Cannstatter Pfeiler Climbing

This sandstone brick bridge pillar was left standing when the new bridge was constructed. The DAV (Deutscher Alpenverein) leases the pillar from the city of Stuttgart.

This area is not for beginners. The easiest climb is sixth class, which roughly corresponds to 5.10a. The first bolt is somewhat high, but routes are well-bolted after that.

All routes are approximately 18 meters tall, with chains and non-locking carabiners at the top. Bolts are round-wire glue-ins, and each route has around eight bolts plus anchors.

Routes are sustained (vertical) and it may take some time to get used to climbing on this structure. Holds aren't nearly as obvious as in the gym, but route finding can be trickier than climbing outside on natural rock faces too. It's more difficult to read the routes, and the tops of the bricks are not usually the great (or even usable) holds you want them to be. Don't expect an easy hold to clip the chains, either.