Rules de Picos 📋

Without rules, all is chaos.

At least when it comes to the crown of Europe. Apparently, people can't agree what Europe is. I know, right? It can't be that difficult can it? Ask google and you'll be presented with 10 different versions. Ridiculous. Pretty much every blog you'll find from people having completed the Crown of Europe follow their own definition of what it is.

For me though, there's only one way that the rules of a challenge based on geography (some might argue topography, well fuck you) can be decided, and that is, and you might have guessed it, geography! Geographical Europe is the only relevant way to approach this challenge in my opinion. Check out the list here. Below follows rules and further clarifications of what Europe is, what it isn't and what a country is.

Rules

  1. The peak must be the tallest point within the internationally recognised border of the country within the confines of geographical Europe.
  2. The peak can be reached by any means necessary that requires the use of your brain and movement of feet (having someone drop you at the top by helicopter does in no way require anything from yourself, you cheat).
  3. The peak must be natural and not formed by human intervention (I'm looking at you Yding Skovhøj). Where a human built construction has been put on top, walking up to it, touching it and where possible, enter it, is obvs the only way to summit it.
  4. There might be more rules, who knows? I think the above is all that's needed but clarifications below are key.

What is Europe then?

I think we've established now that Europe is Geographical Europe. This means, the EU is not Europe. Most of the countries are in Europe but it's not a definition of what Europe is. Geographical Europe are defined by clear geographical boundaries.

Now per se, Europe is part of the worlds biggest continental area Eurasia and is in many respects just one massive continent. Despite this, there is a clear historical and cultural divide that allows us today to set some boundaries which are marked by mountains and waterways where the tectonic plates are no help to us.

To the east, the Ural mountains, Ural river and Caspian sea forms the border to central Asia.

To the South-East, the divide runs through the caucasus mounts, the Black Sea and ultimately the connecting waterways of the Black Sea and the Med. This division is further clarified through the Anatolian tectonic plate which is separated from the Eurasian.

To the South, this run straight (it twists and turns obvs) through the Mediterranean separating the African plate and the Eurasian plate with a wee interloper of the Aegean plate thrown in there.

The border to the West is somewhere out there in the middle of the Atlantic and splitting Iceland in two further up North.

What is not Europe?

🇩🇰 "Greenland is part of Denmark, no? They must have big mountains!" You're right, but it's not Europe, it's North America. "The Faroe islands then?" They are indeed Europe but as they are not part of the continental Danish landmass and separated by an ocean, they are only included as a bonus peak.

🇪🇸 "What about the Canary islands? I've heard they have the biggest mountain in Spain?" Africa mate. Gets a spot on the bonus list though.

🇨🇾 "Cyprus surely?" It's Asia you moron. Just because Australia participates in the Eurovision doesn't make them part of Europe does it? They get a spot on the list of bonus peaks though (in case some bawbag disagrees with my logic).

🇲🇹 "Hmm, what about Malta then?" Really? It's Africa, what is so difficult to understand? Another one that gets a spot on the bonus list, you know, just in case.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿"But you forgot England and Scotland!" You are thick aren't you? Neither is a sovereign nation, nor is Wales or Northern Ireland. I love you to bits Scotland but don't try and call yourself a country before you go Braveheart on the English and declare independence. I won't have it. Not deserving of a spot on the bonus list but they still get one.

🇵🇹 "Well, what about the Azores then, they're part of Portugal right?" Right and some of the islands are in Europe, but not all, notably Pico, where you find Portugals tallest mountain. There's a rift and Pico is on the wrong side of it. Both Azores and Madeira gets a spot on the bonus list.

🇰🇿🇬🇪🇦🇿 "I think i get it now, so that country where Borat is from is not Europe right?" You mean Kazakhstan? Eastern Kazakhstan is geographically Europe indeed. Just like the Caucasus mountains placing a tiny part of both Georgia and Azerbaijan in Europe as well. "Does that mean Armenia too then?" No.

🇹🇷🪆 "I don't get this.. Türkiye and Russia, what about them?" Transcontintal states like the pals above. European Türkiye, west of the strait of Bosporus. European Russia, West of the Urals and bordering Asia through the Caucasus.

What is a country?

This is never ending, isn't it!? Well, we've established that Scotland is not a country. Well, they might be a country but they are not an independent sovereign nation. Ultimately, some key political areas (like foreign policy and defense) are decided in London, not in Edinburgh. So in order to come to a conclusion most people can agree with, UN recognised countries will be the key definition of what a country is.

Ultimately, all countries listed as part of this challenge is a member state of the UN. The only exceptions are Kosovo and the Vatican who are observer states. Why do we count them still? Because they are widely recognised to be sovereign states, Kosovo just lacks some support from their pals in Serbia, who refuse to call Kosovo anything other than Serbia, and the Vatican? Well, they are pretty much a bubble within Italy where they do what they damn well please (like molesting young boys, sorry, but it's true).