Manikia – Lower Valley, Abantes Buttress (right edge) · Manikia (Evia) · Greece
Bail with caveatsBolting confidence: medium
Technical crimping on vertical and gently overhanging limestone up the right edge of a clean, remote wall: two long 6c+ pitches, a roof on hidden jugs and an exposed ridge to finish on a real summit. In the shade all morning, with an approach of over an hour and nobody else around.
The route
Geia Sas Arete (the name is the Greek greeting) follows the right edge of the Abantes Buttress, a strikingly clean wall on the south side of Manikia's Lower Valley. It is 160 m long in five pitches, with the difficulty concentrated in pitches 1 and 3, both 40 m and 6c+; the authors call the third a proud onsight for any 6c+ climber. The top 40 m are easy and feel like an alpine ridge. It is the most serious outing of the three Manikia additions: a long walk in, a walk-off, and a single source written by the first ascensionists.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Bolts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 6c+ | 40 m | 15 bolts | Warm-up jugs up a rock scar lead to tricky pockets and a no-hands rest. Follow the groove out left through sustained 6b climbing to a short, sharp crux and a deep pocket, then more 6b to a big comfortable ledge. |
| P2 | 5c | 20 m | 6 bolts | Easy cracks and face climbing with some shattered rock to a good stance. Can be linked with pitch 1 with extra quickdraws. |
| P3 | 6c+ | 40 m | 18 bolts | A long pitch with two distinct cruxes separated by 6b climbing and a couple of good rests: a few steep jugs and a great deal of technical crimping. Belay at a modest stance out left. |
| P4 | 6a+ | 40 m | 10 bolts | Through an orange roof on hidden jugs and pinches, then up the airy broken arête to a huge ledge. |
| P5 | 5a | 20 m | 6 bolts | An exposed ridge to the summit and a belay on a small ledge. |
Getting there
Manikia and Vrysi are neighbouring villages near Kymi on the island of Evia, about 160 km and 2.5 to 3 h by car from Athens via the Chalkida bridge. A car is needed. Park at the Lower Valley parking at 38.53740, 24.04107 (given on Mountain Project and mapped in OpenStreetMap).
1 to 1.5 h, about 2.2 km. Walk down the dirt road and follow cairns round a small olive grove. Soon after, turn right at a fork on flat ground and follow cairns past many crags along the north side of the mountain; this is most of the walk. Continue past the To Reloi sector and across another scree field. At the next fork go uphill, more or less following the cliff line and a few cairns, to the buttress. The route starts at its right edge, left of a left-facing corner.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
Parking given on Mountain Project; OpenStreetMap parking node 10149048237
Point from Mountain Project area 122382878 (Abantes Buttress)
Contains the route point and parking. 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: 38.53698, 24.02558 (crag) · Parking: 38.53740, 24.04107
Getting down
Walk off from the summit following cairns; allow about 1 h. Abseiling the route is possible with an 80 m rope, but the authors warn it could be difficult from above pitch 5 because the rope may catch on rock horns along the ridge.
Retreat
Bail with caveats
The first ascensionists say the route can be abseiled with an 80 m rope, with a risk of the rope snagging on horns if you start from above pitch 5. Belays are on ledges or stances with bolts.
Safety
Sun and weather
The wall is on the south side of the valley and stays in the shade all morning; the sun arrives in the early afternoon. That suits warm spring and autumn days and makes it cold in midwinter. The season given here is inferred from that, not stated by the source.
Sun on the wall
No estimate: the wall's aspect is not recorded for this route.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 9 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 21 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 24 | 19 | 15 | 11 |
| Mean daily low °C | 4 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 13 | 18 | 20 | 21 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 6 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 11 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 11 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 432 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
18 quickdraws and an 80 m rope (first ascensionists). A few more quickdraws if you link pitches 1 and 2. Head torch for the walk out. 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 Geia Sas Arete.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
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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.
