Tozal del Mallo, and the Circo de Salarons, Pyrenees, Spain - photo Erin Cowham

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International licence. 

Tozal del Mallo

It was a bright and sunny morning when my climbing companion Dave and I left the small town of Torla and drove the short distance to the Ordesa National Park. This is a wonderful green lung in the heart of the Pyrenees, around halfway between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. We had arrived the previous day, late in the afternoon. We drove up to take a quick look at the mountain Tozal de Mallo 2254m, P25m. It would be a suitable challenge to start our time in Parque Nacional Ordesa y Monte Perdido.

We got out of the car and looked around; there were a lot of other people getting their rucksacks ready and equipping themselves for the day ahead. Like us, everyone appeared to be well equipped and there was no sign of running shoes or jeans. The mountains in this National Park are steep and can be treacherous, so failure to prepare would be a recipe for failure.

We left the car park and went to the green signpost. Now our climb started. Firstly, there was a long steep and winding trek through the forest for around ninety minutes. Occasionally in gaps through the trees, the towering peak of Tozal del Mallo loomed larger and larger. We eventually left the forest and headed out onto an open area just below the cliffs. From this angle the cliffs, let alone the peak, looked unclimbable, unless done as a technical rock route.

We crossed a waterfall and came to another green sign. There were two choices, Clavijas de Carriata (Pins) or Fajeta (Chains). We had discussed this the previous night and had decided already to go up via the pins and descend via the chains. Already the view of the Ordesa Park from this point was fantastic. We still had a long way to go. We ascended to a track that was tight in below the cliffs; the drop from this point was sheer as well. However, when we looked down to the Fajetas path we were to descend from later, this was wider in comparison.

At this point we were joined by two local men who had climbed the route before - they told us.  In consequence, we were happy to let them go first. The cliff is sheer at this point, and at approximately half-metre intervals there were a series of steel pins fixed to the rock. Some parts to this scramble were easy, but on occasions the pins were vital. After a hundred-metre climb, we reached the relatively flat area at the top of the cliffs. After a stop for the ubiquitous photograph, westward we went to trek around the cliff top for the final ascent.

We passed by the large boulder which marked the intersection of the Clavijas and Fajeta paths, then a straightforward stroll led us to the summit of Tozal del Mallo. The path came from the back, as there was a sheer drop of hundreds of metres on three sides. We took in the extensive views in all directions. Just as we thought we had seen it all, a hand came over the edge followed by the body of a climber. Soon the rest of her group arrived with carabiners, ropes, helmets, jumars and figure-8s. Our climb was impressive but this was on another level altogether.

Soon it was time to depart. We walked back to the large boulder and started to head down the Fajetas path. After an initial short scramble, we arrived on the narrow path which snaked right along the edge of the cliffs. A large section had iron chains similar to a via ferrata; this was necessary, especially as we had to cross a few waterfalls with treacherous slippery rock .

The track descended at various levels of steepness and exposure, and soon we arrived at the junction of the two paths. From here it was a simple descent through the trees back down to the car park.

A wonderful climb, difficult but not as much as you might imagine when you first see the peak. There are many fine walks and climbs in Ordesa National Park and this part of the Pyrenees is well worth a visit.