Stefano and Laura had raved so much about this place that we decided to check it out for ourselves…
We left Zandobbio around 10am and arrived in Finale close to 2pm. Since it stays light until 9:30pm, we figured that we could do some afternoon climbing before the day was out. We headed to Bric Scimmarco, one of Stefano’s recommendations. The hike in took a half an hour and was a little tough to find; we got in three climbs, which at this point was quite enough for an afternoon. Once again, we were presented with slippery limestone with tricky reads. The length and abundance of climbs was promising.
Later that day, we set off for camping. We found the wild camping pretty quickly, as the signs to the Monte Cucco climbing were plentiful. Monte Cucco is a great free campsite with one squat toilet and running water for dishes. The tent sites are much more private and enjoyable but we found a more secluded spot after our first night that we continued to use…until the one night when a couple of Italians put there tent up within 5 feet of our site when there were tons of better tent sites in the area…It is almost as if other campers are magnets for Italian campers. Where we try to find the most secluded area, they seem to be as close to another campsite for safety. WTF?
Finale is a huge limestone area right off the coast; it is part of the Italian riviera, as it is situated right along the Mediterranean. There are tons of areas, each with many climbs. The only issue that we had with Finale besides the greasy and hard to read routes, were the temps. How do they do it? Climbing in the summer is miserable, yet there are always peeps out there.
Finale Ligure has a lot more to offer than climbing. Being on the Meditteranean coast, people from all over Northern Italy come to vacation there. We truly enjoyed both the town of Finalborgo and the coast, during our rest days and middays. Gelato and pizza were plentiful and thoroughly enjoyed. Internet was always a challenge but Finalborgo ended up serving us well; it just took a lot of asking and creativity. Also, a little shoutout to the Rockstore. They did a fabulous and quick job on resoling three pairs of our shoes. Thank you so much!
Though the heat was practically unbearable, we did have a couple of favorite areas…Superpanza is fantastic and has a ton of multi-pitches that look phenomenal. We never got to do a multi-pitch while there though; the ones we saw were all a bit too hard and it was a bit too hot. We wanted to do the classic Superpanza but after asking some locals, they advised against it, claiming that the bolts were just too old. I desperately wanted to do my first multi-pitch but alas, I will have to wait. on the higher sector to the right, we found a cave with overhanging, powerful routes that fit Steve just right…me, not so much, but there were vertical slabs to the left that suited me just fine. Here, Steve sent Viaggo nel Futuro, a 7c+/8a on his second go, not bad…
Le Manie was another amazing sector. A little trickier to find but with short, stout, bouldery routes. Museo dell’uomo, a classic 7b, turned out to be one of Steve’s favorites thus far. The bouldery, powerful moves served him just the right amount of challenge that he could muster on the 31°C day. He also tried the 8a near to the 7b, but the temps were just too high. I worked hard on a 15 meter 6b+ that just kicked my ass…I just couldn’t get past the two crux moves…another day, another time…
After a weeks worth of hot, greasy climbing, we were ready to go up into the mountains…we needed to cool off. The area was truly amazing and we hope to visit again, but in the spring or fall, when temps foster sending rather than sliming…
-C
seek drive climb 