Guest post by Brandon Villatoro (Travel Experta’s son)
Amatitlan and Xela are the biggest and most recommended places for climbing in Guatemala. I will mainly tell you my experience of Amatitlan because I have never been to Xela. But will be going soon, so stay tuned.
Amatitlan Lake Rock Climbing Review
Amatitlan is a very big lake (Lake Amatitlan) located south of Guatemala City in the Solola department, about thirty minutes from there. Once you arrive at the spot of the entrance to the rock, it is about a ten-minute hike to the first sector.
The amatitlan rock is split up into six distinct sectors. It’s easy to get around, there are signs that direct you to the different sectors of choice.
Sector 6 has some of the most famous and hardest climbing routes of Amatitlan. Altogether there are around ten routes to choose from.
Sector 6 is also really famous because the only way to get to Sector 6 is climbing through a cave called La Chimenea. It is about seven meters tall, not really hard, but the fun of it is climbing through a chimney.
The rock in Amatitlan is mostly edges, crimps with some pockets.
In order to climb in Amatitlan, you need to have good finger strength and good technique because the holds are mostly crimped so using your feet correctly is super important.
There are a few routes with pockets. And a ton of crack climbing. But the cracks here are either really good with edges or very sloppy. When the cracks are sloppy the routes are usually hardcore.
Related Read: Rock Climbing Equipment You Need
Sundays are the best days to go because all the climbers go on Sundays. One great thing about climbing in Guatemala is the community. It’s a small, but welcoming, fun group. And when you finish climbing, you can go down to Belay Partners Hostel to eat and hang out and talk climbing.
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