Rock climbing is a hugely popular sport in Catalonia, because of the fantastic formations and optimum climbing conditions. With over 3,500 climbing routes, covering all levels of difficulty, Montserrat is the prime spot for aficionados. All climbing vias (pathways) are universally graded in terms of difficulty, much like ski pistes. Within the city itself, climbing walls, known as rocòdroms are used for practice sessions throughout the week, while climbers wait until the weekend to visit out-of-town places such as Montserrat. Vias ferratas (roughly translated as ‘iron paths’) were introduced here in 1990. These vias, made up of a series of ropes, harnesses and footholds, involve following a marked route combining hiking and climbing skills. Climbing is a year-round sport here, although the optimum climbing period is from autumn to spring. The national governing body of the sport, Federación Española de Deportes de Montaña y Escalada (www.fedme.es) can give you pointers on which routes to follow and clubs to join. An invaluable contact is also the FEEC (Federació d’Entitats Excursionistes de Catalunya, www.feec.cat), they organise regular climbing excursions all around Catalunya. An invaluable English-language website is www.escuelasdeescalada.com. The site catalogues all climbing spots in Spain, providing information on levels of difficulty, refuges in the area, routes available and how to get there. In terms of equipment, Decathlon (www.decathlon.com) has a wide range of climbing footwear, harnesses and other necessary equipment at reasonable prices.