Telendos South Face (left of the Crescendo cave, just right of Wild Country) · Kalymnos & Telendos · Greece
Bail not documentedBolting confidence: high
Eleven pitches up the south face of Telendos on extraordinarily sculpted rock, finishing with a 50 m wall of flint-like knobs. Two 6b+ pitches low down are the cruxes and the grades are widely called friendly. With the boat or coastal walk in and the walk off over the island, it makes a full and memorable day.
The route
Eterna is the harder neighbour of Wild Country on the Telendos south face and several camptocamp parties name it their favourite route on the island. It alternates harder pitches (two at 6b+, two at 6b, a 6a+ and a 6a) with easy linking pitches, on rock that gets more sculpted the higher you go. The route is on glue-in bolts throughout and the spacing is close, so it suits a team at the top of the old 5a to 6b range looking for a step up. Repeat parties say the grades are generous, especially at the end, with one distinct hard move in the first 6b+. Several pitches have their own names, such as 'Finding the faith' and 'The promised land'.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 5b | – | Sculpted slab. |
| P2 | 6b+ | – | 'Finding the faith'. A traverse, then a fine vertical wall on small holds. The one distinct hard move of the route is here (2019 report). |
| P3 | 5c | – | Vertical wall. |
| P4 | 4b | – | Easy linking pitch. |
| P5 | 5c | – | No description published. |
| P6 | 6a+ | – | 'Stones from heaven'. A vertical wall studded with flint-like knobs. |
| P7 | 6b+ | – | 'Just like home'. Ends at a very comfortable belay. |
| P8 | 6a | – | 'Snake rib'. Varied: a small overhang, a mantel and a traverse. |
| P9 | 4c | – | Easy linking pitch. |
| P10 | 6b | – | Vertical wall. |
| P11 | 6b | 50 m | 'The promised land'. A superb vertical wall, incredibly sculpted, with a few bulges. An intermediate belay is possible. |
Getting there
Base yourself in Masouri or Myrties on Kalymnos. Small ferries cross from Myrties to Telendos about every half hour until around midnight (camptocamp). You can also arrange a boat to drop you below the south face: an April 2026 party arrived that way and enjoyed the trip round the island. Agree the price and any pick-up with the boatman beforehand.
From Telendos harbour follow the seafront south for about 100 m, then before the end of the village take an alley that climbs away from the shore and crosses towards Hochlakas beach. Above the beach take the obvious path on the right, go through a gate and follow the marked path along the coast (camptocamp mentions blue marks). The wall is easy to recognise once you pass below the Crescendo cave; leave the path there and walk up to the cliff. Eterna starts a little left of the cave, where the cliff forms a fold, just right of Wild Country. The name is written at the foot. Allow 1 hour. A 2025 party advises staying on the lower path and spotting the scooped start from it with the guidebook sketch. You can also be dropped by boat below the Crescendo cliffs.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Point from Mountain Project area 107264272 (Multipitch routes)
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: 37.00697, 26.90213 (crag)
Getting down
Walk off, 1.5 to 2 hours. From the top of the route cross the plateau northwards, following cairns, until you reach the edge of the north face. Follow that edge east to a cairned path that descends gently on the north side; it is easy to find. The path leads to the chapel of St Constantine, then continues down to the coastal path on the north side of the island, which you follow back to Telendos harbour.
Retreat
Bail not documented
Retreat is not documented. Every source describes a walk-off from the top and none mentions abseiling the route. The belays are on glue-in bolts and the bolting is close, which would help, but pitch lengths are unpublished apart from the 50 m last pitch.
Partly inferred from the route facts
Safety
Sun and weather
South facing, from near sea level to the 458 m summit plateau. In June 2016 the route was in shade until about 10:00 and it was getting hot on the descent. Reports from April, May and October describe good conditions; a 2026 party found it warm with some wind on 28 April. The rock is excellent throughout.
Sun on the wall · S-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.
Climate figures for Kalymnos & Telendos are not available yet
What to carry
Quickdraws only; the number is not published, but the last pitch is 50 m, so carry plenty. Pitch lengths other than the last are not published either. Because the descent is on foot a single rope works: a 2023 party used an 80 m single and a 2026 party a very long rope, both linking pitches. Helmet.
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 Eterna.
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).
5c+6 pitches175 m
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 11 pitches
Morocco · Taghia
Ten pitches of even 6b and 6b+ on compact rock ten minutes from the gîtes, mostly technical slab and wall climbing on your feet, with a 50 m sixth pitch on vertical edges that everyone singles out. It is among the most accessible long routes at Taghia, in the shade for most of the day, and a little polished low down.
6b+10 pitches330 m
Read the cautions
Austria · Gastein (Hohe Tauern)
Ten pitches of varied climbing on good rock, mostly slabs with some cracks and steeper passages. Largely UIAA 5 with a few moves of 6 and three spots of 7 that go at 6+ A0. A short walk-in and a rigged abseil line.
6b+10 pitches350 m
France · Aravis
A ten-pitch line to the summit of the Pointe Percée, the high point of the Aravis, following green hangers up the cool north-west face. Seven long pitches, mostly easy with a 6a+ wall, reach the notch of the Arête du Doigt; three independent pitches finish it, including a memorable slab traverse of 6b+ that can be aided on the bolts.
6b+10 pitches400 m
Read the cautions
France · Verdon
A modern (2019) line up a staircase of limestone pillars above the Chalet de la Maline, with short walking links between them. Harder than its old 6a grade suggests: recent parties report obligatory 6a+/6b moves on the first three pitches, and the last pitch is 6b+ or A0.
6b+10 pitches300 m
Read the cautions
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.