UKH

Planning a trip to val di mello. Have made a list for the big wall style gear out there i.e more of everything. I was just wondering on other bits of gear I've been thinking about ordering 2 number 3 camalots and 2 number 4 camalots for the off widths there.Any advice welcome.

In reply to sharmawho?:

I have done a few routes in Val Del Mello, for example Stomaco Pelos / L'alba Del Nirvana and used a standard UK rack for that type of route.

For Il Risvegio Di Kundalini again a standard rack but doubled up on medium sized friends for the 3 rd pitch a medium sized friends crack (S shaped I think?) 40m or something, we also took a big friend for the next pitch which was a kind of slanting off-width thing, but I can't remember what size, it looked big but not stupidly big.

For Luna Nascente we used standard rack, on our first ascent we took double medium sized friends, but on our second trip we did not, however we did take a big bro for the crack above pitch 6, which I think is called bat wing (?) basically a huge flake thing leaning against the face. We never got to see if the big bro was needed as we were hit by a thunderstorm and retreated. On our first ascent Andy lead this bit and felt one big bit of gear was required (he didn’t have it on our first go so had no choice but to run it out. It might not be required, may be someone else could clarify this?

I never did any of the bigger climbs on the Qualido or Asteroido so I don’t know about gear for them.

Generally the classics are leader placed gear, the occasional piton (spit). On a very easy but enjoyable climb called Uomini e topi, we found the rack for the 2/3 pitches superfluous, as there was not a stitch of gear to be had. Fantastic D / VD solo! However the next pitches required long ropes, longer than out 60m, and there was a certain amount of moving together required to get to secure belays, possible only 10m on may mild S to Hard S climbing (?). I seem to recall on this climb the bolted belays, was a bolt with an angle iron thing, just held on by faith, and to make things worse it was the only thing! Nowt else! One local climber said, “well just replace it yourself with another bolted belay” (we didn’t have any of that sort of gear (This was back in 2004), so may be things have changed).

We didn’t take any pegs, didn’t need them on the routes we did. As I say standard rack (double set of wires, set of friends, possible doubled up in the medium size, but only for the really long routes, possible one big friend, loads of extenders). I am only a modest climber, may be only leading HVS at the time.

Hope this helps,

TFN

Jamie

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons:

Sorry about the bad English grammar! Having very dyslexic (sic) writing days at the mo!

TFN

J

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons: Cheers for the help. Will be taking 2 of the new infinity ropes which can be used on there own as sport ropes but doubled up as a pair of doubles. Plan to have 2 sets of nuts about 17 cams 0-5 doubled up plus a few larger camalots and tech friends. Indeed will have many extenders.

Whats the place like for sport and bouldering? Trad aside for a minute...

could you entertain yourself as a climber for two solid weeks?

Cheers
Harry

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons: Hi Jamie, was just wondering what topo you used? Cheers

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons:

I led this when we did it, and though I'm quite a scaredy cat on unprotected rock, I didn't think it was too bad. Granted there's no gear for a long way but it's only about 4b so if you can get up the lower pitches you should manage. It'd probably require a Freind 6 to protect.

In reply to sharmawho?:

Mello valley is home to the famous Mello Blocco boulder comp each year:

http://www.melloblocco.it/index.asp?lang=en

So yes there all loads of boulders in the valley including one which is 60m high, that everything has to go round, like rivers, roads, electricity cables ! It has (or had!) a signpost at the bottom with a topo to indicate all the routes.

I think the boulders have a local dedicated guidebook thing. St Martino has a climbing shop that might sell guide books as well as cafe Monica (?) also used to sell some guides, even had one for Scottish winter climbing I seem to recall (SMC thingy!)

Enought to do for 2 weeks, yes, it will rain after all! There is loads of small sports crags down in the lower valleys. And if its to hot in the valley (Which it will be in the summer months) you can go high to Gianetti hut from St martino (lovely walk) as it has loads of fantastic routes including some sports climbs on near by crags (multi pitch as well!)

In reply to edg:

Combo thing, but these are the guide books I have used:

Plaisir SUD (Jurg von Kanel ISBN 3-906067-11-5) is very good. Good topo. german, French, Italian only. Covers Bregalia and Val del mello as well as the general area.

Masion Bregaglia Disgrazia, Montagne per quattro stagioni (G.Maspes - G. Miotti) also known as the little yellow book (as it has a yellow cover!) Is the difinitive guide. All in italian. Very good, with some topos.

Bernina and Bregaglia, selected climbs (Lindsay Griffin) Alpine Club. ISBN 0-900523-60-3. Old style AC guides, unless you know the area quite difficult to use IMHO. Outdated now. My copy anyway.

There are many more and most online climbing shops sell them (apart from

Masion Bregaglia Disgrazia)

TFN

Jamie

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons: Thanks a bunch Jamie, that's really handy, more books to add to the shopping list!

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons:

For the harder stuff (French 6a and upwards) Versante Sud's book ARRAMPICATE SPORTIVE E MODERNE IN VALTELLINA VALCHIAVENNA ENGADINA is pretty good. Mostly bolted and semi-bolted stuff though, and in italian (and possibly german, can't really remember).

Oh, and for bouldering, Versante Sud has a new book, Bouldering in Valtellina NNNNNN or something like that. Mostly covers the Mello area.

In reply to HeMa:

I have a really fantastic Mello guide which I think it out of print, called "Val Di Mello - Dalla moulinette Alla Wall” by Cristina Zecca and Pietro Corti (Italian and English) its really a folder with some of most eccentric topo’s, faces in the rock, people eating mushrooms and general 60’-70 behaviour, well worth getting if you can find it.
Very weird, but kind of sums up the Val di mello season, or what it was like.

Yeah, ARRAMPICATE SPORTIVE E MODERNE IN VALTELLINA VALCHIAVENNA ENGADINA is a very good books as you sayy and can be bought I think from Urbanrck or Needlesports, Amazon is also quiet good for finding these books as well.

TFN

Jamie
PS Val di mello. now I am dreaming.....

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons:


Or jsut order them directly from Versante Sud.it...

YeaH... albeit i'm still in skimode... 2 more days till I head north .

In reply to sharmawho?: From the little time I spent there I would suggest a granite rack with cams, cams, and more cams. Belays were bolted on the routes we did.

Guidebook we bought a yellow covered guidebook that was all in Italian, but easy enough to understand. Be carefully with the staring system tho. If I remember correctly, three stars means run out as apposed to a 3 * quality route.

There is more rock that you could ever hope to climb in a lifetime there. Have fun!

Cheers everyone for the tips and advice on books appreciate it massively. Any one who wants a postcard private message me your address

Cheers

Harry

In reply to sharmawho?:

Enjoy your trip... I went a couple of years ago and loved the place.

Definitely have a crack at Luna Nascente - loads of laybacking, some of it downwards! Take a head torch up with you though - we almost got benighted on the walk off.

The pizza restaurant and bar are also worth it (fiorelli pizza and bar monica if I'm remembering correctly)

In reply to Jamie Simpson - Alpine Dragons: I managed to get ahold of the "Val Di Mello - Dalla moulinette Alla Wall" through a German antique bookshop, of all places. It truly is the oddest guidebook I've ever seen!

Seems like if you're comfortable at 6+ there's more climbs than you could do in a lifetime... Roll on summer!