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Rock climbing at Els Ports Natural Park

The Els ports Natural Park is a wild and rugged mountain range in southern Catalunya, located to the south of Tarragona. The majority of the rock climbing at Els Ports is all about big wall Trad routes on conglomerate rock, along with some single pitch sport routes on limestone rock.

The big wall routes are located near the villages of Horta de Sant Joan, Arnes and Penaroja de Tastavins as shown on the map opposite. These routes are between 120m and 300m high, climbing on big knobbly conglomerate rock, with deep holes. Generally the crux of these routes are through bulges that need to climbed with decision and power that are separated by easier slabby sections.

Els Ports Rock Climbing Areas
No	Crag Name	Type of Climbing	Type of Rock	Single or Multi-pitch	Max Height
1	La Solana de les Portes	Sport	Limestone	Single	20m
2	Comuns de L'Estret	Sport	Limestone	Single	30m
3	Pont Nou	Sport	Limestone	Single	25m
4	Calzada Romana	Sport	Limestone	Single	35m
5	Roques de Benet	Trad	Conglomerate	Multi-pitch	245m
6	Gronses	Trad	Conglomerate	Multi-pitch	250m
7	Estrets	Trad & Sport	Conglomerate	Multi-pitch	295m
8	Les Valls	Trad	Conglomerate	Multi-pitch	270m
9	Roques del Masmut	Trad	Conglomerate	Multi-pitch	215m

Map of the rock climbing areas in the Els Ports Natural Park

The above information has been extracted from the Els Ports Rock Climbs Guidebook.

Accessed via the village of Horta de Sant Joan, the crag of Roques de Benet stands out as the true landmark of the Els Ports rugged landscape. The crag is unmistakeable against the skyline, with its big, steep walls. Along with its northern aspect, the climbing here is wild, trad to the core and intimidating. Roques de Benet is also home to the best aid climbing in the Els Ports area.

The crags of Gronses, Estrets, and Les Valls are accessed via the village of Arnes. Due to their easy access, they are the most popular climbing destinations in the Els Ports Natural Park. There are even some bolted multi-pitch routes at Estrets that require very little commitment.

The best climbing area in Els Ports Natural Park is the Roques del Masmut, accessed via the village of Penaroja de Tastavins. The crag is series of steep, big calibre conglomerate spires positioned side by side, similar to that found at Montserrat. The climbing is pure trad across a wide range of grades, with routes up to 215m high.

The best sport climbing in Els Ports is found at Calzada Romana near the village of Beceite, plus there are a couple of sport crags near the village of Prat de Comte. All the sport climbing at Els Ports is on limestone rock and is very close to the road, making it very convenient.

Rock climbing at Els Ports is possible all the year round, though some summer days can be really too hot and windy winter days too cold to climb comfortably.

The best rock climbing guidebook for the Els Ports Natural Park is called “Els Ports Rock Climbs Guidebook” that can be bought from our shop.