May 08, 2025 - The water of life.

Climbing together with Olaf (Deppe) is always fun and cozy, so I'm glad that he's back in the forest for a few months. We met up this morning on the parking of Rocher Guichot and it promised to be quite busy on this French public holiday. At 10h15, I grabbed the last parking spot on the real parking, Olaf already had to park further out and more cars kept arriving, looking for a spot. I wasn't worried about climbing in a crowd though, because we had planned to go all the way out to the far end of Grand Montagne, to try "Eau de Vie".
"Eau de Vie" was opened by Laurent Darlot in 2022, and the first time I went to try it, was in the same year. Leaving the boulder unfinished back then, I knew and had felt that it was harder than the 7A+(7B), proposed by Laurent. A year later, in 2023, I went back, had a new high point, but still wasn't able to finish the problem.
"Eau de Vie" is somewhat hidden between mossy boulders and a somewhat denser vegetation, so a perfect problem to try when you want to avoid people and perfect for trying in Summer. Today was such an occasion to go and try it again, and even more perfect with Olaf. Even though it was my third session on it today, my previous one was two years ago, and I had forgotten most of the moves that I had managed to figure out last time. Anyway, with Olaf being there too, I didn't mind starting over. Having his vision and thinking out of the box that I was in, is always beneficial, even if it turns out not to work sometimes. It just gives you a fresh look at the problem.
After having warmed up with doing the last, but still sketchy, part of the problem, we started working the first part. It took a while, but after many failed alternatives, we found a method that worked. A few attempts later, I managed to work myself through and finish "Eau de Vie", albeit just barely, by the tips of my fingers.
I don't know what Laurent had eaten the day that he opened it, but I want it too. Even after finally having done the problem, I still think that this felt like hard 7B the least.
Even though he still didn't do one specific move, Olaf is getting really close, but he will have to go back for it. I'm glad I was able to show him a problem that he can go back to when wanting to avoid people.

Fontainebleau - Grande Montagne - Eau de Vie 7B

May 04, 2025 - Unboxed.

I had some very close friends from Belgium that were staying over for a few days, so yesterday was only some easy circuit climbing until it was too hot.
After my friends had left for Belgium again, I went for a quick climb in Franchard Hautes Plaines, with the intention of dedicating some time in "Le Surplomb de la Coquine". I had tried it a few times, but only very briefly, since I never figured out what to do or how to move. Decided to stick with it this time, I forced myself to find a way. The starting position is very boxed in, so I needed quite some time to figure out how to get out of that box and then again even more time to think out of the box for a move that seemed too morpho at first.
After an hour of figuring out what to do, I ended up finding a way and then was able to execute it all immediately after turning on the camera.
Definitely not one of the nicest problems, but I was glad to have found a way for something that I had never understood before.

Fontainebleau - Franchard Hautes Plaines - Le Surplomb de la Coquine 7C(7B+)

May 01, 2025 - Russian roulette.

A few days ago, I got struck with some kind of belly flue, with painful cramps, and which made me feel very weak. Trying to fart was like playing Russian roulette. This morning, I was still feeling extremely weak and painful cramps were still bothering me once in a while. If I wouldn't have agreed to meet Victor (Burger) at the boulder of "Plains Toit" in Franchard Meyer this morning, I probably wouldn't have left for climbing at all. That's how I bad I still felt. Nevertheless, I met up with Victor at the boulder, and by the time I arrived, he had already worked out the moves, but was waiting for me, some extra crashpads, and a spotter to give it real send attempts.
His first few attempts, he fell off the last hard move, but after I gave him some advice for doing that move, he adapted and was able to finish it off. 
In between his attempts, I tried some of the moves, but it felt exhausting and I didn't even think I would be able to do the second part separately. Victor encouraged me to try from the start though and without any expectations, besides falling off too exhausted halfway, I gave it a go. To my big surprise, I climbed all the way until the last hard move, the one where Victor had fallen off a few times. I didn't make myself any illusions though, but I did turn on the camera for another quick attempt so I would have my method on camera for whenever I would come to try it again, in better body conditions. I was again able to get the last move, but fell off there again.
Victor had to leave, but I being so close, I got more motivated and somehow I was hardly feeling ill anymore. It had given me a boost, and I decided to stay, to have another attempt after a longer break.
Victor had left for barely five minutes and after placing the crashpads under the point where I had the most chance of falling, I gave it another attempt, feeling quite confident this time. I don't what it was, but I cruised through the problem, made it through the last hard move and topped out. It was time for me to stop complaining about how I had felt. Trying to fart is still a Russian roulette though.

Fontainebleau - Franchard Meyer - Plains Toit 7C

April 27, 2025 - Mental game.

I had proposed Jan and Sam to go to Rocher de la Salamandre today, where I finally wanted to try "Menumental", and I was glad they accepted. I had been wanting to try this beautiful boulder for such a long time, but it's not one that I would have ever dared to try it alone. 
We warmed up a little on the boulder of "Petit Tome", where I was impressed by Sam's quick adaptation to the Fontainebleau sandstone. It was only his second time here in the forest and on top of that, he's more of a route climber. Not the same style as you would find here in the forest.
After having warmed up, we went to "Menumental", where three other Belgian climbers were trying it as well. I'm sorry that I can't remember their names. I politely asked to join and tried to prepare mentally for my first attempt. With theirs and our crashpads stacked under the boulder, there was a pretty safe landing, as long as you didn't fall too far, because then you would suddenly three meters deeper.
After sticking the first move, the jump to a pinch, I was thinking about not having turned on the camera, but their cheers motivated me to keep going. I was in a flow and kept on going until I suddenly found myself on the top of the boulder. I flashed "Menumental". Luckily, one of the other Belgians had filmed the ascent and he will send it to me soon. 
Eager to have a video myself, I installed and turned on my own camera, and went for it again. Again, I didn't come off and climbed it the whole way again. The mental game was over.
The video posted here is the second time I climbed "Menumental". 
Two of the other Belgians had climbed it as well, almost making it a sending train.

Fontainebleau - Rocher de la Salamandre - Menumental 7B+

Jan didn't feel motivated and physically fit enough, so we all moved to the boulder of "Dune", where we wanted to try "Dune (sans convention)".
This problem seemed to have suited very well, because I did it on my second attempt. It must have suited me very well, because despite that I thought that the others would do it quickly too, nobody else had been able to do it more than an hour later.
It was unfortunately time for to go, and after watching Jan unexpectedly fall off the very top, I said goodbye and left. I felt a bit annoyed by it, but it was already much later than I intentionally had planned to stay.
Having seen Jan being so close and falling off where he shouldn't have anymore, I truly hope he was still able to finish it.

Fontainebleau - Rocher de la Salamandre - Dune (sans convention) 7B

April 26, 2025 - Few days, one post.

I was expecting visitors from Belgium last Thursday, so I had taken the day off work. Before they arrived, I had some time to go for a climb, but not too much, so I looked something up close by, with a not too far walk. The choice had become "Fermeture Éclair" in Canche aux Merciers, opened by Theo Konstantakopoulos in 2017. I had tried it once before a long time ago, and remembered that I couldn't get past the last part somehow. While driving, I was thinking that I actually like most of Theo's first ascents and kind of admired how a lot of times, he can see sitstarts to easy problems, creating a hard problem in the end. This also most of the time in popular areas, yet nobody seemed to have come up with his ideas.
I parked next to couple that was unloading their car, and to my pleasant surprise, it turned out to be Theo himself, with his wife and young kid. It was a very pleasant coincidence.
Trying "Fermeture Éclair", this time, I quickly figured out a method for the last part, but now I had more difficulties with the first move. Sticking with it, looking for alternative methods, I managed to top it out after all. It was nice to tell Theo afterwards in person that I did his problem. I didn't have time left after that, but we will meet up next time and climb together for sure.

Fontainebleau - Canche aux Merciers - Fermeture Éclair 7A+

Yesterday, I took my visitor, good old friend Koen, to the forest for an initiation in bouldering. We had a good time trying very easy problems in a pretty crowded Roche aux Sabots.
This morning, I received a message from Jan (Gorebeeck). He was in the neighborhood with his friend Sam, and they joined me for a climb in Cuvier Merveille. After a long warmup doing some easier problems, we moved over to the isolated boulder of "Bleautiful", of which I had done the standing start back in 2020, right after it was published. My goal for today was to do the sitstart.
I had it figured out quite quickly and was able to execute it soon after. Jan needed some more time and attempts, but ended up taking the ascent as well in the end. This one is a true beauty!
Thanks to Sam for filming.

Fontainebleau - Cuvier Merveille - Bleautiful (assis) 7B

April 19, 2025 - Struggle to succeed.

To escape the Easter weekend crowds, I had decided to go to the quite unpopular area of La Reconnaissance. There were a few boulders that I had put on my list to try and the first was going to be "Nicolaï Popovsky". With only three registered repeats on bleau.info, and the last known one being all the way back in 2009, it seemed to be a very unpopular boulder despite it looking pretty nice in my opinion.
I arrived at the small boulder, which was completely taken over by and covered under moss, and I almost left it for what it was, but when I noticed that the moss was coming quite easily with a stick, I stayed and started cleaning it again. Almost an hour later, it was finally ready to be climbed again.
I started working out the topout, which looked the hardest of the whole problem. Bad slopers, a strange body position and a quite desperate last move to a small crimp. It took me quite some time to manage to do it separately. Thinking I was ready, I started from the sitstart, which proved to be much harder than I anticipated. It turned out that I had work quite a bit on figuring out and doing the first move as well. When I was finally able to do it, I though it would be a quick deal linking it all together, but nothing could be more far from reality. I was struggling and had to put on a big fight. I gave it countless attempts, and almost every time fell on the topout. Taking a swing on the first move every time was sucking the power out of me and I had to take longer breaks to recover, all while loosing more and more skin from my fingertips.
I almost came to the point of giving up, but thinking I had spent all this time rebrushing the boulder and didn't feel like coming back here soon, I kept on trying, until finally after almost three hours at the boulder, managed to top it out. I was exhausted, but relieved that I did it.
definitely very hard for the grade, in my opinion and I would rather say that it's 7C. Many attempts are shown in the video, but it's not even all of them.

Fontainebleau - La Reconnaissance - Nicolaï Popovsky 7C(7B+)

April 16, 2025 - Manyata (droite).

After a very stressful day, I needed to clear my head and wanted to go for a climb after dinner. My idea was to go try "Manyata" again, without expecting too much of it. After all, it was going to be fourth session and I had been falling at the same point over and over again.
Having carefully inspected the key hold of "Manyata" many times, I am almost 100% sure that this broke at some point. Both bleau.info and 8a.nu show the last repeat of "Manyata" in 2016, so it must have broken s around that time.
I had many different thoughts about it over the past years, going from 'that's impossible', 'how does it go?' and 'something must have broken' many years ago, to 'there must be another way', 'hmmm, maybe it's possible this way' and 'I think I can do it' a few weeks ago.
This evening, with the intention to just be there and try the moves, just me and the boulder, away from all other thoughts, I felt good on it. So good even, that I finally managed to climb beyond the point where I always fell.
A sense of sending stress came over me, but I felt relaxed at the same time. There wasn't any real pressure, but then again there kind of was. It was a strange feeling, but it seemed to drive me somehow.
Getting past my high point again and not wanting to fall off, I decided at that moment to top out on the right. The least difficult topout.
I named it "Manyata (droite)", and graded it 7B+.
The direct exit remains a project. Perfect to go back for on an evening after work when my head needs to be cleared again.

Fontainebleau - Rocher Guichot - Manyata (droite) 7B+