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"Veteranski" - climbing on Matka
- a story by John Styles
18 months in Macedonia and probably a dozen or so visits to Matka, I am still surprised at the number of climbs I have not done. The family were on holiday without me, and I was left to wile away my evenings after work. Having successfully installed linux on the home computer and then played with it for another evening, it was now mid week and about time I got out to do something.
 Igor and Vesna my convivial climbing hosts here in Macedonia were now back from the Alps and I was keen to hear their tale. Some quick calls and texting and I’d arranged to meet with Igor after work for an evening hit on Matka.
There are two constraints to mid week after work climbing on Matka. As the evenings draw in you will probably finish in the dark, and to add insult to injury the ferry providing a shortcut across the lake to the bottom of the crag only runs at weekends. So you have an additional walk around the lake to the Sveti Nikola monastery above the crag, and then a descent back to the base at the lake side (and back out at the end). It’s all good exercise!
Standing at the base with the crag looming above us we were all geared up, but with no where to go. There is no Rockfax to Matka yet. There is a huge detailed photo at the café, on the other side of the lake. I’ve spent several happy cups of coffee studying it, choosing lines, before taking the ferry and launching onto a climb. But I rapidly lose any line and as Igor criticises, “mix my routes”. Oh dear I’ll just have to live with myself, but it would be good to have a more manageable and portable guide. A project for me before I leave Macedonia. Anyway, that’s all academic, for today I do have a portable and complete guide, Igor. He ticks off the routes in front of us that he knows I’ve done as we look for something new. Hang one, did he say Veteranski tick. Not true, I’d done the fourth pitch in some previous “mixed”, and if I may say so thoroughly enjoyable ascent, but not the rest. The decision was made.
 4 pitches of grade V / VI- (UIAA) on pitons with bolt belays. Diedres, overhangs, Difficult without the hidden holds if you can find them, and the inevitable crux on the final pitch, the psychological thriller of all the best climbs.
1pitch - We set off storming up the first pitch, following the little blue arrow pointing up from the Cyrillic name. Often the worst rock on the crag, it was better than usual, probably because it’s a little steeper. The route broadly follows the line of the right corner of the principle Matka pillar where it leans against the main wall, and hence the Diedres.
 2/3 pitches- The second pitch enters the corner proper. I must admit that I was a little concerned as Igor slowed on this pitch, and seemed to dither on a bulging section. Not a good sign, as he generally has the crag wired. When I reached the same point I could see a stunning line of pegs going straight through the bulge, Matka Desna, another day. Skirting right, the face diminishes as the bordering arête comes striking in from the right to join the top of the pillar. With a 60m rope you may make it to the top of the pillar, but for most it’s 2 pitches.
4 pitch - From the top of the pillar you now cross to the obvious bulging wall, spurning all easier angled rock to your right. The crux is pulling left though and round the bulge to reach easier angled rock above, but I find reaching the crux technically harder, as it is a series of off balance moves through oblique corners which are quite disconcerting. It is probably the thought of trying to make similar moves through the bulge which I found most daunting but fortunately holds appear. The angle begins to ease and eventually you are on the summit ridge.
This ridge is common to almost all of the climbs and gives you a real opportunity to have a look at the surrounding countryside and hills. Crags abound large and small and not a route in sight, there is plenty of scope for exploration, if that’s your thing! From just below the summit we scramble down to the monastery. We finished the technical stuff in the failing light, climbed the ridge to the monastery in gloom, we’ll now  descend in the dark.
That’s what I love about Macedonia. There can be few capitals of the world with such great after work opportunities. Igor as ever, was great company just back from the Alps. They’d not managed Red Sentinel, their main tick due to bad weather. They’d even enjoyed their resulting 5 days stuck in a tent. When bored they’d climb up to the nearest hut and listen to other foreigners whinging into their mobiles to some otherwise disconnected world. Apparently it’s very entertaining.
They were a little dejected at having spent so much time and money for so little climbing. Visa regimes and the depressed economy in Macedonia make foreign travel quite an investment for the average citizen. Back at my house Igor browsed my Piola Mont Blanc coffee table climbing guides. His eyes sparkled as future plans formed, and he popped the books into his sack to share with Vesna. I got the feeling that as Veteranski would see me again, so Chamonix would see them.
more info about rock/ice climbing in Macedonia: kontakt@alpinizam.org
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