Kalymnos – Trois Ilots (Middle), above Myrties · Kalymnos & Telendos · Greece
Bail with caveatsBolting confidence: medium
Technical and sustained, with five varied climbing pitches of 6a+ to 6b: a pocketed slab, a surprising chimney hidden behind a pillar, a thin vertical pillar and a long steepening wall to a bulge. Quiet compared with the single pitches below, and in shade until about 12:30.
The route
Albatros is one of several multi-pitch routes that Claude Idoux bolted to the top of the Trois Ilots cliff above Myrties, next to Les Copains d'Abord and Modeste. It is the most sustained of them at the grade: three of the five climbing pitches are 6b, with an obligatory grade of 6a. The second pitch is the curiosity, a chimney on the back of a detached pillar that you cannot see from the first belay. The top section climbs above popular single-pitch routes, so loose rock on the ledges matters.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 6a+ | 30 m | A long slab sculpted with pockets, on the right-hand side of the sector. The belay does not show where the route goes next. |
| P2 | 6b | 20 m | Climb a few metres to a ledge and follow the fixed hand-line right, behind a huge block, into a hidden cleft. The pitch climbs the chimney on the back of the pillar to an anchor on its top. Ignore the bolt directly above the first belay. |
| P3 | 6b | 30 m | A vertical pillar: thin, sustained and continuous. |
| P4 | walk | 25 m | A walking transition. The next belay is at the foot of the summit wall, a little to the left. |
| P5 | 6b | 35 m | A magnificent pitch that steepens steadily to a final bulge; sustained in the upper part. |
| P6 | 6a+ | 15 m | A short, athletic overhang on big holds to the summit platform. |
Getting there
Base yourself in Masouri or Myrties on the west coast of Kalymnos, reached by ferry from Kos (the nearest airport) to Pothia. Most climbers hire a scooter; buses also run from Pothia through Masouri. Trois Ilots is part of the Gerakios group of cliffs above Myrties. Take the upper, one-way road from Myrties towards Armeos and park just before or just after the first big right-hand bend. The best path starts to the right (south) of the house there.
About 20 min. Follow the surfaced track, which soon becomes a path, to the obvious cliff, closing the goat gates behind you. Trois Ilots Middle is a couple of minutes uphill and south-west of the point where the path meets the cliff. Albatros is one of the right-most routes on the wall; route names are painted on the rock.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Point from camptocamp waypoint 1111248
Contains the route point. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.
Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.
Coordinates: 36.99020, 26.93850 (crag)
Getting down
Most parties walk off. From the summit platform cross the plateau, drop into a small gorge and pass in front of the Ourania sectors, then keep following the cliff to the right without losing much height. A col lets you cross back to the side you started from, and you follow the foot of the cliff to the approach path. The alternative is four abseils down Modeste, about 20 m to the right of the summit platform as you face out. Two parties advise against it: the upper pitches hold rubble and sharp ledges where ropes snag, and parties abseiling Modeste in 2019 got ropes stuck.
Retreat
Bail with caveats
From the top you can abseil the neighbouring route Modeste in four abseils, but ropes snag on sharp ledges and parties advise walking off instead. Retreat from part-way up Albatros itself is not described by any source.
Partly inferred from the route facts
Safety
Sun and weather
South-west facing. In mid-May 2025 the route was in shade until about 12:30; Mountain Project gives noon to 12:30 for the sector. The rock is sharp. The plateau walk-off is in full sun but scenic.
Sun on the wall · SW-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Greek time), for the 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 13 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 21 | 24 | 26 | 27 | 25 | 21 | 18 | 15 |
| Mean daily low °C | 10 | 10 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 21 | 23 | 24 | 21 | 18 | 15 | 12 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 12 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 13 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 136 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis. Temperatures are adjusted to the height of the crag; rain comes from a grid cell of about 10 to 25 km, and summer highs on sea cliffs can read a few degrees low. The wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
What to carry
Quickdraws only; no source gives a number, so take enough for a 35 m pitch. No rope length is published. A single rope is enough for the climbing and the walk-off. Helmet essential.
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to Albatros.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
Greece · Kalymnos & Telendos
The first route on the wall (Odermatt and Keller, 2008), climbing a long, exposed line on sharp, grippy rock right of the huge roof. The lower pitches are easy for the grade. The two 6a cruxes are a short odd corner over a small roof and a traverse high up, and they come with big exposure. Pitches are short, so you can link them with long draws.
6a11 pitches250 m
Greece · Kalymnos & Telendos
A sustained, varied line on sculpted limestone. It starts with an easy slab and builds to slightly overhanging jugs with huge exposure on the top pitch. Mountain Project and camptocamp grade the crux 6a+ (Rockfax says 6a). With a 70 m rope you can link several pairs of pitches.
6a9 pitches265 m
Greece · Kalymnos & Telendos
Kalymnos's best-known introduction to multi-pitch: a series of steps and slabs, always with plenty of holds, finishing on top of the Grande Grotta. The upper pitches feel very exposed. Real pitch lengths are shorter than the guidebook says (20–25 m).
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Committing
Greece · Kalymnos & Telendos
Thin moves over small bulges, stemming and big jugs on 'cauliflower' limestone. The crux is P6, which ends at a hanging belay. Mountain Project gives the pitches in YDS only (5.8–5.10b), so French pitch grades are not listed; the overall grade is 5.10b (6a+), and some listings give 6b. You can link P3–P4 and P5–P6.
6a+7 pitches152 m
Read the cautions
Around 6b · about 6 pitches
France · Gorges de la Jonte
One of the longest routes in the gorge and the line that names its sub-sector: six varied pitches with a steep grey wall of holds at 6a and a slabbier 6b where the holds thin out at the top. Grades are stiff and you climb between the bolts.
6b6 pitches130 m
Read the cautions
Italy · Aosta Valley
The easiest line on the Pilastro Lomasti and still a serious step up from the neighbouring Paretone: six pitches of steep, technical slab on pockets and small edges, never below 6a. The fourth pitch follows a fine diagonal crack. The rock is exceptional and the grades are firm.
6b6 pitches190 m
Spain · El Chorro
A good continuation above Nitti. Highlights are a short, thin 6b slab on P4 and a pumpy steep start to the final 6a+ pitch.
6b6 pitches138 m
Read the cautions
France · Dentelles de Montmirail
The best long outing on the Clapis south face: six pitches that start up easy slabs beside Vistemboir and then slant left across the orange ledges of the upper wall, with a horizontal crack traverse, a thin traverse on rough 'pebbledash' rock and a short, fierce 6b to finish. Technical climbing on very sculpted rock with plenty of atmosphere for a 150 m wall.
6b6 pitches150 m
Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.