Thursday 18 April 2013

Trains 'n Boats 'n Planes

The month on Kalymnos was great, but the escape was confounded by a strong northerly that blew for 5 days - and is still blowing apparently - so no ferries were running. Then I remembered the high-speed catamaran that runs a daily service from Kaly to Rhodes and sails in wilder weather and so we got away. The flight back to Stansted cost €22 each which is amazing which ever way you look at it. Stansted was a real culture shock - we queued for 30+ minutes at passport control, 20 gates wide and hundreds (thousands?) of people waiting to get into the UK.
A brisk five minutes saw us in the Radisson - another culture shock  - and all a bit posh, I wasn't really sure they would let us in. An early flight to Carcassone (£20 each) then John and Anne whisked us back to Chez Arran - the circle was closed.
Thursday and a quick six routes on Auzat in mint spring conditions - it is great to be back!

Tuesday 9 April 2013

The Good Life


We usually arrival in Kalymnos in late September; the cliffs are rammed, it is hot (25C+) and everywhere has the feeling of a desert as is hasn't rained for five months. The place is fully open for business: restaurants,  shops, scooter hire and apartments giving the place has a real holiday resort feel about it. Many folks love it like this but were are more ambivalent - though the snorkelling in the warm Aegean is brilliant.
Being here in the spring has been a really pleasant surprise; it has been a bit showery on occasions, but pleasantly warm, very quiet and remarkably green and flowery. The cliffs are drier than I was expecting - bone dry in most cases. Easter week was a bit busy but nothing like the 'high season' - I think it may become our favourite time of year to be here.
As ever the climbing is superb, I ticked my 1000th route here last week, and the locals are like long lost friends - a great spot to escape the tail-end of the grotty northern winter.

And it Continues

Exploring the coast north of Altea February in the Costa Blanca Three weeks on and we are still seeing slow improvements in my stamina, bala...