Malawi Rock Climbing

There has been sporadic climbing development in Malawi since 1960s with a few periods of heightened development. Frank Eastwood and company established many traditional mountaineering type routes throughout Malawi during the 1970s. These routes usually followed crack systems, chinmeys, and lower angle slabs. Very few, if any bolts, are on these routes and most of them have not been repeated. Frank Eastwood published a guidebook to the Mulanje Massif that you can pick up on Amazon or other used book websites. There are a few other old guidebooks. While these books are helpful for information on different areas, most of the routes do not look very appealing. Mike Dalious, who operated an NGO in Zomba for several years developed several small crags in the area, and though he has departed, it is possible to find local expats who are familiar with the area. There are also small climbing pockets around Dedza, Zomba, and Ntcheu. Within the last few years, Malawi has seen a little more attention from climbers and the first modern, long, well protected routes have been established. Most of this attention has been focused on the Mulanje Massiff, but Tyler Algeo has established some sport crags near Lilongwe. Tyler has also started a bouldering gym in Lilongwe which is the first place in Malawi where climbers can congregate. Malawi has very few climbers relative to the amount of rock here and there is not much of a climbing community. Hopefully the bouldering gym and continuing to develop modern routes will change this. I hope to see Malawi grow into the well-known climbing destination that it deserves to be.

Malawi has a sub-tropical climate, which is relatively dry and strongly seasonal. The warm-wet season stretches from November to April, during which 95% of the annual precipitation takes place. June, July and August are the coldest months with little to no rain. This is prime time. May and September can be good as well but might be a little hot.

The main language in Malawi is Chichwea but many people speak English. Most employees at restaurants, lodges, and bus services will speak some English at the minimum, but many people speak great English throughout the country. It is very easy to get around compared to other countries in Africa.

If you plan on installing any fixed hardware, everything must be 304 stainless steel at a minimum but 316 SS would be better. This includes quicklinks and rappel rings. The rainy season in Malawi is very intense. Plated steel hardware here corrodes extremely quickly. The amount of corrosion on plated hardware here after 1 year is comparable to what you would see after 20-30 years in semi-arid environments in the USA. It is also not uncommon for the first hanger to be stolen off routes. Glue-ins for the first bolt or two would address this issue.

Safari in Liwonde National Park or Majete Wildlife Reserve. Also, if you are further north in Malawi, I would recommend South Luangwa National Park in Eastern Zambia. I went and it was incredible!

Visit Lake Malawi. It is the fourth largest fresh water lake in the world and has more species of fish than any other lake in world. The lake is awesome for diving, kayaking, and swimming. There is also plenty of potential climbing and dws potential around the lake. Cape Maclear and Monkey Bay seem to be the most popular areas to go to.