Turkish Delight

 As our time in Schengen approaches the 90 day limit (thanks once again to the Brexiteers) we had a choice, head back to the UK or pop across the 15 miles of water to Turkey for a few weeks - not really a choice at all tbh. From Kalymnos caught the catamaran to Kos, had a night in a nice (****) hotel then jumped on the early boat to Bodrum. 

Spring in Turkey

Initially we booked a week in Bodrum just to unwind and assess our options - we could fly back to the UK from here, Kos or Rhodes fairly easily.The town is always so busy, but the pad is central, well insulated against the noise and has superb air conditioning and wifi - all a man needs!

Lake Bafa - all mod cons

After a week we moved up the coast to the small town of Akbuk which gave us the chance to have a look at the ancient town of Heraklia on the shore of Lake Bafa  - truly astounding spot and with a huge mountain of granite right behind it with zero climbing on it.

Back to Kaly - one more time

Kasteli Chapel and windy weather

We booked to fly into Kalymnos directly from Athens, the flight was on time but it didn't land as the north wind was too strong - seven hours after leaving Tina's Apts we had covered about two km! That is the second time it has happened - there won't be a third! We rebooked a later flight and rolled into Kos about ten at night - and stopped in Mastichari - much better to get the morning ferry and arrive in good order.

Topo Variations

Asphodel and greenery

Two weeks in and the island has been REALLY quiet but with Easter a week away the place is coming alive as folks trickle in. The weather hasn't been great - often windy and grey, with a hot, stuffy southerly which I find particularly oppressive.

I have droned quite a few of the cliffs for substantial update of the RockFax App due out sometime soon, with a lot of new stuff in it, and plenty of great new cragshots.

Once again our Schengen time is nearly up and we aren't ready to return to the UK so Turkey beckons - the Exchange Rate has shot through the sky - hopefully the place should be even cheaper this time around!

 

Southwards to Kyparissi- Serious Arctic

Day Five and the sun came out

After a very pleasant month in Leonidio, we headed south to the tiny village of Kyparissi, one and a half hours (15 miles as the crow flies!) away. We visited the place briefly five years ago and we struck by the tranquillity compared to the busy hubbub of Leonidio. The only fly in the ointment was the weather forecast which was predicting a spell of five days of dirty weather with snow and sub-zero temperatures. It turned out that the forecast was pretty much spot on and although it only got down to 4C the surrounding mountains had a white coat.

Seaside houses

Fortunately our rather smart AirBnB house is warm, and waterproof and everyday we managed to grab a break in the weather and get out for an explore of the area - though climbing was deffo off the menu.

I have had a whole heap of work to be get on with, especially a major update of the Kalymnos App so I haven't had any trouble keeping occupied. 

The only question is - where next?

The wild access road to Kyparissi

Leonidio Reprise #3

The Red Cliffs above Leonidio

We first visited Leonidio in October/November 2017. The plan was to escape the crowds that flock to Kalymnos in the Autumn and to try somewhere new. We picked up Colin and Andy at Athens airport and drove the steady three hours to the small harbour village of Sampatiki - our base for a week or so. We headed into town for shopping and got the first clue we weren't alone - there were over 50 vehicles parked up under Mad Wall. It turns out it was half-term over much of Europe and a good % of the Continents' climbers had the same thoughts as us. We climbed of course but it was a bit of a struggle, finding both parking and free routes on occasions. The time we spent at Kyparissi and Nafplio were much pleasanter.

A lovely pad in town - complete with friendly cat

A year later we spent a couple of weeks touring the Peloponnese and didn't see another climber until we rolled into Leonidio. This time we were greeted by a thunderstorm and a lightning strike that cut the power to the town for 36 hours - no heating, no internet, and after a few hours, no water as the pumps weren't working - not a great start.

Sherri wasn't mad keen on a third attempt but after our Schengen induced Cyprus sojourn we needed somewhere to spend a few weeks, with a decent amount of climbing - and Leonidio came to mind. After a few cold and snow days at Frygani we rolled into town and were pleasantly surprised, the place had a much more friendly vibe than we remembered and it wasn't too busy. The nights were still cold - around 7C but the days were about perfect - I suspect we can suffer a month here :-)

Cyprus - Still Here

Winter sun in Cyprus

Eight and a half weeks later and we are still on Cyprus. We completed our time outside Schengen a couple of weeks ago, and are eligible for the next ninety day run within the block. Normally we would have pushed off sharpish, with Leonidio the current most likely destination. We have dallied because of the Omicron Variant sweeping across the world, it seemed safer to sit it out here - where we don't interact much with people and where society seems very sensible in their handing of the current restrictions.

The weather has been cool and unsettled for a couple of weeks with day time temperatures about 12C and nights down to 7C - though it still seems to be one of the warmest places in Europe - they have even had snow in Kalymnos.

Stormy weather

I have continued to climb once or twice a week and explore the local area plus further afield. We even had a short break over in the east, a lovely pad in the resort of Protaras close to the Cape Greko climbing area. It turned out that we were virtually the only people in town - everything was shut up for the winter - so much for the plan of eating out a couple of times!

Flights booked for Athens next week - Leonidio bound for a month or so - back on the road again :-)

Cyprus - that's Different

Cyprus - nice a quite away from the coast

Our 90 days in Schengen were up, so we had to leave Kalymnos - cheers for that all you small minded Brexiteers. We needed to make a decision, and returning to the UK in November was bottom of the list. There are four destination that are in the EU and aren't in Schengen - Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria and Cyprus - and a visit to any of these is allowed for 90 days and it doesn't count towards your tally. Of the four it turns out that Cyprus is a good winter destination so we hopped on two planes - that's been a while - and checked into a pad near Paphos for six weeks.

Stormy weather

First impressions are very favourable - the weather is mild, everyone speaks English and they drive on the left. The coastal area is very busy, with lots of modern developments - but inland is a whole different world. The island isn't a main-stream climbing destination but there is certainly enough to pass a few weeks, the three main areas for sport climbing are about thirty minutes drive from where we are stopping - though one of those is the reserve of the hard men.

Ancient remains.

And then there is the history/archaeology - the place has been inhabited for millennia and has been a crossroads for the Eastern Mediterranean. There are the most amazing remains from the Greeks and Romans and all those who came later. We have already visited the Tombs of the Kings and Old Paphos and there is more to come.

Kalytastic

The UK in Autumn

 So we headed back to the UK from Coatia via a lazy three day drive through Slovenia, Austria, Germany and Holland, followed by an overnight crossing to Hull - back to sunny (not!) Sheffield. We only had six days at home, and the weather was best described as 'mixed' - it rained every day but the sun came out most days too. 

Colin cane down for three days and we had a couple of great autumnal walks, with spectacular colours and a lot of folks - Wyming Brook and Padley Gorge. Then he dropped us off at Leeds/Bradford airport for a easy flight down to Kos on an almost empty Jet2 flight. 

Kalymnos in Autumn

Six weeks less than two years and we rolled back into Kalymnos - we never knew what was trundling down the line when we left back in 2019. Apparently the autumn here has been the busiest season ever, with crowds, queues and the locals making up for lost time. Our first week was still busy - 40 scooters at Ghost Kitchen one day - but week two has been remarkably quiet - just how we like it.