For two entire days Val di Mello reverberated to the sound of a slow melodic bloc rocking beat. Snow topped mountains cut a sharp line between the clear azure sky and the lush green forests. Families and climbers nursing sore fingers lay back together and listened to the stream flow by as the days passed without the rush of modern life. Sounds too good to be true?.
Well if we hadn’t been there for ourselves we would probably agree.
Mello Blocco is an international bouldering event held over the weekend of the 7-8 May. Part competition part social event it attracted happy bloccers of all shapes and sizes. For the experts there were marked problems dotted around the valley, for the rest of us more than 250 problems at all grades. A beautiful and incredibly accurate hand drawn map by Simone Pedeferri reflected his local knowledge of the area, it is sure to become a collectors item. The attraction of Mello Blocco is its setting, hidden boulders amongst the trees, large and open kid friendly areas and of course the stunning vertical walls of Val di Mello itself.
The event was well organised and despite the large numbers seems to be embraced by locals who even make available the blocs that stand on private ground. With an estimate turn out of more than 1000 visitors their support is crucial, this surely will have been the climbing event of the year.