Spain · El Chorro
Amptrax
The absolute El Chorro classic: a physical, sustained line that feels tough for the grade, with a 6a traverse right under the roof. Polished in places from heavy traffic.
6a9 pitches182 m
El Corazón que no Siente
Frontales · El Chorro · Spain
Easy to bailBolting confidence: high
Four pitches in a row at 6b+ to 6c+ on extremely rough limestone: technical water-pocket moves that are hard to read, then an athletic pitch up easy tufas to a hard pull over an overhang. Quiet and steep, with 6b+ obligatory.
- Hardest pitch
- 6c+
- Pitches
- 7
- Length
- 200 m
- Approach
- 15 min
- Aspect
- S
- South-facing
- Rope
- –
The route
Overview
A sustained sport route on the Frontales wall, the leftmost line leaving a ledge reached by an easy scramble. After a grade V warm-up, pitches 2 to 5 run 6b+, 6c+, 6c, 6c+ with barely a rest. The moves are technical and blind on water pockets low down and more athletic higher up. A March 2024 party had the route to themselves, called it very well equipped and abseiled from the top of pitch 6 in half an hour.
In pictures
Photos
On the routePitch 4 (6c) of El Corazón que no Siente, Frontales.Photo: Boyaudezèbre (camptocamp.org) · CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 On the routeFollowing pitch 5 of El Corazón que no Siente on compact grey limestone.Photo: Boyaudezèbre (camptocamp.org) · CC BY-NC-ND 3.0
The climbing
Pitch by pitch
5a6b+6c+6c6c+6a+3
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 5a | 35 m | Straight up to the belay right of the tree. Given V. |
| P2 | 6b+ | 20 m | The line heads slightly left. |
| P3 | 6c+ | 20 m | Technical moves on water pockets that are hard to read. |
| P4 | 6c | 30 m | A hard move at the start, then technical climbing on small holds. |
| P5 | 6c+ | 35 m | Athletic: fine, easy tufas, then a hard boulder move to pass the overhang. This move is the 6b+ obligatory section. |
| P6 | 6a+ | 30 m | A good pitch that takes some reading. |
| P7 | 3 | 35 m | Easy ground to the top. Optional; the 2024 party stopped below it. |
Getting there
Approach
To the parking
El Chorro village is the base, about 45 minutes by car from Málaga. A hire car is the easiest option; trains run from Málaga María Zambrano to Álora and about once a day to El Chorro itself. The camptocamp parties parked at the upper car park above the village (camptocamp waypoint 'Parking haut El Chorro'). A March 2024 report notes that motor vehicles are supposedly not allowed inside the park, although in practice people were parking there without trouble; obey any signs you find.
On foot · about 15 min
About 15 minutes from the upper car park. Follow the track down towards the wall; at a hairpin bend take the cairned path to the base. Scramble up stepped rock (grade II) trending right to a ledge. The route starts at a belay without a chain and is the line furthest left.
Finding the route · 1 photo
OverviewEl Chorro from the air: the village and the lower reservoir are at bottom right, the Gaitanes gorge is the cleft left of centre, and the Frontales are the sunlit south-facing walls rising above the pine forest between the two. The upper car park and the track towards the wall lie between the village and the wall.Photo: Jakub Botwicz · CC BY-SA 3.0
Map of the walk-in
- Crag
- Parking
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
36.90949, -4.75580
Upper car park, camptocamp waypoint 1630126
Point from Mountain Project area 106828258 (Frontales)
For your phone or watch
Download GPX
Contains the route point and parking. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.
Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.
Coordinates: 36.91235, -4.75985 (crag) · Parking: 36.90949, -4.75580
Getting down
Descent
Abseil the route or walk off. The 2024 party abseiled from the top of pitch 6 and reached the ground in 30 minutes. Camptocamp warns that abseiling may not be possible from the top of pitch 7 (marked 'to be checked'), in which case you walk off from the top.
Retreat
Bailing off the route
Easy to bail
A 2024 party abseiled the face from the top of pitch 6 without reported trouble, so retreat from pitch 6 or below is the documented way down. Rope lengths are not given. Above pitch 6 the abseil is unconfirmed and you should plan to top out and walk.
- Retreat from
- Top of pitch 6 and, by implication, the belays below it.
- Point of no return
- Starting pitch 7: camptocamp warns you may not be able to abseil from its top.
- Carry
- Two ropes (pitches are up to 35 m). Lengths needed are not stated.
- Basis
- Part stated, part inferredAbseil from pitch 6 is stated in a 2024 trip report; the rope requirement is inferred from pitch lengths.
Partly inferred from the route facts
Safety
Hazards
- 6b+ obligatory at the overhang on pitch 5.
- If you climb the last easy pitch you may have to walk off: the abseil from the top is unconfirmed.
- The start belay on the ledge has no chain.
- Heat on sunny days.
Sun and weather
Conditions
South-facing and sunny, so best from October to May and on cool or cloudy days. Both March 2024 parties wanted cloud or wind to make the wall bearable, and one says it gets really hot from about 11:00. The rock is very rough and not polished. The 2024 party started at 08:30 under cloud with a light wind and called those conditions essential.
Usual season · Jan to Apr, Oct to Dec
JFMAMJJASOND
Sun on the wall · S-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
- January (usual season): not yet worked out
- February (usual season): not yet worked out
- March (usual season): not yet worked out
- April (usual season): not yet worked out
- May: not yet worked out
- June: not yet worked out
- July: not yet worked out
- August: not yet worked out
- September: not yet worked out
- October (usual season): not yet worked out
- November (usual season): not yet worked out
- December (usual season): not yet worked out
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Central European time), for the 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan (usual season) | Feb (usual season) | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec (usual season) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 14 | 15 | 17 | 20 | 24 | 29 | 32 | 32 | 27 | 23 | 17 | 15 |
| Mean daily low °C | 5 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 17 | 14 | 9 | 7 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 7 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 321 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis. Temperatures are adjusted to the height of the crag; rain comes from a grid cell of about 10 to 25 km, and summer highs on sea cliffs can read a few degrees low. The wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
What to carry
Gear
No source gives a quickdraw count or rope length for the abseils; pitches are up to 35 m, so take two ropes of at least 50 m if you plan to abseil. Helmet.
Checklist
- Quickdraws
- Number not given in the sources
- Rope
- Length not given in the sources
- Helmet
- One each
- Abseil device and prusik
- The descent or the retreat involves abseiling
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
Reader reports
Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to El Corazón que no Siente.
Worth knowing
Tips
- The 2024 party took 3 hours from the start to the top of pitch 6.
- Apocalipsis starts from the same ledge system and makes a natural second route.
Open questions
Where sources disagree
- Only camptocamp could be read: the route page and one trip report come from the same party.
- The abseil sequence and rope lengths are not published. The route page flags the top abseil as uncertain.
Provenance
Sources
- Camptocamp – El Chorro: El Corazon que no sienteUsed for: pitch grades and lengths, approach, descent warning, equipment rating
- Camptocamp – trip report, 21 March 2024Used for: equipment quality, obligatory grade, abseil from pitch 6, timings
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Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.