Arhi
8b – 9a · 4 routes · limestone · French
- Approach 20 min — long stepped approach with two fixed-rope sections; not suitable for a heavy pack
- Best season October and November, and late March to April. Early morning sessions only in the warm months.
- Published
- Updated
Arhi is where the island's hardest climbing lives. It is a steep, grey wall with a small number of extremely hard routes, a long approach, and a reputation for demanding conditions. Come here with a project and a rest day already planned.
The hard climbing
Routes here start around 8a and run to 9a. The style is powerful and bouldery: short, intense sections separated by good rests, with cruxes that depend on small pockets and precise body position rather than on endurance.
Because the wall is steep and the bolts are spaced for the grade, falls are long but clean. That is part of why the sector attracts people pushing their limit.
Conditions matter enormously
Arhi faces north-east and is shaded in the morning, which is the window that matters. Humidity from the sea rises through the day and by mid-afternoon the pockets can be damp to the touch. Serious attempts happen before 11:00.
The best months are October and November, when the sea is still warm but the air is cool and dry.
Being realistic about it
The approach takes twenty minutes of steps and two fixed-rope sections. Carrying a full rack of draws plus a rope plus water is a genuine effort. Many people visit once to look and then plan a proper trip around a specific project.
Routes · 4
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Hold types pocket · kneebar · lock-off
Open beta
Steep pocket climbing with a kneebar rest at half height that must be placed perfectly. The upper crux is three moves on two-finger pockets.
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Hold types tufa · pinch · undercling
Open beta
Tufa line on the left side. Chalk up thoroughly before the last section — there is no rest once you leave the undercling.
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Hold types jug · pocket · roof
Open beta
Friendly first 8a: steep on good holds with two solid rests. A sensible entry point to the sector.
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Hold types crimp · pocket · compression
Open beta
The island's benchmark. A fifteen-move boulder problem in the middle of a 25 m route, on pockets that only work in cold, dry air.
Crag ethics
Crag ethics
Hard routes here have been bolted by individual efforts over two decades. Do not add bolts, do not remove draws that are not yours, and do not chip pockets.
