La Visera, Mallos de Riglos · Riglos & Agüero (Mallos) · Spain
Read the cautionsCommittingBolting confidence: high
The other great line of the Visera, on a concave wall that leans further out the higher you go. Six pitches at 6a to 6b on big cobbles lead to the vulture ledge, then one short, very overhanging crux pitch above enormous exposure. That last pitch is about 7a free, or roughly 6b to 6c with rests on its closely spaced bolts.
Well bolted where it is hard, but spaced lower down, impossible to retreat from once on the overhanging upper wall, and the crux pitch is 7a or harder if climbed free by the direct start.
The route
Seven pitches up the south face of the Visera, to the right of La Fiesta de los Bíceps. Everything goes at 6b or easier until the terrace known as the Buitrera, and recent parties find it easier, less busy and less polished than the Fiesta up to that point. The last 25 m pitch is the crux: a hard bouldery start off the ledge, about 15 m of 6b on jugs, then a strenuous exit over the lip. The wall is concave, so it gets steeper as you tire; pace yourself from pitch 3. Bolts are spaced lower down and close together on the crux.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 6a | 45 m | Over the polished starting bulge (the first bolt is quite high), then immediately diagonally right for the whole pitch, weaving between steps. |
| P2 | 6a+ | 45 m | Several bulges with sometimes physical mantels to the big terrace where the route crosses Moskitos. The belay is on the left of the ledge. |
| P3 | 6a+ | 35 m | Straight up above the belay to an obvious small overhang; the wall starts to lean out here. Slightly hanging belay on three rings. Can be linked with pitch 4 on a 60 m rope if you manage the drag (about 50 m, 6b overall). |
| P4 | 6a+ | 20 m | A short half-loop: left first, then back right to a hanging belay about 15 m above the last one. One hard move, the rest on big cobbles. |
| P5 | 6b | 45 m | A long, sustained diagonal leftwards. Do not stop at a poor belay on threads; continue 10 m to the proper one on a step. Take at least 15 quickdraws. |
| P6 | 6b | 15 m | A short pitch with two hard moves and a mantel onto the guano-covered Buitrera ledge, where the real difficulties begin. |
| P7 | 7a | 25 m | The crux. The original line goes straight up off the ledge on small edges (given 7b or A0 on the first topo); most parties now start slightly left, where the second bolt is awkward to clip. Then about 15 m of 6b on jugs and a final 4 to 5 m over the lip on poorer holds. Bolts are very close, but you still have to climb a little between the last four. A first belay sits just over the lip, a second 10 m higher on the summit terrace. |
Getting there
Riglos is about 45 km north-west of Huesca. From Huesca take the A-132 through Ayerbe towards Jaca and turn off to the village; from Pamplona or France come via Puente la Reina de Jaca and the A-132 south. Use the pay car park at the village entrance (3 EUR per day reported in 2025) and walk up through the village.
About 15 min. From the village take the streets that climb towards the Visera and head for the wall. The start is about 30 m right of Moskitos and is marked 'ZD'. It shares its first metres with Super Crack (recognisable by an extender left on the fourth or fifth bolt): pull over the first steep, polished bulge, then leave Super Crack by going diagonally right. Several parties have followed Super Crack by mistake.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Point from camptocamp waypoint 39757
Contains the route point. 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: 42.35061, -0.72361 (crag)
Getting down
On foot, as for the Fiesta. From the summit terrace take the cairned path north down the east flank of the Visera, through a wood, to just below a col. Either drop east down a small path into the gorge and back to the foot of the wall (20 to 30 min, rough), or go over the col and follow cairns and then the blue-marked path to the Circo de Verano between the Pisón and the Firé and the hiking path to the village (about 45 min).
Retreat
Committing
Camptocamp states that after the third belay you have to finish over the top, because the wall overhangs more with every pitch. Below that, retreat by abseil from the first belays is plausible but not described.
Partly inferred from the route facts
Safety
Sun and weather
South-facing and unclimbable in hot weather. Good from autumn to spring: reports from late October (16°C) to late December (12°C, full sun) describe ideal conditions. The first moves and some cobbles are polished and feel greasy when warm or damp.
Sun on the wall · S-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
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.
Climate figures for Riglos & Agüero (Mallos) are not available yet
What to carry
Camptocamp says 16 quickdraws including long ones for the bulges and the diagonals. A 2025 party used no more than 12, noting you would use all 16 only if you clip the threads and old 8 mm bolts as well. Single 60 m rope. Helmet.
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
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 Zulú Demente.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
Spain · Riglos & Agüero (Mallos)
This is the gentlest way to sample Riglos. Polished pockets and two bulging 'panzas' lead to a 6a crux that can be pulled through on the bolts (A0). The upper spur is easy, and the Pisón towers loom close by.
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Read the cautions
Spain · Riglos & Agüero (Mallos)
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Spain · Riglos & Agüero (Mallos)
An airy spur with sustained 5b–5c climbing, a single 6a step on pitch 7, and big views over the Mallos de Riglos and the Pyrenees.
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Spain · Riglos & Agüero (Mallos)
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Around 7a · about 7 pitches
Italy · Sardinia
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France · Baou de Saint-Jeannet
One of the essential long routes of the Baou: seven pitches that hardly drop below the sixth grade, each with a different problem, from thin slab to a steep bulge and a superb layback corner at 6c. The single 7a section on pitch 2 is closely bolted and can be aided. Expect a few loose blocks and a scrappy link pitch across the Vernet ledge.
7a7 pitches200 m
Read the cautions
France · Chamonix valley
A direct line up the big south-facing slabs of Barberine: three pitches of friction slab to warm up, then steeper, technical walls on small holds. The two top pitches are graded 6b+ and 6c+ if you step round the bolts and 7a if you climb straight up them; 6c is obligatory.
7a7 pitches230 m
Morocco · Todra Gorge (Todgha)
Steep, fingery wall climbing that starts with your feet almost in the stream at the gorge entrance. The 7a second pitch is hard for only 2 to 3 metres and can be swapped for a 6b pitch on the neighbouring route, after which three pitches of 6b+ to 6c+ on pocketed and edgy rock lead to the top. Abseil descent.
7a6 pitches200 m
Read the cautions
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.