27/11/2025
Week #2 Datca: My Mediterranean Dream
The most popular/repeated routes F8a at Can Baba is Mediterranean Dream, c.30m of overhanging golden-coloured goodness on the right wall of the cave. After a brief inspection during my 2024 visit I decided to make MD one of my main goals for 2025. If you forgive the indulgence, I’ll share some details in case anyone is curious…
As much as possible my preparation for this trip – specifically the final couple of months before leaving - was targeted towards this route. As MD is a varied pitch, route specific training – such as tufa or bespoke boulder problems – weren’t a high priority in my mind; strength, strength/power endurance and general endurance were my focus instead. Bouts of finger boarding, bouldering, boulder triples/circuits as well as sessions doing general extended climbing at low intensity were slotted in between outdoor performance sessions whilst ‘working’ to complete a UK goal – an extended (40 move) boulder mag-lime traverse.
Long story short, once in Datca I jumped straight onto MD, broke it down into chunks, focused on each in turn and then linked them. Fairly quickly (for me), it all came together and I redpointed the route at my first proper attempt. As my main, and hardest goal for the year it was, I can say, particularly satisfying to get the tick – the first at the grade for me since 2018.
Now for the admissions! I’d be the first to agree that via the tall(er) person’s variant MD is definitely easier. Nor would I dispute that MD (using said method) is very soft for the grade; certainly compared to Peak standards. In short, MD not only suits my climbing style it’s a perfect soft holiday graded route!
Continued in comments…
Pix 1: Kevin Avery deploying the tall(er)-person’s beta on the initial boulder on the crucial headwall of Mediterranean Dream.
Pix 2-5: Kevin Avery pulling into and through the second headwall boulder.
