Gorge of the Dead, east Crete

Overview

You can now climb in one of the most famous canyons in the east Crete

Getting There

Park your car at the parking place which is in the middle distance between Zakros village and Kato Zakros, close to the path to the Gorge of Dead that is going there from the side. Go by walk to the bottom of the canyon and then turn left ( direction to the Zakros village). After 200-250 meters turn again to the left, cross the creek and follow small red marks. You climb the slope until you reach the crag named Big Wall.

Route

The Big Wall of Dead´s Gorge is grandiose. It must catch the attention of every climber passing by. We were no exception many years ago, but it took us until 2019 to open first routes there. The wall is about 80 meters high, but only the first pitches are done. Routes in the left and center parts of the wall are accessible from big shelf 2-3 meters wide. The access to the shelf is protected with bolts and there are bolts on the shelf for the belayer. The routes are very well protected with bolts, rappel stations at the end of every route are made of two anchors connected with chain and with steel biner.
Limestone in this part of canyon is of good quality, however, you can see on the material that it is influenced by a combination of salty air, windy and rainy conditions in the winter period and very hot weather in summer. Limestone is mostly smoothe, not sharp. Your fingers will be happy with this material.
Exposition: The wall is situated to the east, so after 13.30 it is in shade. During summer 2019 it was possible to climb to 9.30 a.m., then take a rest a swim in small lakes lying at the bottom of the canyon and then go again to climb in the afternoon. There is one big stone next to the lakes, we created there a few short routes just for fun while resting.
Gorge of the Dead belongs to a local group of crags surrounding the villages of Xerokambos and Zakros. There are at least ten canyons, that are close to each other and where climbing can be developed. Xerokambos has six of them, Zakros has three. Currently climbing is at the beginning here, only a tiny part of all possibilities is exploited.
This local cluster of crags has the potential to become one of the best climbing areas in Greece and this potential is still waiting to be discovered. Our Zakros team is working here hard, however, we are only a small group of climbers. We will be very happy to invite every climber to our team.

Red Tape

There is a small creek at the bottom of the valley. You can swim there during hot days. However, it is usually dry in August. 

When to Climb

You can climb all year round.

Camping

There is no campsite in Zakros and around.

External Links

http://www.climbcrete.com/index.php?lokalita=3