Domenico Intorre
Beauty
Sectors
Rock type
Limestone


The area to the southeast of Rome is littered with limestone faces, often already bolted with routes but still with much further potential. One could draw an imaginary triangle, the top is Italy's capital, the two sides are the main motorways and the base is Abruzzo: within it there are many old crags such as Pietrasecca Petrella Liri, Castellafiume but also many new recently bolted outcrops.

With this article I'll talk about Subiaco, famous for its Benedictine monasteries literally wedged into the limestone walls: to comprehend just how many cliffs are in this valley, it's worth noting that the Monastero di San Benedetto was defined by Pope Pius II as "the swallow's nest", and unfortunately climbing is banned on some of the crags for obvious "religious" reasons. With this in mind, it is worth remembering that famous assault of the St. Benedict monastery face by a small group of climbers led by Stefano Finocchi. The adventure was nipped in the bud by the Benedictine friars, angered by the inevitable "improper use of language" that followed every failed attempt ....

The quantity of limestone in the Aniene Valley never went unnoticed and in the eighties Stefano Finocchi and Andrea Di Bari bolted some lines at the "Piccola gemma" sector and the imposing "Parete del monastero". A few years later the two developed the "La galleria" sector which has recently been rebolted by Marco Nescatelli. It was in 1990 that Andrea Gallo, referring to Finocchi and Di Bari, wrote in his guidebook ".. for quite a while now those who love the Aniene Valley have turned their attentions elsewhere. The valley has therefore remained tranquil, in the wait for someone else to discover it." As things turned out, the valley had to wait for almost twenty years before interest in its rocks was rekindled, to be exact to the year 2005 when Tonio Pettinella and I started to bolt "Le scalette", a nice sector just a stone's throw from River Aniene.

The number of routes has increased more recently thanks to the new sector "La segheria" developed by Gianluca Mazzacano, Caesar Giuliani and myself. Largely ignored perhaps because of its less attractive appearance, we were eventually convinced to bolt it due to its favorable aspect: it can get really hot around here in summer and afternoon shade is a valuable commodity ! La segheria is composed of two large ledges and while it isn't necessary to tie in, you should most certainly be careful about what you're doing. This sector is definitely not suitable for families with children.
Access
From Rome drive east to Subiaco (70km). From Subiaco take the SS411 towards the Arcinazzo plateau. After about a km reach a fork, continue left along the road of Monasteries towards Jenne. After a few hundred metres turn off right onto a concrete road that descends to the river. The sector "Le scalette" is the first that springs into view, clearly visible from the road. The path begins with a characteristic concrete stairway; at the end of this follow the path rightwards to reach the crag in just a few minutes. For the sector "La segheria" continue driving for another 500 meters. No special instructions are needed as the cliff is located practically right above the road. Climb
Limestone pockets and tufas, mainly overhanging at the sector "Le scalette", very few technical routes. Old style climbing on a slightly overhanging face at the sector "La segheria". Gear
Gear: generous use of stainless steel bolts



Sectors

Le scalette - Il tetto
Routes
Name Height Beauty Difficulty
1 Cromofobia 16m 7a
2 Cromofobia ext 25m 8a+
3 Point break 16m 7a+
4 Point break extension 25m prog
5 Atomic cafè 16m 7b
6 Atomic cafè extension 25m prog
7 Twin 16m 5c
8 Calliphora 18m 6a+
9 Calliphora extension 28m prog
10 Platoon 30m 8b
11 Don’t touch me 30m 7b+
12 Ever green 27m 7c+
13 Mr. Dammitempo 27m 6b
14 Tropical dance 30m 7c
15 Make me happy 30m 7c
16 Rombo di tuono 30m 7b+
17 Shaka zulu 30m 7a+
18 Vai col liscio 28m 7a
19 Mille note 12m 6b+
20 Mille note extension 30m 6c
21 City 12m 6b
22 Capriccio 14m 6b
23 Capriccio extension 35m 7b+
24 Duracell 23m 6b+
25 Duracell extension 35m 7b
26 Api assassine 23m 6c
27 Api assassine extension 35m 7a+
28 Scalda budella 20m 6a
Le scalette - Fidanzatromo
Routes
Name Height Beauty Difficulty
29 Ringhio 18m 7a+
30 Rapsody 18m 6b+
31 Ammazzafidanzate 18m 6a+
32 Medioman 18m 6b+
33 Pickpoket 16m 6b
34 Ium! 12m 8a
35 Electra 20m 6b+
Le scalette - La Grotta
Routes
Name Height Beauty Difficulty
36 Chupito 15m 6b+
37 Nicchio 20m 6b+
38 No tu no 17m 6b+
39 Cicas 17m 6b+
40 Scivola scivola 17m 7a
41 Sbriciolona 15m 6a+
42 Er…colino 15m 6b
43 Promessi paperi 15m 5c
44 Caos caffè 20m 7a
45 Tequila Sunrise 18m 8a
46 Tequila light 15m 7b+
La Segheria
Routes
Name Height Beauty Difficulty
1 Kazzinger!!! 20m prog
2 Diffamazione 20m 7b+
3 Infinity 35m 7c
4 Ellegi 35m prog
5 Temporary road 25m 8a+
6 Celebre Guerriero 25m 7b+
7 Kosen Rufu 22m 7b
8 Sa Reina 22m prog
9 L’ape operaia 23m prog
10 I fancazzisti 25m prog
11 Ave Cesare 20m prog
12 Alta infedeltà 20m 6b
13 Quinto movimento 20m 7b+
14 La sacra sindrome 18m 7b
15 Supernatural 18m 8a
16 Pegasus 14m 6b+
18 Un ca.. e un barattolo 14m 6b
19 Ciokko blokko 12m 6a
20 Splatter 12m 7a
21 Sex toy 12m 6c
22 Vortex 12m 6b





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Beauty
Sectors
Rock type
Limestone


Crags in the same region


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