8 May 2026
Andrea Lostia di Santa Sofia does The Watchtower (9a)
Andrea Lostia di Santa Sofia, who did his first 9a in March, has made the first repeat of The Watchtower (9a) in Lecorci. โThe queen of Ulassai, hardest line I ever climbed.โ
Can you tell us more about the ascent and the process behind?
I started trying this route last september, after sending the last 8c+ in Ulassai I wanted to look for something harder, this route caught my eye. Initially I wasnโt sure the route was possible, nobody had done it and the wall looked blank. The only reason I didnโt give up is because this feeling reminded me of the first time I tried โFear Is The Mind Killerโ in Lecorci, which I then first ascended, I knew not to trust the part of me that told me it wasnโt possible.
In november my friend Giorgio Tomats came to visit and we tried the route together, we worked the moves and found solutions, in that trip we also made some FAโs in Isili such as Terzo Tempo 8c+ and Free Bronx 8c+, but The Watchtower was still too hard.
Giorgio decided to come back to sardinia just to send it, and he did, claiming the FA to Ulassaiโs first 9a, during this time I kept trying the route, always falling on the same move from the ground.
It was extremely frustrating and I considered giving up multiple times, which had never happened to me before on a route. Just when I was about to abandon all hope, I stuck the move and fought my way to the top, battling numb toes and pump.
This is my second and hardest 9a after Estado Critico, and itโs very important to me as Estado Critico was the first 9a climbed by a sardinian, and The Watchtwer is the first time it happens in Sardinia.
The route is a prow towering above Lecorci, it follows a black stripe. The hard section starts after a kneebar with a phisical boulder followed right after by an extremely tricky 2 move boulder, where I fell for months coming from the ground. Stuck the move there is a third and final boulder on small crimps leading you to a rest before the final, potentially heartbreaking, easier section.
Can you tell us more about the ascent and the process behind?
I started trying this route last september, after sending the last 8c+ in Ulassai I wanted to look for something harder, this route caught my eye. Initially I wasnโt sure the route was possible, nobody had done it and the wall looked blank. The only reason I didnโt give up is because this feeling reminded me of the first time I tried โFear Is The Mind Killerโ in Lecorci, which I then first ascended, I knew not to trust the part of me that told me it wasnโt possible.
In november my friend Giorgio Tomats came to visit and we tried the route together, we worked the moves and found solutions, in that trip we also made some FAโs in Isili such as Terzo Tempo 8c+ and Free Bronx 8c+, but The Watchtower was still too hard.
Giorgio decided to come back to sardinia just to send it, and he did, claiming the FA to Ulassaiโs first 9a, during this time I kept trying the route, always falling on the same move from the ground.
It was extremely frustrating and I considered giving up multiple times, which had never happened to me before on a route. Just when I was about to abandon all hope, I stuck the move and fought my way to the top, battling numb toes and pump.
This is my second and hardest 9a after Estado Critico, and itโs very important to me as Estado Critico was the first 9a climbed by a sardinian, and The Watchtwer is the first time it happens in Sardinia.
The route is a prow towering above Lecorci, it follows a black stripe. The hard section starts after a kneebar with a phisical boulder followed right after by an extremely tricky 2 move boulder, where I fell for months coming from the ground. Stuck the move there is a third and final boulder on small crimps leading you to a rest before the final, potentially heartbreaking, easier section.
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