Rocklands – How Far Are You

Luca Rinaldi, Gabriele Moroni, and Andrea and Marco Zanone spent June repeating some of the best and hardest lines in Rocklands, South Africa. Marco Zanone reports on the trip:

South Africa is a wild country, completely different from a European reality. At Rocklands, you are in the middle of nowhere and can enjoy the place in its purity.

The local people are very kind—climbers are welcome and respected. Even if they were not keen on climbing, they knew we were and every evening they asked us how our climbing day was.

The climbing days were long. For the first three weeks, we would get up at 9 a.m. and climb until the sun went down at 6 or 7 p.m. During the last week of the trip, we wanted to exploit the full the day since we had unfinished business in different locals. We climbed from early morning ‘til late evening and then had night sessions with headlamps.

A lot of boulder problems I climbed are imprinted in my heart. If I had to choose a favorite, I’d say Daniel Woods’ El Corazon (V13) and Sky (V13). The highest point of my trip was climbing Sky. This line represents perfection to me—three holds, far from each other, with only one way to do it. Everything had to be perfect: foot sequence, hand position, coordination and luck.

Hiking back to the car under orange and red painted skies, thinking about what I did that day, was an experience I will cherish for the rest of my life. I left a part of my heart down there, so I’ll be back one day.

Zanone climbed 25 8A (V11) or harder boulder problems on the trip.

Best Hits:

Golden Shadow (8B+ V14) ★★★

Sky (8B V13) ★★★★

El Corazon (8B V13) ★★★★

The Vice (8B V13) ★★★★

Mooiste Meise (8B V13) ★★★★

The Power of One (8B V13) ★★★★

The Power of Bar One (8A/+ V11/V12) ★★★★, flash

Black Shadow (8A+ V12) ★★★★

Armed Response (8A+ V12) ★★★

Oral Office (8A+ V12) ★★★

Tea with Elmarie (8A V11) ★★★, flash

Green Mamba (8A/+ V11/V12) ★★★★

Shosholoza (8A V11) ★★★★

The Amphiteather (8A V11) ★★★★