If you missed Part 1, it’s worth checking here:

San Vito Lo Capo – Scogliera Di Salinella. Part 1: North to Campsite

Continuing our north to south traverse of Scogliera Di Salinella – next stop: South – heading right from the campsite (past the donkey enclosure and a couple of fierce looking but well-behaved dogs) the crags rear up again. You’ve got to credit the campsite owners – they are super-welcoming to climbers, even if they aren’t staying on the site. There’s a dedicated access route for visitors and a nicely signed path through the site.

Amphitheatre is the first major sector you come to, bounded on its left by a huge leaning cave system.

In Summe Gelungen, 6b, takes a wild trip up to the apex of the cave before a bit of subterranean tunnelling sees you pop out of the top of the crag. Fun!

Further right, Surprise, 6c, does indeed live up to its name.

We skipped Pipeline and Retrobolter (two to come back for) but Helen did enjoy Baying for Blood, 6a, on Razorhead.

Pineta is one of the taller chunks of crag. Spigolo, 6a, being well worth its 3*s

Fakirella, 6c of the next Via Rossa sector, has to be a contender for the “tried hard but no cigar” route. So sharp!

Here’s Jim on the superb Traumpfeiler, 6a

Issulida Tower proved a fine choice for a showery day, with a few all-weather routes tucked into a cave. Here’s Jim on Sole Mio, a decent but slippery 6a

… and Helan on the magnificent tufa romp of The Celestial Way of the Dead Cow, 5a

I just managed to grab an ascent of Papa’s Project, 6c, up the left edge of the cave, before the rain stopped play.

The adjacent Issulida Cave has a bunch of strong lines, including one of the best I did in the area: Toro Rosso, 6c, is well worth it’s 3*s, tackling the full height of central red wall in the shot below.

Next up is Sector Seagull. Here’s Helen on I Did It My Way, 5c

… and the huge adventure of Erik G, 5c. You can just about make her out waving, still a few bolts from the lower off.

I had a massive wrestling match with Josef’s Crack, 6c+. Steep!

That wraps up a whistle-stop summary of our experience of the climbing along this 4km seaside cliff. In total we did routes on around 20 sectors (out of more than 50) on about ten climbing days. Suffice to say there’s tonnes to come back for!

Trip planning:

Weather: We visited in the first couple of weeks in February. Temperatures were mid to high teens, and we were more often in shorts than duvets – but both saw action. The forecast ahead of our arrival didn’t look too promising, with quite a lot of showers, but reality was much better. The prevailing weather seems to be blowing in from the west, and the higher ground of Monte Cofano seems to attract most of it (we’d often find ourselves gazing out into thunderous blackness whilst basking in sun on the crag). Any rain that fell was mostly overnight, and things dry up remarkably quickly. While we did take a couple of rest days in the rain, we could / would have managed token routes on both if we’d been under the cosh on a one-week trip (and for the strong, there are plenty of perma-dry steep sectors on Scogliera and the vicinity). Of course there are no guarantees, but it seems as reliable a winter destination as say Greece, but possibly not quite matching the Blanca.

Conditions: The cliff faces mostly west, veering around to a more southerly aspect, so there’s plenty of sun to be had, with options for shade if you get an early start. Plenty more shady climbing on the surrounding crags, though most of it is harder. Being close to the sea, there can be a bit of early smegginess, especially on the white rock (think Gogarth Main Cliff – though that’s the only similarity) but there are plenty of prickly routes to choose whilst any condensation burns off. In full sun, not surprisingly, it’s an oven, with the occasional breeze to compensate. Generally speaking, the routes aren’t over-polished though there is noticeable “curse of the 3*s” effect on some of the routes highlighted in the Rockfax.

Accommodation: Camping El Bahira must be one of the most convenient bases anywhere in world climbing. Hundreds of routes within a 10mins walk (some within 2mins!) It’s not flash, but it is friendly and functional, and good value (about £16 a night for an extended stay if you have the ACSI Card). You could easily have a no-car trip here (flying into Palermo and getting a bus for the 90mins transfer) though you’d be hitching for shopping options. They also have cabins / caravans for rent.

San Vito Lo Capo is a prosperous seaside tourist town, with plenty of Airbnb and other accommodation. No doubt bustling in season, though the winter scene is pretty muted. We found a total of three open restaurants (all recommended!) Another top eating tip is the cafe at the nearby Conad supermarket – the Focaccia is perfect crag food, and the freshly cooked takeaway meals are delicious.

We’ll certainly be back – here’s a moody orange sunset on the southern sectors by way of a reminder.