A valley behind the town
Most visitors meet Mosta through its great rotunda and never notice that the town sits on the edge of one of the longest valleys on the island. Wied il-Ghasel runs through the countryside below the built-up streets, a green cut in the limestone plateau where the noise of traffic fades after a few minutes on foot. The sound that replaces it is wind in carob and fig branches, the rattle of a wall lizard in dry stone and, after rain, running water.
The valley forms part of one much longer watercourse, around 14 kilometres from its upper reaches to the sea, and it is an important link in the second largest water catchment on Malta. That helps explain why the place feels different from the scrubby, sun-baked terrain elsewhere on the island. Rain from the Rabat plateau drains into it, so pools and small streams appear in the wet months and the plants respond.
Climbing on the valley walls
The sides of the valley are steep limestone, and that is the reason this page sits under climbing rather than walking. Malta has few inland crags, and a valley wall that is sheltered from the sea wind and partly shaded is useful when the coast is blasted by the gregal in winter. Climbers who know the area use it as an alternative to the big sea cliffs.
Specific routes, grades and bolting change as people maintain or retire them, so this guide does not list any. Treat anything you read online as a starting point and check it with someone who has climbed here recently. Malta’s limestone also behaves differently from harder rock: it can feel solid, then crumble at a hold, and it loses strength when wet. Test every hold, wear a helmet, and avoid climbing for a day or two after heavy rain.
If you are new to the sport, the sensible way in is a guided session with a local instructor, who will bring the rope, the harnesses and the knowledge of which walls are in good condition. The valley is a protected landscape, so guides also tend to know where not to go.
Walking the valley floor
You do not have to climb to enjoy the place. Tracks and field paths follow the bottom of the valley, and a gentle walk of an hour or two gives you most of what makes it special. Look for carob, fig and olive trees, tall reeds near the damp spots, and the small terraced fields where farmers still work.
Fauna is easy to miss and easy to find once you slow down. Tadpoles and frogs live in the pools, beetles and bees work the flowers, and wall lizards sit on every sunny stone. Birdsong is better in the morning.
The valley is at its best in winter and spring. Water, wild flowers and green slopes all peak then, and the rock is cool enough for a long day outside. The area is listed as one of high landscape value and has been declared a nature reserve, so stay on existing paths, take litter home and leave plants where they grow.
Three chapels and a name
The valley takes its name from a wayside chapel put up in 1760, and the chapel’s name in turn comes from the honey said to have been so plentiful here. Three wayside chapels stand along the stretch that belongs to Mosta, small whitewashed buildings that make natural stopping points on a walk. They are not museums and are usually closed, so treat them as landmarks rather than destinations.
The folklore is part of the charm. Bees really did nest in cracks in the rock, and wild thyme and other flowers on the slopes support honey production to this day, although the picture of honey flowing down the walls belongs to legend.
Planning the visit
Bring more water than you expect to drink, a hat, and shoes with a sticky sole. A map app that works offline helps, because the valley twists and signal can drop. Plan to be out of the valley before dusk, since paths are uneven and unlit.
Parking near the access points is informal, and you should not block farm gates or narrow lanes. If you arrive by bus, ask the driver for the stop nearest the valley edge in Mosta and walk from there.
The valley combines easily with the town itself. The Mosta Rotunda is a short drive or bus ride away, and the older streets around it have bakeries and cafes where a pastizz makes a sensible end to a morning outdoors. For a second natural area, the wooded slopes at Buskett and the cliffs at Dingli lie further south and suit a separate day.
Go on a weekday morning in March, with the streams still running, and you will probably have the valley almost to yourself.
