Ascents in Karlukovo - Prohodna Cave

You need good core, very strong fingers, and high friction for this one. The feet are polished and bad almost the entire route. A consistent V5 boulder problem from bottom to top. 3rd clip felt impossible to get without burning too much energy. Straight up brutal power endurance.

Nice little warmup with awesome slab moves on good edges! The topout reminded me of Reimer’s. I think I found my new favorite warmup

Had to hang at the crux to find the sequence. Not what I thought it was going to be! I think I made up my own tall-person beta 😂. That being said I can’t really justify 11c for this…11b at most since the entire grade is in that sequence. Sick route that deserves more attention.

Did not really enjoy it at all. Stupid crux on polished nothing holds and bad feet, to a massive rest on a hollow flake full of bats. Last move is really hard just like 2 routes to the left, and the anchor clip is a major pain in the ass. Not consistent at all grade-wise. No interest in losing any more skin on this one.

Soooo psyched! Thanks to the two lady-crushers from Sofia who gave me a crucial sequence change at the crux. This sure as hell felt 7b+ and it was significantly harder than Triagalnikat for me which I did on my 2nd try. Everyone on 8a.nu gives this 7b which hurts my feelings

If I bolted this route I would’ve named it Morning Sex because it’s THAT good…

On the easier side of 5.11a if you have good technique.

Hung draws and gave one burn after, high point was falling on the last RH pinch at the crux, when moving right foot high. Unlocked crucial beta for the 1st half to reduce pump

If this route were any sicker you’d need to call an ambulance. Holy tits what a cool line. Relentlessly pumpy, core-intensive moves and no true rest besides a few shit kneebars if you’re lucky. Stoked to come back for this one and lose some more skin. Consistently more difficult moves than Triagalnikat and without any of the good rests

Yeesh, what a humility sandwich. Definitely felt 7a last session and also today until I found my VERY specific beta that I kept forgetting, especially the feet. Hard and polished. Maybe used to be 6c before it got ran through so many times but this is solid 6c+ now. It’s over quick but it ain’t over till it’s over.

Super-easy face climbing, maybe 6a until you get to the underclings and tufa. The hardest moves are right away getting established with bad feet then you cruise on jugs to the top! Amazing finish with a little runout for added spice.

Got my ass kicked first try. Sent clean second go but did a TR because I thought I would be too tired. Oh well, pretty happy with it. 5.12b/c

Awesome varied climbing requiring a balance of technique and endurance. Felt on-par for grade with Buona Serra. Easier moves than Nezheneni but just as pumpy. Definitely a tad easier than the route to the left. The difficulty here is spread throughout the climb while the route to the left builds with a final crux harder than any individual move on this route.

Really pleasant warmup. 5.7 jugs on the low angle to a 5.8 juggy overhang tufa finish. Bring more draws than you think you need

Last draw to the anchors is easily 7a/7a+ with how many holds have broken. Significantly more difficult crux than Buona Serra but overall less pumpy. I could not find a 6c+ beta. The rest of the climb is incredibly enjoyable, maybe 6a to the big flake then 6c to the last draw, 7a/7a+ finishing moves. 2nd try.

Incredible. I think people consider this soft because of how many good holds there are, but with 2 definitely hard sections (and not easy to onsight) I feel that 7a is appropriate. The pump is real on this one. I was yoked by the time I got to the chains.

Amazing climbing. Juggy first half with a great couple of tests, then it turns on for the 2nd half with bomber edged and a few sequencey moves that build towards the top. Easier than O Maria in my opinion. There were only a few bees today and they were very docile. Benchmark 5.11a.

Some of the most retarded bolting I’ve ever seen. Dangerously runout in the hardest section then you have 3 bolts less than a foot from each other right below the chains. Wtf? Around 5.8

Bottom crux right off the deck and into the small cave is no joke. It’s so polished it feels a grade harder. Once you’re past this it eases up significantly but stays engaging with a bomber finish on technical flakes. Reminiscent of Tieranny wall at the Obed.

Hard. Lower moves feel a little dirty. Committing dead points on slab. Upper runout on last technical section is puckering with the big move but feels great if you stick it. The finish is badass on perfectly-textured tufas.

Polished and a bit runout. Decent moves but didn’t feel like a good warmup. Some of the holds are hard to find immediately. Felt about 10a/b.

Start is hard going to a very polished crimp. Past this it’s way more chill but you have to stay left on the flake and clip way to the right. The feet get tricky but the hands are great. Doing the direct beta is maybe 7b. Bolting is safe but a bit spacey, I wouldn’t want to fall on this route on a few sections.

This route is definitely harder, and way more polished than Eko Pateka. There are several cool mantle moves requiring good footwork and balance.

The direct finish to the top is significantly harder now with how polished the feet are. I was a little more gripped than I would’ve liked to be for a cool-down.

The crux feels a little spicy until you find the correct feet. Really chill after that. Fun route! The top gets sun in the morning. Upgraded a little from polish.

This route’s grade is all in the crux move. The tufa section below the crux is maybe 6a+ at the most. The crux itself is quite reachy at at 193cm I didn’t have a problem with it. Shorter people will need high feet but the hole you are going for is actually a big jug flake so commit and you will be rewarded. Potential kneebar is you want just before it but not a great one. The traverse at the top was safe on jugs and you can even clip the last bolt of the route to the left if you need to. Final move is big but great rests before.

Really nice tufa line that hasn’t been polished into oblivion yet. Kneebars are crucial for pump…

Huge runout just before the last bolt but it looks more intimidating from the ground than it actually is. As soon as you move off the tufas you are on massive jugs and unless you are totally redlining you should be able to make it to the next bolt. Looking down the whip looked totally safe and not as big as from the ground. Go for it!

Great route, super easy up to th eoverhanging part right before the anchor. The crux is cruxy

It's anything but boring Felt just as hard as the adjacent routes 7b/+

Well apparently the tradition here is to first do the route and then collectively pretend its a 7b - sure, happy to oblige It could have been 7b, maybe when Khan Asparuh founded Bulgaria, but ok, I'm sure I have logged 7bs in the other extreme - lets restore the balance in the universe #karma.

Nice long and varied. Different styles and pleasant climbing! Good warmup in the cave!

Cool line. A few reachy moves make it at least a grade harder for shorties.

Another phenomenal line in the cave.