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Seasonality
Description
Karavi is located on the west side of Imittos mountain above Vyronas borough, overlooking Athens. It used to serve as rock quarry back in ancient times, something that is obvious from the signs of the carving mining technique. Although it is a small in height crag, up to 15 meters high, it offers very beautiful and technically demanding climbing in solid limestone. The name Karavi was given by the climbers due to a characteristic edge (route 20) that beetles over the rest of the rock and resembles a ship (Karavi means ship in Greek). Constitutes one of the oldest rock climbing single pitch crags in Athens and therefore the rating of the routes is, for the most part, strict. During crag’s maintenance, that took place in 2012, the "exposed climbing" character of the crag was preserved, although several enhancements were implemented to the equipment in order to reduce the risk of serious injury in case of falling. The best season to climb in Karavi is during spring and autumn. During summer, the routes are covered in shade only in the early morning hours, while in winter, the crag is quite cold and wet.
Approach
By car, use the destination «Monastery of St. George Koutalas» in Google Maps. A road barrier, located in front of the monastery, indicates the highest point you can reach by car. Park your car there and then walk approximately 15 to 20 minutes to approach the crag (use the destination "Karavi Climbing Crag” in Google maps).
Ethic
History
In 1988, George Drazinos and George Georgakopoulos, climb routes 1, 2, 5, 7, 25, 26 and 27. In the following years, 1989-1991, Costas Tsouklidis, Giorgos Makris, Giorgos Voutyropoulos, Dimitris Bakalis & Phaethonas Stathis climb routes 3, 4, 6, 14 , 20 and 24. In 1991, Vassilis Mitsios climbs routes 28 and 29. In 1992 Bakalis and Titopoulos climb routes 16, 17, 18 and 22. In 1993, Titopoulos and Giannis Zacharakis climb routes 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15 and 23. In 1994, Voutyropoulos climbs route 19. By that time, routes were climbed either by using trad climbing equipment or top-rope (there is no further information). In 1997, Dionisis Stravogenis and Stefanos Moutzouvis equip several of the existing routes with bolts. The same year, Stravogenis and Moutzouvis set and climb routes 2a, 5a, 6a, 16a and 19a. In 2003 Titopoulos and Bakalis correct the bolting on routes 8, 9, 10, 12 and 20 and equip with bolts routes 16, 17, 22 and 23. In 2005, Christos Tsoutsias climbs route 21 using preset trad climbing equipment and rates it as VIII + (7b). In 2006 Dimitris Mavropoulos and Dimitris Aivazidis equip the lower-offs of most routes with 2 bolts connected with a chain and one non-removable lowering carabiner. In 2010, Yiannis Petromianos sets and climb routes 13a and 31 and set route 30. In 2011, Nikos Alexiou set route 17a. In 2012 the crag is getting maintained within the framework of the Hellenic’s Federation of Mountainiring and Climbing plan for the maintenance of the climbing crags of Greece by Petromianos (maintenance manager), Sotiris Sotiriou, Manolis Foundoulakis, Eirini Tsape, Pavlos Asteriou, Anna Tziomaki and Dionisis Mindrinos. With the consent of the climbers who have first climbed the routes, all the unsafe bolts are removed and all the routes are re-equipped. In the same year, Petromianos, Asteriou and Manthos Prelorentzos set and climb route 27a.
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