Sunday, February 25, 2018

February 25, 2018 - From South to East and back.

I was back from Belgium around 14h30 and after a small break, as I didn't want to drive a lot anymore, I decided to go the nearby quiet sectors of Roche aux Sabots. The fairly recently developed South sector close to the cemetery and the one in the East towards the 91.1 area.
The skin on my fingers had suffered some bleeding cracks, torn from the day before, so those small boulders with mostly slopers and hard mantles wouldn't be too hard on it.

After failing to jump high enough in "Fanny Chipie", a classic for the South sector, I turned to "La Libido (gauche assis)".
I had done the direct version not long ago and couldn't really try the left exit because it was too humid.
Now, with this dry air, the conditions were perfect, the slopers were sticky and it went down on my first attempt.

Fontainebleau - Roche aux Sabots Sud - La Libido (gauche assis) 7B




Keeping some other problems in the back of my head for maybe on the way back, I moved to the Eastern sector of the area, the newly developed area of Roche aux Sabots Est.
I did "Le Belier" there, also not long ago, and I had noticed on the topo that on the backside of that boulder, there was a 7B, "Balance" that looked like fun.

The problem was smaller than it looked like on the picture, but it turned out to be quite fun.
Not as straight forward as it looks and definitely harder than it looks!

Fontainebleau - Roche aux Sabots Est - Balance 7B




Time to test my mantle skills in "Paraplégie (direct)". An easy start on good crimps, but a mantle on a flat surface at the end. Not a single tiny crimp or uneven sloper to pull on, nothing!
The mantle makes the whole grade.

Fontainebleau - Roche aux Sabots Est - Paraplégie (direct) 7A




On the same boulder, a small problem on a nice looking prow, but it climbs like its name.
Desperate topout at the end, but in the end I had fun.

Fontainebleau - Roche aux Sabots Est - Titi Caca 7A




Back to Roche aux Sabots Sud, where I wanted to spend the last of my time left in "Namasté", yet another problem with a desperate mantle on non existing holds at the end.
It feels a bit strange climbing out of that pit, but knowing that the crashpad is only about a meter below you when doing the mantle feels comforting.

Fontainebleau - Roche aux Sabots Sud - Namasté 7B+(7B)




As "Namasté" was done on my second attempt already, I still had some time left to try the nearby "Call of j'te Dis".
A wall with a crack, totally my anti-style, but it looked so, why not.
It took a couple of tries to figure out how to start and position myself correctly, but all in all it took me at most ten minutes.
Yet again, I had fun with it!

Fontainebleau - Roche aux Sabots Sud - Call of j'te Dis 7A+(7A)




It was time to go home.

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