosphere.

Rock climbing here is amazing. One reason is the rock is very peculiar, and the climbing style as well. Therefore, you have to get used to standing on small pebbles and learn to trust your capabilities when facing long runouts between bolts.

So, we decided to climb a line called Pillar of Dreams. It is an incredible route up one of the highest towers in Meteora.

Check out the GoPro video of the climb on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FosVyfKoOsU

Pillar of Dreams, rock climbing in Meteora

The pillar of dreams is considered a great classic. It’s a beautiful route of 250 meters. Even though there are 9 pitches in total, it is possible to link some to make it quicker.

You can find more information about the climb here: https://www.mountainproject.com/route/106804391/traumpfeiler-pillar-of-dreams

We linked a few pitches as they were short and easy to link. As the bolts are quite far apart on the easy parts, some additional gear is recommended. For this reason, we placed a couple of cams and some slings. A cam is useful on the hardest pitch, at the start of the chimney.

Once you reach the top of the tower you can walk to the opposite side to find some anchors to rappel. After two rappels you reach a path that will take you back at the bottom of the tower.