Gaeta: The Big Cave on Arenauta Beach and Sea-Cliff Multi-Pitch on Montagna Spaccata | Italy Climbing Crags

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Gaeta is a small town on a peninsula at the southern end of Lazio, poking out into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Climbers come for two places: the big cave on Arenauta beach (Spiaggia dell'Arenauta), below the coast road north of town, and the sea cliffs of Montagna Spaccata, which drop straight into the water inside the Monte Orlando regional park on the Gulf of Gaeta.

A few kilometres further towards Sperlonga there is a large spread of single-pitch sport, covered in the Sperlonga post. This post covers what to decide before you go: who each crag suits, which months, how to get there, and which spots are closed or open only part of the year. For a season-and-region comparison of Italian crags, see the series overview.

What kind of crag is it

Grotta dell'Arenauta

One big, steep cave. UKClimbing says the cave's huge roof gives many routes "about 30m of fully horizontal climbing", with routes from 6b to 8c, "mostly above 7a". Climbing Spot Factory describes the cave as half-hidden by a tall sand dune. The limestone is ochre, full of concretions and stalagmite features. The lower part isn't very steep and the right side is even vertical, but higher up it gets steeper and steeper until it becomes a flat roof.

Which town it belongs to. The cave is inside the municipality of Gaeta (Oliunid), but plenty of news stories and databases file it under "Sperlonga". Planetmountain's headline says "at Sperlonga", and Climbook puts it in the Sperlonga area. Search under both names when you look for topos.

Scale. Counts by site (checked 2026-10-18):

Approdo dei Proci, at the other end of the beach, is closed. See the rules below. Climbing Spot Factory also warns that the few old sport routes on the beach wall are unclimbable: the bolts are rusted and the anchors are crumbling.

Montagna Spaccata

Sea-cliff multi-pitch you reach by abseil or boat. falesia.it says calling it a crag undersells it. The routes are long, not all have modern bolts, and "una volta cominciata la via si deve comunque uscire dalla parete a meno che non si abbia a disposizione una barca" (once you start a route you have to top out, unless you have a boat). The rock is "Calcare bellissimo, lavorato e tagliente" (beautiful, featured, sharp limestone), with corners, slabs, overhangs and chimneys. italia.it says you can climb up to about 120 m above the sea, with the sea in view the whole way.

Scale. falesia.it lists 4 sectors with 47 routes, 4a–7c, facing south, and theCrag lists 46. falesia.it says the Beatrice sector, between Via dei Camini and the Grotta del Turco, was developed in 2003–2005. A long traverse along its base links into the other routes, so you can build lines of up to about 400 m.

Who it suits. Multi-pitch climbers who are comfortable abseiling, building anchors and changing over at stances on their own. The grades are moderate (the classic Via dello Spigolo is 5c), but you get in by abseil, and the only ways out are up or by boat.

Where does Monte Moneta belong?

falesia.it calls it "Gaeta - Monte Moneta", but it sits right behind Ristoro da Guido at Sant'Agostino and shares parking and trails with the Sperlonga sectors. Its scale, seasonal ban and routes are in the Sperlonga post.

When to go

Rain and humidity in the cave. Climbing Spot Factory says the cave stays dry in the rain, which is why it gets crowded on rainy weekends and holidays. After long, heavy rain some of the stalagmite features drip. Air humidity affects the rock, except on days with a strong wind off the sea. On sunny days the cave is quiet and the friction is excellent.

Sea conditions at Montagna Spaccata. falesia.it warns that your ropes may get wet on the last abseil. italia.it says to watch the currents if you go in by small boat.

Getting there

Public transport

scoprigaeta.it builds its timetable from Cotral's open data. On 2026-10-18 it listed 17 direct runs from Formia Stazione FS to Gaeta Piazzale Caboto, taking 25–30 minutes. The timetable changes by period, so pick your date on the page before you go. It points out that "Stazione FS" and "Porto" in Formia are different stops.

For the cave you need a car or a driver. A climber who went car-free in March 2024 reported on the Mountain Project forum that a cab from Formia station into Gaeta costs about €30, and the bus much less. Gaeta has "no official taxi service", but hotels and Airbnbs can usually give you a WhatsApp number for a driver. The drive from town to the cave is about 7 minutes at a flat €20 each way. There's no phone signal inside the cave, but there is just outside it, so you can also agree a pick-up time before going in. His conclusion was that renting a car is easiest and costs about the same.

Driving to Grotta dell'Arenauta

Climbing Spot Factory says to drive 3.7 km from Ristoro da Guido at Sant'Agostino towards Gaeta, to a white "Ultima spiaggia" sign, and park in one of the two lay-bys just before and after it, with room for 8–10 cars. theCrag says there are three rest areas around km 24.400 on the Via Flacca, the nearest marked "ultima spiaggia selvaggia".

From there, stairs lead down to the beach; UKClimbing says about 300 steps. 27crags says to turn right on the beach for Approdo dei Proci and left for the cave, climbing over a small sandy hill with low scrub and then dropping into the cave.

Leave nothing in the car. Climbing Spot Factory is explicit: "don't leave anything into the car, making clear that it is empty".

Driving to Montagna Spaccata

Planetmountain's Via dello Spigolo page, written by mountain guide Riccardo Quaranta, says to drive to the "Santuario della Montagna Spaccata" and park about a hundred metres before it, in a tree-lined clearing overlooking Serapo beach. Again, leave no valuables in the car.

From the parking, walk into the sanctuary, turn left and then right through a tunnel, and follow the wide mule track. Leave it at the seventh hairpin and follow a clear path to the cliff edge. At a concrete marker, turn sharply right towards the sea to reach the Via dei Camini abseil anchors (there are now two sets, so several parties can go down at once).

Abseiling in. Planetmountain says you can use a single 70 m rope with 4 abseils, or 60 m half ropes in two stages. falesia.it describes a first 12 m abseil followed by two 50 m abseils. The alternative is to come in by boat from Gaeta harbour or Serapo beach.

Rules to know before you go

Approdo dei Proci is closed. The warning on theCrag reads: "L'intera falesia approdo dei proci è interdetta con ordinanza del 2014" (the whole of Approdo dei Proci has been off-limits under an order since 2014). 27crags also marks it with ⛔.

The stairs to the cave are private. Sources give different fees:

UKClimbing adds that the beach itself is not private, so camping on it is illegal.

The cave has been closed before. Planetmountain reported in 2010 that on 27 July that year Gaeta's town council fenced off 700 m of Arenauta beach after a complaint that the area was at risk of landslides, closing the cave and Approdo dei Proci with it. On 4 September the mayor partly lifted the ban on the beach, but both crags stayed closed, and the local club ADS Gaetaventura said it was preparing a plan to make them safe. Climbing has since resumed in the cave (with hard ascents there in 2016 and 2022, see below). theCrag and 27crags now flag only Approdo dei Proci as closed, not the cave itself.

Montagna Spaccata is open only in certain months and certain sectors. falesia.it says: "E' consentita la scalata solo lungo le vie di arrampicata lungo lo sperone roccioso della falesia alla sinistra della Grotta del Turco e limitatamente al periodo dal 1° agosto al 20 febbraio. Non è possibile inoltre abbandonare in alcun momento i sentieri." In other words, you may climb only the routes on the rock spur left of the Grotta del Turco, only from 1 August to 20 February, and you may never leave the paths. The rule comes from the 2009 agreement between the CAI, the mountain guides, the park authority and the region.

Sources don't agree. On the same site's forum, a user asked in 2016 why the attached 2008 notice says "un solo settore a sud e tutto l'anno" (only one sector to the south, all year), which doesn't match the page text. Another reply said people had been climbing normally for more than two years and that CAI Rome's courses had resumed. The park's own overview page doesn't list climbing rules. The Riviera di Ulisse regional park says peregrine falcons nest on the Monte Orlando cliffs. Check with CAI Rome or the park before you go, and don't plan Montagna Spaccata between 21 February and 31 July.

Bolt condition on Montagna Spaccata. Planetmountain reported in May 2025 that mountain guides Lorenzo Trento and Mattia Beltrame rebolted Croce del Sud, Via dello Spigolo and Via Beatrice with glue-in titanium bolts, and replaced every abseil anchor on Via dei Camini. Beltrame wrote that while removing old bolts, "circa una su dieci è saltata con un solo colpo di martello" (about one in ten came out with a single hammer blow), and that a climber snapped the third bolt on the first pitch of the Spigolo just by hanging on it. He also wrote that many routes "versavano – e versano tuttora – in condizioni pessime" (were, and still are, in terrible condition). On routes that aren't on the rebolted list, judge the bolts for yourself.

Routes by level

YDS and V-grade conversions follow the Mountain Project international grade comparison chart and are approximate; "approx." marks grades the sources give without a/b/c (such as 4 or 5+). The original grade is the one that counts.

27crags' route list counts 58 lines in Grotta dell'Arenauta (extensions listed separately): 3 at 6a and below, 14 from 6a+ to 6c+, 21 from 7a to 7c+, and 19 at 8a and up.

Many cave routes have several lower-offs (I catena, II catena…), and the databases list each extension separately, getting harder as you go. On 27crags, for example, Invidia is 6b+ to the first anchor, 7b+ to the second, 8a to the third and 8b+ to the fourth. Climbook and 27crags often differ by half a grade; both are shown. Every Montagna Spaccata route is a multi-pitch reached by abseil or boat (see the rules above).

Beginner: up to 6a (YDS 5.10a and below)

The cave has few routes at this level. falesia.it lists 36 routes from 4a to 7a in the Vie Classiche sector of Montagna Spaccata, but you need to be able to abseil, build anchors and change over at belays.

Approdo dei Proci, at the other end of the beach, has plenty of routes from 5 to 6a (27crags lists 41), but the whole crag is closed under a 2014 order, so none are listed here.

Intermediate: 6a+ to 6c+ (YDS 5.10b–5.11c)

Seven of the ten most-repeated cave routes on Climbook fall in this band.

falesia.it also lists I ladri di Baghdad among the long routes at Montagna Spaccata: 100 m, 6b (6a obligatory).

Advanced: 7a to 7c+ (YDS 5.11d–5.13a)

UKClimbing says the cave routes are "mostly above 7a", and the big roof gives many of them about 30 m of horizontal climbing.

Expert: 8a and up (YDS 5.13b and up)

27crags lists 19 cave lines at 8a and up, mostly extensions that continue from mid-height anchors out through the roof.

Other Montagna Spaccata routes. Via dei Camini was climbed ground-up by Gigi Mario in the 1950s and is also the abseil line in; Via Beatrice is a diagonal line across the whole Beatrice sector that falesia.it calls moderate; and Croce del Sud. None of the sources give grades for these three. Via Beatrice and Croce del Sud were rebolted in titanium in 2025 along with Via dello Spigolo (Planetmountain 2025); on routes not on that list, judge the bolts yourself.

How it differs from Sperlonga

Where to look things up

• theCrag: Spiaggia dell'Arenauta: routes, approach and closure warnings for the cave and Approdo dei Proci.
• 27crags: Spiaggia dell'Arenauta: 99 routes and approach notes (topos are paid).
• Climbook: Grotta dell'Arenauta: repeat counts and corrections to the route order.
• falesia.it: Gaeta - Montagna Spaccata: access, the climbing window and routes for Montagna Spaccata.
• Planetmountain: Via dello Spigolo: pitch-by-pitch description of the classic and how to abseil in.
• Guidebooks: route grades and route counts in this article come mainly from online databases such as theCrag and Mountain Project; where they disagree, go with the guidebook.
  • Gaeta Moneta Sperlonga Leano Circeo (Luigi Filocamo and Fabrizio Antonioli, Versante Sud, new edition 2026, Italian, 416 pages; also an iClimbing edition): multi-pitch only, 249 routes between Gaeta and Circeo (192 in the 2008 edition); the publisher's blurb says Gaeta's classic routes have also been restored.
  • Arrampica Roma Sud (Riccardo Innocenti, Idea Montagna, December 2016, Italian and English, 640 pages, ISBN 978-88-97299-92-9): single-pitch and multi-pitch at 57 crags south of Rome, and the most recent printed sport guide for this coast; sold out at Climb Europe.
  • Blue Rock 2 (Bruno Moretti, Tommaso Sciannella and Bruno Vitale, Verdone Editore, 2012, Italian with some English): about 900 routes around Sperlonga, "classic" Gaeta and nearby; Campo Base lists it as out of stock, so treat it as out of print.
  • The single-pitch areas (Arenauta, Pueblo, Moneta) have had no new printed guide since 2016.

References

• UKClimbing: Grotta dell'Arenauta
• theCrag: Spiaggia Dell'Arenauta
• theCrag: Grotta dell'Arenauta
• theCrag: Approdo dei proci
• theCrag: Montagna Spaccata
• 27crags: Spiaggia Dell'Arenauta
• 27crags: Spiaggia Dell'Arenauta access
• Climbing Spot Factory: Something about the Grotta dell'Arenauta
• Climbook: Grotta dell'Arenauta
• Planetmountain: Grotta dell'Arenauta: high hopes for the crag to be reopened (2010)
• Planetmountain: Stefano Ghisolfi frees L'Arenauta 9b at Sperlonga (2022)
• Planetmountain: Via dello Spigolo, Montagna Spaccata Gaeta
• Planetmountain: Richiodatura alla Montagna Spaccata di Gaeta (2025)
• falesia.it: Gaeta - Montagna Spaccata
• falesia.it forum: Divieto di arrampicata a Gaeta
• falesia.it: Gaeta - Monte Moneta
• Oliunid: Climbing on Sperlonga's historic limestone
• italia.it: Best places for free climbing in Lazio
• Parchi Lazio: The Riviera di Ulisse regional park
• scoprigaeta.it: Orari bus Gaeta (Cotral timetable)
• Mountain Project forum: Gaeta and Sperlonga without a car
• Versante Sud: Gaeta Moneta Sperlonga Leano Circeo
• 27crags: Spiaggia Dell'Arenauta route list
• Versante Sud: Gaeta Moneta Sperlonga Leano Circeo (2026, print)
• Idea Montagna: Arrampica Roma Sud (2016)
• Campo Base: Blue Rock 2