It was a last moment decision when I decided to go for a quick climb after diner, so it was already late when I arrived in 91.1 to try another one of the recent openings of Theo (Konstantakopoulos). I had briefly tried the standing start of "Philion", named after Theo's son, a week or two ago, but quickly threw in the towel due to very bad skin. The standing start starts with a fairly good crimp left hand, and a very, very bad tiny crimp for the right. Hence my decision to quit last time when I had bad and sweaty skin. After my first attempt today, I thought it would be a quick deal and I would be able to work the sitstart soon, but it couldn't be farther from reality. After that first try, my right hand just kept on slipping off that tiny crimp at crucial moments and the times that I was able to jump, I was always too far off the better hold. It became a race against the upcoming darkness. My skin started to sweat as if it already was in recovery mode, but I persisted until I finally had an attempt where it stuck. I still tried the sitstart a few times, was able to get up into the standing start, but couldn't find enough on the crimp anymore to do the jump. In the meantime, darkness had caught up on me, and I was forced to quit. I will come back for this one quite soon though. The moves of the sitstart are beautiful.
A couple of days ago, Theo (Konstantakopoulos) sent me a message suggesting me to go try one of his new ascents in Canche aux Merciers, "Big Fish (assis)". As it was raining as good as all day yesterday, I only was able to go check it today this evening after work and dinner. We finished eating later than I expected, and it was already just past 20h when I arrived at the boulder. Even though it's not that noticeable on the videos, it was the very last light of the day and darkness was going to fall soon. I had to hurry. The starting pinches didn't suit me very well at first, but after a few minutes, featuring a few tries, I got the hang of it and topped it out. Pretty nice one indeed.
Fontainebleau - Canche aux Merciers - Big Fish (assis) 7A+
I still had a little time before it would be really dark, and I spent it on the other side of the boulder, trying "Pac-Man", also from Theo. A huge very violent move to the right, followed by a harder than it looks topout. Quite sketchy as well. Somehow, barely ten minutes later, I managed to stick the dyno, did the far move to the slopey arete and to my surprise, I didn't fall off. Improvising, I had to use a power scream to not fall off at the very end. It seemed to have helped, because I topped it out then.
Fontainebleau - Canche aux Merciers - Pac-Man 7B+(7B)
Yesterday, Saturday, it was my birthday and even though I wanted to climb in the morning, I had to keep the session short so I could do something with my family later that day. It would have been great to be able to do "Tempête Solaire" in Apremont Butte aux Dames, but the conditions weren't ideal and I didn't want to spend the whole session again trying the separate moves. Instead, I chose to go to the nearby boulder of "Bavaria", with the intention to try the harder problems on it, starting with "8-6 Bavaria (bas)". The transition low to the left using the beta I saw online seemed impossible at first, but thinking out of the box made me come up with another method, using a toehook for the right and a hidden kneebar for the left leg. It worked, but the crux near the end was giving me some trouble. Luckily it didn't take too long before I was also able to solve the problem there and a few attempts from the start later, I was able to make my way through to the end. I really liked the solution that I found on this one.
To finish the session, I made a quick ascent, from my first attempt, doing the slightly easier "8-6 Bavaria", which does use the better holds higher up. Nice one on itself.
Fontainebleau - Apremont Butte aux Dames - 8-6 Bavaria 7A+
Still hectic and stressful workdays, and with rain forecasted for the weekend, I was in a desperate need for a short climb this evening. I was keeping an eye on the sky outside during dinner and it looked threatening. I immediately left after dinner to the nearby La Ségognole, looking at dark clouds coming my way. I wanted to try the new "Sacrée Pince", just recently opened by Theo (Konstantakopoulos), but I feared that it would start raining as soon as I arrived. Luckily, it didn't, and I hurried putting on my shoes after having turned on the camera. Despite not having warmed up at all, there was a slight possibility that I would do this quickly. I wasn't very wrong and was able to send it on my third attempt. It was all about the first move, like many of Theo's first ascents. I did love the starting pinch, which seemed to fit my hand perfectly. I could feel a few rain drops while walking back to the car, and after only a few hundred meters of driving, the clouds turned on their tap and let it all out. It was suddenly raining cats and dogs and my street had almost turned into a river by the time I got back home. It was a perfect timing.
I didn't have a very good weekend climbing wise, but I had good company nonetheless. After a very heavy work week, I still felt tired throughout the whole weekend and it was hard to keep the motivation high somehow. Luckily Lars and Simi and also Theo on Sunday, were there to keep the session bearable, which made stay instead of just calling it a very short session. Yesterday, I wanted to try "Man Power" in Apremont Désert, and after a short warmup trying the moves of "Les Surimis" on the boulder next to it, I was pleasantly joined by Lars and his girlfriend Simi. Soon after their arrival, I was able to do "Les Surimis".
Fontainebleau - Apremont Désert - Les Surimis 7A+(7B)
My attention then briefly turned to "Man Power", but after having worked out almost all the moves separately, I somehow lost interest and didn't feel like trying hard. We decided to move to another boulder on which I briefly tried "Le Hurleuir", but also there lost interest pretty quickly as it just felt too hard for the day. Instead, after watching Simi send "Malicia" on the other side of the boulder, Lars and I started trying a harder version, "Malicia (droite)". Even though we had a good idea about how to the hard mantle, the whole crux of the problem, execution turned out much harder than the theory. In the end, I was able to get away with it, but Lars will have to come back, despite having been so close.
Today, I had agreed to meet Theo (Konstantakopoulos) in 91.1, and also Lars and Simi were there. Theo had found an isolated boulder just outside the main area and after some brushing and cleaning, we were able to imagine a logical problem. It turns out to be very hard, and despite having done the moves separately, none of us could do a full ascent yet. Would have been nice to get the team send. Theo then showed us one of nicer lines, "Philion", named after his son. I definitely see this doable one day, but my skin was thin, sweaty, and I couldn't motivate myself anymore to try hard. It was nice to see Lars do the standing start. Definitely one of Theo's nicest. I can't say that I had completely off-weekend, but it certainly and unfortunately wasn't so on neither.
My main goal for today was the new "Catastrophe Eclairée" in Roche d'Hercule, recently opened by Richard Reggio and his friends, at a couple of meters to the left of "Fenbren le Fou". It's a quite high boulder, but the landing is pretty good, so I wasn't bothered trying it alone. The initial jump felt scary at first, but after a couple of attempts building up confidence, I was able to do it every time. But it's only then that the real difficulty starts. The high crimps aren't very good and there is no way to try the upper part separately, so it took quite some time before I started getting comfortable on them, but with each attempt, I felt I was getting closer. Then suddenly, I stuck everything nearly perfectly, stayed calm and topped all the way out. Really a beautiful climb!
On the way back, I joined some Belgian climbers from Antwerp, trying "Le Temps est Arrêté", on an aesthetically beautiful boulder, but one that I never dared to try alone. Now, with maybe six crashpads and a spotter, I remained calm and only a handful of attempts later, we all did the problem. One of them will have to come back for it, but it only being his second 7th grade boulder, I was still impressed with his attempts.
Fontainebleau - Roche d'Hercule - Le Temps est Arrêté (direct) 7B(7A+)
I was completely exhausted when I arrived at home at 22h on Friday, after having spent all week in the South of France for my job. A busy schedule with very long days had worn me out and I still felt mentally tired when I woke up in my own bed yesterday morning. Despite the exhaustion, I went back to "Tempête Solaire" to spend another session on it, even though I knew that the warm conditions weren't in my favor. Nevertheless, I had a quite good session and was able to do the whole problem in two overlapping parts instead of three the previous session. I'm definitely still making progress on it. This morning, I needed a change and went for a playing session in Rocher de la Combe Est, a small area that I had never been to before. I started with "Playtoi", that I was able to do on my second attempt. A short roof boulder that really suited my style.
Fontainebleau - Rocher de la Combe Est - Playtoi 7B(7A+)
Next, I made the dyno of "Playground" on my first attempt, but dabbed on the swing. I moved the crashpad a bit and did it again without dab on my second attempt as well.
Fontainebleau - Rocher de la Combe Est - Playground 7A+
To end the session I had some fun with some playful climbing in a nearby big roof.
When I was browsing bleau.info, looking for inspiration a few days ago, I stumbled upon "Culbutor (assis)", and immediately knew that this was what I was going to try today. It had been on my list for quite some time, but I never took the decision to actually go and try it. Today was finally the day. It was already quite hot when I arrived this morning around 10h, but the boulder is facing North, so it was very bearable. I warmed with doing the standing start, which I did on my second attempt, failing on the first, because I didn't feel very confident. I immediately did it again afterwards to make I got the good method in my body and head, and to gain more confidence. When I then wanted to try the roof part and sat down for the start, the first move felt absolutely impossible. The really far left hand crimp/pinch looked like miles away and I already started thinking about letting it go. Figuring that I had come here for this boulder especially, I of course stayed and made minor changes after each failed attempt on the first move. When I finally found a way to do that move, holding it and moving the feet at first seemed even harder. Luckily, I was able to the first move early every time, and again after changing some micro beta for my body positioning and body tension, I also suddenly was able to move my feet and go for the second far right hand move to the lip of the roof. Now I only needed to be able to hold the huge swing when letting of the feet in the roof, but it turned out that this definitely wasn't the hardest move for me. Learning to hold swing went pretty quickly. Having done all the moves of the first part and having the second part a few times separately, I was confident enough to set up the camera. Somewhat surprisingly, I didn't mess anything up and almost cruised through the roof, held the swing, stayed focused and topped out. After a short break, I repeated it again, this time to be able to show the whole second part, which is a beauty on itself. I really loved the slow but steady progress on this one, one of the beauties of climbing.
All in all, I had done "Culbutor (assis)" quicker than I expected, so I still had time for a little bonus climb before it got way too hot. Being just below the top of the hill, I decided to walk all the way to "Asics" on the top of the hill in the Maunoury area. I had wanted to try this low roof for a long time, but it's a slow drying roof, and never had the luck to find it completely dry. I figured that that wouldn't be a problem now. "Asics" turned out to be a little bit more complex at first, but that's mainly because there seem to be so many options to climb through the roof. After deciding on which method to stick to, it went down relatively fast. Glad to have finally done that one.
I actually wanted to take a rest day today, but after a whole morning of garden labor, I needed something else and decided to go to Roche aux Oiseaux for a quick climb anyway. After a long period of drought, it seemed like a good idea to finally try the very slow drying "Tudoisjefaisouquoiahbon". Try to say that name out loud correctly from the first time. Definitely a contender for most stupid name for a boulder problem in the forest. It might have its reasons to be named as such, but I'm not in the know. Somehow, this problem always scared me a bit, climbing right above a low boulder and a sketchy landing. I probably always thought it was a good reason not to try it when it's mostly wet. Anyway, I took the time to practice the crux move, going from two tiny crimps on the lip of the roof to a very far sharp jug high above. Surprisingly, it didn't feel as scary as I expected it to be, and I was able to do the move rather quick, immediately followed by the ascent of the whole line.
Fontainebleau - Roche aux Oiseaux - Tudoisjefaisouquoiahbon 7B(7A+)
It was extremely hot and I had almost packed up already, when I figured to try a more interesting variation. The original problem starts with a sitstart with both hands on a very good huge low ledge. As it's allowed to use that same ledge for the feet afterwards, the first part of the problem consists of almost literally walking on it. I now wanted to the same line, but completely excluding that lowest ledge. Of course, in this case it starts standing with both hands on the higher ledge and then climbing through the roof without the low ledge. It makes the problem slightly harder and definitely more interesting. As I knew how to do the crux move, it went down from my first attempt.
Fontainebleau - Roche aux Oiseaux - Tudoisjefaisouquoiahbon (sans le bas) 7B
Yesterday morning, my main goal was to try "Habibi" in Apremont Fond des Gorges; a very isolated and slightly hidden boulder, away from everyone. I had looked for it a few years ago when I was in the neighborhood, and found it wet after quite a long search. I was able to have a good look at it though, and I was determined to come back for it one day after a longer dry period. Not having had a lot of rain for quite some time, yesterday seemed like a good moment. It was a hard battle against high and dense ferns, but it was all worth it. I took a brief moment to try the upper part as a warmup, tried the first move and immediately sent it after turning on the camera. I was glad, but also a bit disappointed that I already had to leave that nice isolated place again.
Fontainebleau - Apremont Fond des Gorges - Habibi 7B(7B+)
This morning, I had the intention to try "L'Être Hâve (assis)" in Mont Ussy, which I did, but after dry firing off the crimps for the x'th time, I decided to pack up and walk over to Roche d'Hercule to try "Finement Con", a boulder where I already stopped several times, but the holds under the roof were always wet so I could never try it. Now, it was all dry and I was finally able to spend some time on it. This one turned out to be quite harder than I expected, but with each attempt I made progress. I was able to climb the whole thing after a longer time that I had anticipated and when I got back down from the boulder, I noticed the camera standing full in the sun that had passed the trees and the boulder. It was standing the shade at first, but sun had moved from behind the trees and the boulder, shining directly into the lens. There was absolutely nothing to be seen (see the first few seconds in the video below). I wanted to repeat it again, but it had become too hot and I barely had any skin left. As I had to move the camera much closer to be in the shade, it couldn't capture the whole boulder anyway, so I decided to just make a montage and did it again in two overlapping parts.
Fontainebleau - Roche d'Hercule - Finement Con 7B(7B+)
My brother from a different mother and his girlfriend were visiting over the weekend, and even though we barely climbed, it was quite exhausting. Being out of my regular rhythm and having short nights always takes a toll on me. I didn't let it get to me too much, so after they left this morning, I drove to Rocher Canon, with only "La Mare (droite)" in mind. I had passed by and stood in front of "La Mare (droite)" many times in the past, but I had never had the chance to actually try it. Either there was a big pool of water just under it, or it was at the end of a session and I didn't have it in me anymore to try it. Being such a beautiful boulder and a classic of the area, I had to at least try it once. The boulder was dry and so was the little pit below it. Nevertheless, the conditions kind of felt bad and I wasn't sure if it was due to my skin or the holds themselves that never get the sun on them. I also felt tired and had already come into peace with the fact that I might not even be able to top it out today, but then I found a toehook on the right. It opened up another possibility and it only took a few attempts to get it to work and top it out. Glad to have done this classic, and I even might go back one day for the sitstart.
Fontainebleau - Rocher Canon - La Mare (droite) 7B
For the third time in three months, an illegal rave has been causing me two nights with little sleep. This time, the rave was being held in a meadow in the forest at not even three kilometers from my house. Hearing the constant techno beats from Friday night through to this afternoon is quite tiring and annoying. The gendarmerie is aware, but besides checking everyone that enters or leaves, they can't do a lot. A small village gendarmerie corps can't do much against a group of 200 ravers. I have to admit that I couldn't suppress a smile on my face when the rain poured out of the sky for about an hour this morning, Okay, everything was wet, but feeling tired, I didn't feel like leaving early for a climb anyway. Early afternoon, I arrived in the Franchard Raymond area and walked straight to "Stach-Stach". The regular start with the slopey ledge served as a good warmup to get my body going.
Fontainebleau - Franchard Raymond - Stach-Stach 7A
The low start, named "Kouloukoukou / Stach-Stach (du bas)" took me substantially longer. It doesn't add a lot of moves, but they are somewhat awkward to execute, despite involving a toehook. When the strange toehook stayed in place long enough, it was an easy topout. Both the regular and low starts are very soft for the grade, but I had fun, and that's what counts.
First, a video from last Tuesday evening, when I went for a quick climb in Rocher Guichot after dinner. Just playing around in some of the moves of "L'Atelier", and ended doing a dyno from about the middle of "L'Atelier", straight up. The topout was lichened and required some brushing beforehand, but when Christophe (Laumone) passed by coincidently, I asked him, and he confirmed that it had been done already ages ago. I couldn't find any information about it on bleau.info, so until any information pops up, I named it "Jeté Oublié".
This morning, I walked the whole way to Rocher Fin, which didn't turn out to be a very good idea. I don't go there often and I can't even remember when the last time was. There were two problems that I had in mind, "La Micholeg (assis)" and "El Kift". Unfortunately, both were full in the sun, and it was much hotter than it felt this morning when I left the house. Due to the still growing heat, I didn't even bother trying "La Micholeg (assis)", and dedicated all my attention and effort trying "El Kift". I had briefly tried "El Kift" a few times in the past, but never for long,because I was never able to come close to doing the first move. My first attempts today weren't any better, but despite the heat, I made slow progress and decided to stick with it. The boulder being full in the sun, made me take small breaks in the shade after about every two attempts. It was somewhat annoying and I almost decided to leave when I suddenly stuck the first move and almost matched the small crimp. With a boosted motivation, I kept trying and suddenly was able to match the crimp and go for the sloper higher up. I knew that I could that last part and I thought it was going to be a done deal, but the warm slopers and crimps made me doubt and I still fell off where I shouldn't have anymore. Knowing now that slopers and crimps at the top were feeling so warm, I at least knew what to expect and was quite confident that I would be able to topout if only I would be able to repeat what I just did. After a short break in the shade, I did everything the same, except for the end. This time I was able to top it out.
After a short work week of physical rest, I felt in good enough shape to go back to the big roof of Eléphant Ouest. I especially wanted to retry "Grosminet", but upon arrival, I started warming up in the vertical last part of "Splatch". Starting from the big hold right at the lip of the roof, it seemed like the most difficult part of "Splatch" was there. It took me a while to figure out how to get from the big hold to the good slot far left and took a few good falls there, luckily each time on the only crashpad I had taken with me, besides the starter pads. Once I had figured it out though, I decided to go for "Splatch", took a few good deep breaths and set off. The first part under the roof went quite good, and when I got to the big hold on the lip of the roof, I didn't waste time or energy trying to rest there. Being a pure boulderer, I haven't learned how to rest well at big holds. Mostly they just continue sucking the power out of me. Knowing what to do, I got passed the sketchy move to the slot, stayed focused and topped out. That was a nice surprise.
Fontainebleau - Eléphant Ouest - Splatch 7B(7B+)
After a short break, it was time to retry "Grosminet", and I immediately felt the difference compared to last time when I was feeling so tired. It still felt really hard, but I could move and started to believe it was possible. After a couple of tweaks, I finally also managed to do the crux move and I started doing some real attempts from the start. It was hard and I fell a few times, but with each attempt, I memorized the moves better and better, until finally, it all stuck and I was able to top out. It did feel hard though, and I really had to put up a fight to get this beauty done.
My body felt quite tired this morning and it was already pretty late in the morning when I arrived at the big roof of Eléphant Ouest. My initial idea was to try "Sherpa", but I was alone, feeling tired, and after inspecting the whole line and seeing the quite exposed topout, I decided to try something else. "Grosminet" looked nice and in my style, but no matter what I tried, I just didn't have enough power to do the crux move. As a consolidation prize, I settled with a flash go of "Le Grand Toit (droite)".
Fontainebleau - Eléphant Ouest - Le Grand Toit (droite) 7A(6C+)
Yesterday I wanted to go try "La Soirée des Galères" in Long Rocher, but what I thought was going to be a Northern orientated line, was in reality facing South and completely in the sun. It was a bad judgement call and I should have looked more carefully at the small map that is posted online. Way too hot for that problem, directly in the sun, so I looked for "Un Vendredi 13". This was is indeed facing North and on top of that, starting in a rather deep pit, very shady. The starting position is a bit strange, but once I knew what to do and figured out the moves, it went down quickly.
Fontainebleau - Long Rocher - Un Vendredi 13 7A+
This morning, I made a good choice by going to Coquibus Longs Vaux to try "À Préhension". A big quite low, but very shady roof. Perfect to try on hot Summer days like today. I warmed with the easy topout, after which I figured out the first part quite quickly. The middle section with the left heelhook and the very far reachy move to the lip gave me some trouble, but after perfecting the heelhook position, it became quite consistent. I had a few good attempts getting up to the lip, but the dynamic move to the jug up on the lip felt extremely wild and I couldn't hold it without hitting the ground or the crashpad. During a short break, I watched a few videos posted online and noticed that all of them were going right hand to the jug instead of the left, like I had been trying. It seemed strange at first, but when I checked it out, it did seem logical in a way. It seemed like going right hand would allow for the left heelhook to stick a fraction of a second longer, a small detail that could make a lot of difference. After the break, I was determined to try it that way, and miraculously, it worked out on my first try. The swing was wild, but I had the jug and I wasn't going to let go. Having done the topout as a warmup a bit earlier, I didn't get nervous and topped out just like I knew I would. Great problem!
Fontainebleau - Coquibus Longs Vaux - À Préhension 7C+(7C)
The first time that I was in Mont Ussy many many years ago, I honestly wasn't really impressed by the massive crack of "Amour Noir". It definitely wasn't love at first sight. Hey, I probably didn't even realize that there was a problem going through it. Even later, when I certainly knew about the line, it didn't attract me, because it looked impossible and I didn't know at all what crack climbing is all about. It was only a few years ago, when I briefly tried the crack of "Pure Line" in Rocher de Télégraphe, that I realized how difficult it actually is when you don't have the experience. I couldn't even link two moves in a row, and it was since that day that I truly learned to appreciate and respect the climbers that are into crack climbing. It definitely didn't feel as straight forward as I expected it to be. It was also since then that I played with the idea of trying "Amour Noir" one day, even though being a totally different crack than "Pure Line" and requiring a totally different approach. The good moment never came to me, but finally a few days ago, I agreed with Olaf to go try it today. I didn't expect too much of it, but I was eager to step in and feel what the moves are like. I did watch several videos, and the moves looked kind of obvious.
On my first attempt in "Amour Noir" this morning, I was able to do a few moves through the crack, but fell off after only a little more than 1 meter, but it felt like I had done 10. It surely felt more exhausting than I expected, and for a moment it felt like it would be impossible because I would have to do about 3 meters more before getting to the first normal hold. As the moves through the crack are quite repetitive, I knew I just had to give it all to be able to stand a chance. I decided to turn on the camera, just in case I would get far enough to make a chance for topping out, ruling out the possibility wanting to jump off to turn it on and start all over. I started my second attempt without real expectations besides trying to get as far as I could. I didn't expect at all to be able to slowly work my way through the first part, but I did. Now I had to find a way to get completely into the crack and find my way out through to the top. After a short struggle, I got in thanks to Olaf's encouragements, and listened to him when he told me I could take a rest where I was. It was easier said than done, but it worked. However, I was in there, looking for a way out, but couldn't turn my head anymore. I was definitely out of my comfort zone, but stayed calm and looked for options. Being able to lean back again after a while, I could turn my head again and found the best hold to pull myself out at the top, somewhat desperate, but it worked. Hearing Olaf's and Noah's shouts of encouragement, motivated me to give it one last push and then, there I was, out of the crack and on the top of the boulder. I was scratched, bruised and completely exhausted, but relieved. It was truly a great experience climbing this nice crack line.
Me and my youngest son, Noah, had agreed to look and climb at the quiet and for now quite unknown small area of "Le Miroir Magique", just outside of the town of Fontainebleau itself. Completely new to me, I didn't have any expectations and especially wanted for Noah to have a good time. Olaf, on the other hand, had planned to finally try the whole infamous but beautiful purple circuit of Dame Jouanne. Before I left the house with Noah, I saw on Instagram that Olaf had started his long journey at 9h in the morning, taking advantage of the morning freshness. At Le Miroir Magique, Noah climbed very good and I noticed a lot how much better his footwork has become. He's taking the time to read and analyze problems before trying and it paid off. When he needed a break, I used the occasion to climb some problems, starting with "Cœur de Pierre", which went quickly, on my second attempt.
Fontainebleau - Le Miroir Magique - Cœur de Pierre 7B(7A+)
I needed quite a few more attempts on "Coup d'Éclats" right next to it.
Fontainebleau - Le Miroir Magique - Coup d'Éclats 7A+
To finish my part of the session, I also got away with "Dargonne King" after having worked out the crux move.
Fontainebleau - Le Miroir Magique - Dargonne King 7B+(7B)
Noah then continued his session with doing an impressive variation, starting in "La Diagonale" (from the small boulder), and finishing in "La Conque" to the left of it.
Fontainebleau - Le Miroir Magique - Diagonale Vers La Conque 3 (Noah)
Finally, he also managed to climb "L'Écaille". I was honestly very impressed by what Noah all climbed that session!
Fontainebleau - Le Miroir Magique - L'Écaille 3 (Noah)
After our session, we drove to Dame Jouanne to briefly support Olaf with his full circuit attempt. He was just past halfway when we found him and watched him do several problems, including a very impressive ascent and downclimb of the Dame Jouanne itself. A staggering 15m high and part of the purple circuit. At 4h45 PM, I received a message that he was done, and can count himself as one of the few who climbed the whole purple circuit in one day. After more than 7 hours of climbing, covering about 800m of climbing meters, Olaf wrote a bit of history. Only few people have taken on and completed this challenge. I bet that there are even more climbers who climbed 8C in the forest, then climbers who have done what he just did today. Congratulations Olaf!
When Olaf agreed yesterday evening to go try "La Nuit" in Coquibus Longs Vaux today, I already started to get a bit nervous. This beautiful problem has been on my list from the very first time I saw it, but I had tried it once briefly with Pieter. Given the exposure, I would at least need a second crashpad and preferably a spotter, to feel safe, so I never had the chance to go back for it, or just didn't think about it at the right moment. When I started realizing yesterday evening that today could be the day, I felt excited and nervous at the same time. The temperature this morning was perfect, still around 20°C, but compared to the past two weeks, it felt fresh and I could feel the difference in oxygen in the air as well. A light breeze made it all even better. The boulder allows for working out the moves separately, so that's exactly what we did. During the process, Olaf gained more and more confidence, and started believing that "La Nuit" could be an unexpected cherry on the cake of his trip. We both made good progress and after I had done all the moves separately, I took a short break before giving it my first actual go from the start. It was completely unexpected that I was immediately able to do the first move, and for a split second second I felt a slight hesitation, but I regained total control when I also did the second move. We had practiced the other moves very thoroughly and I continued, executing the remaining moves perfectly until I reached the top. It was a magical moment. By the time I had to leave to be back home for my son, Olaf was still missing one move, the first one. He had come close, and I felt sorry that I really had to leave. He understood though and walked with me back to the car so he could take a second crashpad for his remaining attempts. He was determined to finish "La Nuit" as well. I think I felt as much joy as when I stood on top of the boulder when he sent me a message a few hours later, writing he had done "La Nuit".
Fontainebleau - Coquibus Longs Vaux - La Nuit 7C(7B+)
With temperatures going deep into the 30°C the last days, it's extremely hot, just like in many other European countries. Because of the extreme, it's nearly impossible to climb in the afternoon, and even in the morning, it's best to find some very shady boulders. Yesterday, I met up with Olaf and Victor at Beauregard, to climb in the shady roof of "Seuls les Vrais le Savent". Olaf was working in "Seuls les Vrais le Savent" itself, while Victor and I were working in "C'est Toujours Pour Ceux qui Savent". Despite the three of us doing moving quite well, we couldn't finish our respective boulders. As a consolidation prize, we did do a team ascent of the easier "Savoir Limitrophe", after which Victor had to leave.
Olaf and I stayed at the boulder, where I was still able to squeeze out a quick ascent of "Les Sachants s'Echauffent (droite)", also repeated by Olaf later that day.
Fontainebleau - Beauregard - Les Sachants s'Echauffent (droite) 7A
Today, even though already very hot in the morning, I met with Olaf in Recloses where we walked straight to "Le Clapotis Rondouillard", a boulder that I couldn't try last time, a few weeks ago, because it was wet. Now it was perfectly dry. I warmed up in the standing start, but came to realize that the move to the right of the low start is really morpho. Despite being able to reach the hold, there was no way for me to hold it due to not being able to keep my left foot where it was, no matter what, my legs aren't long enough, and I always cut off. As I also couldn't do Manuel Marquès' method, I was about to give up, when I suddenly had the idea to try the far right move and keep myself from swinging, by doing a left toehook catch at the same time. It still felt nearly impossible, but it gave me hope and I decided to try that method some more. It's a kind of move that you would normally see in new-school competition style boulders.As I never climb indoors, I'm not familiar with that style of climbing, but thanks to my gymnastics background (I guess), I seemed to be learning fast and got close to holding it with every attempt.
When I finally did that move from one move in, I turned on the camera, was able to do it again two attempts later and finished it off.
Fontainebleau - Recloses - Le Clapotis Rondouillard 7B+
After doing the easy, but nice slab right next to it, we moved over to the nearby boulder of "Body Press", which seemed impossible with very bad slopers in the heat, but, very surprisingly, I was able to finish it on my second attempt. Definitely not a bad session in that heat.
Yesterday evening, the whole family went to the Oh My Bloc festival in Milly, where it was great to see some friends, some of which I hadn't seen for a long a time. I tried to be back home on time to not disturb my rhythm too much, but there a marriage party going two houses away from mine and I had difficulties falling asleep. By the time I almost fell asleep, it was well past midnight when I was suddenly spooked by loud bangs of fireworks from the party right next door. I was wide awake again. No wonder I was feeling very tired this morning when I met Olaf at Rocher d'Avon. He, Lars and Simi were at the festival too, and stayed longer than I did, so it wasn't a surprise that they were feeling quite tired too. Luckily, the temperature went down substantially today, and the friction on the boulder of "Basta" was very good, which was somewhat motivating. Nevertheless, I didn't have anything too hard in mind. I started with "Rasta (assis)" which I strangely enough had never tried before. The dyno was okay, and so was the topout, but I needed a bit of time to work on the middle move to be able to match the lip of the overhang right hand. Once I knew what to do though, it went down quickly.
Fontainebleau - Rocher d'Avon - Rasta (assis) 7A
Right after Olaf did "Pasta", I followed with "Pastis", starting in "Rasta (assis)" and topping out at the far right, above "Freak of the Weak". That was fun to do with such good friction. Manuel (Marquès) was working in a new problem just below and after he had come over to see who was there, he invited us to come and try what he was working on. I was able to do the standing start on my second attempt, but felt too tired to do the crux move of the sitstart. Motivated by our presence, Manuel was able to send the whole line with us watching and motivating him. After a nice long chat, we went back to the boulder of "Basta", where also Lars and Simi had arrived by that time.
Fontainebleau - Rocher d'Avon - Pastis 7A+
Simi lost a lost of skin trying "Hasta", while Lars and I made very quick work of "Pasta". Lars had a very hard time for the matching move on "Rasta (assis)", but after carefully working on little details on his body position, he also ended up with doing it. Olaf had too much trouble doing the dyno move, but was still able to do the standing and crouching start. Good vibrations on what felt a bit like a lazy day, but ended up being quite productive for the state I was in.
Last weekend, I tried "La Traversée d'Incognito" and fell off the very last move a couple of times. It was only when I was already too tired to try again, that maybe "La Traversée de Zigzag" probably suits me more because of the toehooks at the first part of "Zigzag" itself. I feel pretty comfortable with them and even the impression that I can rest for a second. This morning, after a few very hot days and warm nights, I met Olaf again at Justice de Chambergeot, determined to go full on for "La Traversée de Zigzag" and hoping to finish it before the real heat would start again. After a short warmup, just trying the moves of the last part, I felt quite confident, but fell off the last hard move again. There was still too much doubt in some of my movements and with so many moves, it's definitely better to stay in a steady flow. The attempt after the exact same thing happened and the heat was already starting to kick in. The sweat was dripping of my face and whole upper body, and I told Olaf that I probably wouldn't be able to finish it today. Barely ten minutes, and one attempt later, I found myself on top of the boulder, having finished "La Traversée de Zigzag" with the support of Olaf, Lars and his girlfriend Simi. Unexpected success after doubt.
Fontainebleau - Justice de Chambergeot - La Traversée de Zigzag 7C
Today was supposed to be an active rest day in the company of Olaf, Lars and his girlfriend Simi. I met Olaf at the parking of Justice de Chambergeot, and we walked straight to the boulder of "Zigzag". Many lines on this boulder, so enough choice. After a short warmup trying some of the moves of "Zigzag", I sat down and sent it on my first attempt from the start. Olaf followed me quickly, but going through "Incognito (droite assis)".
Fontainebleau - Justice de Chambergeot - Zigzag 7A
Despite feeling tired and it being a kind of rest day, I started trying some of the moves of "La Traversée d'Incognito". At that moment, Lars and Simi also arrived, and I got motivated to try the whole line. To my surprise, I got through almost the whole boulder, falling off the last hard move, feeling exhausted and with sweaty fingers. I felt too tired to try it again, but I'm sure that this should go down soon when I have better skin and feel fresh. Below, the video of my attempt in "La Traversée d'Incognito", and my story about flashing "An 8A+" in Rocher Canon. Sound on if you want to hear about it.
I met with Olaf and Brian on the parking of Pierre le Sault, just outside of Nemours. A small quite unknown area where I had never gone before, and neither had the others. We waited a while for Victor, but when he wrote that he was still in doubt of what to do, we headed for the boulder of "L'Arche". the boulder looked quite small from far, but as we got closer, it only looked better and better, especially when walking around it. There are a few lines that go through the long roof, each taking a different exit. We started warming with trying the exit of the least hard, "L'Arche (droite)". We figured it out quite quickly and after inspecting some of the other moves under the roof itself, I decided to go for it and was able to send it immediately from the start, which was not a luxury, because even though the holds are quite good, the amount of them can quickly wear one out. When Olaf also managed to climb the whole line, it looked like it was going to be sending train on this one.
Fontainebleau - Pierre le Sault - L'Arche (droite) 7A+
While Brian was still working some of the moves under the roof and trying to perfect his sequence for the right topout, I quickly found the way to finish the slightly harder left exit. I didn't let any time pass and sent the left exit also from my first attempt when coming from the start. This was definitely harder than the other, but I didn't hesitate and topped it out, albeit being completely out of breathe. I filmed both exits again separately to give an idea of how these look.
Fontainebleau - Pierre le Sault - L'Arche (gauche) 7B
Meanwhile, the sending train was delayed, because due to very bad, or the lack of, skin on his fingertips, Brian fell at least three times on the sloper at the very last move of the right exit. When he finally decided to give it one last go before giving up, it turned out to be the good one and he was still able to hop on the sending train, just in time. Great session with good and chill company on a very cool boulder. Nothing but good vibes.
I met Olaf this morning on the parking in Le Vaudoué, as we decided to go the small and quite unpopular area of Le 111. It being unpopular was one of the reasons why we chose that area, as it is again a long weekend with Monday being a public holiday in many European countries. The weather wasn't as good as last week, and it had even rained a bit this morning, but there was a nice wind, and everything was dry again quickly. It's quite a long walk to Le 111, but as usual, Olaf's company made it feel shorter than expected. We immediately started trying "Chaud Latin", the other reason why we chose that area. The conditions felt mediocre at first, but got better with every attempt. It was quite fast that I suddenly got high enough to be in a good position for the final jump, but I hadn't turned on the camera yet, so I decided to jump off instead. I felt quite confident that I would be able to that last far dynamic move, even though it's a somewhat scary one. Unfortunately, a thicker grey cloud passed over and there was a short light rain shower. Not enough to make the rock wet, but just enough to make the slopey hold far right loose the good friction that I felt when getting there the first time. On top of that, I was climbing too confident and didn't pay enough attention to important details, which made fall off a few times. When I finally ended u in the good position again, and the friction was back, I set off for the jump and stuck the high sloper from the first time. A truly beautiful problem with great moves from start to end.
Fontainebleau - Le 111 - Chaud Latin 7B
Olaf usually needs some more time to get into it, but he was making quite progress this time. When he suddenly cruised through the first part and got to the far right slopey hold, he started to amaze me. He got the left hold just barely, but hung in there and slowly got into a much better position. He was in position to do the jump, but he looked down and I could feel and see his doubt. I encouraged him, even though I somehow expected him to bail out and jump off, but he stayed there, positioned his feet to prepare for the jump. I watched in awe and saw him make the big jump, but he just didn't make it far enough. Despite not having made it, we were both extremely excited. Knowing Olaf, doing such jumps is not his cup of tea, so I really admired his great effort. I could see on his face that he had surpassed himself in a way and I felt proudness and true excitement for him. He made handful of other great attempts at the jump, but he had to throw the towel in the end. He will be back for it again at another day, and I would love to be there for him when he does. I would love to another such session of shared excitement.
On the way back, we stopped at the nearby Rocher de la Tortue, where we were advised by Markus (Neher) to the sitstart of "Opus Marron". Markus had opened the standing start not very long ago, but hadn't been able to do the sitstart. I'm not entirely sure if Markus meant a sistart slightly left with an obvious undercling, but it seemed like the most logical place to start. Olaf wasn't very interested in it, so I got away with the first ascent of "Opus Marron (assis gauche)". Hard to grade, but I would estimate it be about 6C+, maybe 6C, depending on how tall you are.
Fontainebleau - Rocher de la Tortue - Opus Marron (assis gauche) 6C+ (First Ascent)
Friday was the first very, very hot with temperatures going above 30°C at the hottest moment of day. We, Olaf, Markus and myself had therefor decided to go to the shady boulder of "Le Crabe d'Or" in Moigny-sur-Ecole. Also, because we would make sure to avoid the huge crowds that had taken over the popular sectors of the forest. Some of the holds under the roof weren't dry, so we had to limit ourselves to the few lines that were dry enough to be climbed. It was a fun session nonetheless, during which we were all able to climb a few lines. I had already climbed most of them last year, but it was fun repeating them together, and on top of that, I was able to grab one that I hadn't done before, "Object Lunule (gauche)". This boulder seems to keep giving new lines and variations.
The day after, yesterday, we met in Recloses to hopefully climb some nice problems right outside of the village. Hopefully, because it was cloudy and some light rain showers popped up now and then. On top of that, the air humidity was very high and felt heavy. The kind of air that makes you sweat and feel sticky with the slightest effort. We were able to climb some easier and new problems while warming up, but right when we wanted to try some nice classics, a longer rain shower made sure that we couldn't. We searched for some other boulders that might have remained dry, but our hope was in vain. When another rain shower popped up, I decided to call it a day and go home.
Today, was still hot and the air felt slightly less heavy, but the conditions in Long Boyau were shitty. We didn't let it get to us though and cared more about having a fun time. Brian had joined us this time, and we all got to have our little send on the boulder of "Circulez, y'a Rien à Boire". We tried a few more problems, but shitty conditions shut us down. Anyway, we were all in good company and had a fun+ time.
Fontainebleau - Long Boyau - Circulez, y'a Rien à Boire 7A(6C+)
Being the start of the Ascension weekend, the forest promised to be crowded in a lot of places, especially the most popular ones. I therefor met with Olaf with whom I went to Rocher de la Petite Reine. Last weekend, when it was a wet day, we went for a walk around there, and we decided to now go for a climb. Olaf wanted to try "Suspension de Séance" and my main goal was to try "Skeleton". I had seen a video from "Skeleton" a few weeks ago, and I figured that the technical dyno was something for me. Not a far jump, but one where body awareness and catching the hold in the right place and the correct way, are key. While warming up, I was quickly able to do the first part and soon realized that most of the difficulty was about the dyno. Luckily, it allows to practice that move separately, which I started doing. I got closer slowly, but steadily and when I finally stuck it, I turned on the camera. Doing that move again when coming from the start proved to be a challenge. It turns out that keeping the friction on the pinch right hand was of extreme importance. As you have to take that pinch from the first move, and hang on to it until the dyno, it wasn't a giveaway. When the moment where everything clicked finally came, I was glad to top it out. All in all, it went much quicker than expected.
Fontainebleau - Rocher de la Petite Reine - Skeleton 7C
Olaf, needed time to get acquainted with the body positioning in "Suspension de Séance", but was making good progress. Meanwhile, I was able to repeat it after a few tries. Markus (Neher) joined us some time later, but not long after his arrival, I had to leave. It was a bit unfortunate, because I do like their company.
Later in the afternoon, I took my kids to Eléphant, where we went halfway around the hill playing 'the floor is lava'. The whole place was extremely crowded, but I didn't mind. I wasn't there for climbing, and if I would have, then I would have most likely left immediately to go and climb somewhere else. On our way back, close to the parking of Roche aux Sabots, the gendarmerie was there to hold up traffic while they were once again towing away a lot of cars. Multiple huge tow trucks were present and were picking up one car after another, all illegally parked along the departementale. Several people were standing and sitting next to the road, realizing that their cars weren't there anymore. Some were arguing with the gendarmerie, but they didn't give in. Let this be a reminder to many, to not park illegally. When the designated parkings are full, just go to another area of the forest. L
The sun was out when I woke up this morning, and I decided to go to Beauregard in Nemours. I had visited this small area with Victor (Burger) at the end of the Winter this year, but we weren't able to climb there due to wet or too humid boulders. As we had a longer dry period, I estimated that the boulder with "Seuls les Vrais le Savent" had to be dry this time. After a long walk uphill, I finally arrived at the nice roof boulder and it was indeed dry. I warmed up trying the topout of "Seuls les Vrais le Savent" and as soon as I had done that, I was surprisingly able to cruise through the roof on my first attempt from the start and topped it out. This is a really nice isolated roof and still have a few more lines to offer. I briefly tried the much harder "C'est Toujours pour Ceux qui Savent", but the crux shoulder move required full tension on the left heelhook and I didn't dare to commit, afraid I would injure my left hamstring that still felt sore after "Day of Tentacle". As this is a perfect boulder for hot Summer days, I will gladly go back for it.
Fontainebleau - Beauregard - Seuls les Vrais le Savent 7B
After having been so close to doing "Day of Tentacle" last week in Apremont Sanglier, it was my main goal for today's climbing session. It was substantially colder than last week, so I hoped for good friction on the extremely bad slopers at the end. Last week, on Saturday, I had figured out al the moves and could do the boulder in two overlapping parts, but couldn't do the topout when coming from the start. That was my first session on it. The day after, on Sunday, I went back, with Olaf this time, for my second session. I was able to cruise through the first part every time, but again kept falling off at the end. I did get a new highpoint though, and even couldn't have been closer to topping out, but still fell off. My left hamstring had started hurting though because of the constant pressure with the heelhook trying to top out. It got bad enough for me to throw in the towel and give my hamstring a break. This morning, my third session on it, I could still feel my hamstring and for a moment I feared that I would have to stop again in order not to get injured, but I stayed and tried to come up with some minor tweaks to relieve some of the pressure on my hamstring for the topout. A little detail made that work and keeping that in mind, I was finally able to finish it. A very cool problem that felt very hard for the grade. My hamstring can confirm.
Fontainebleau - Apremont Sanglier - Day of Tentacle 7B
Even though the sun was shining all day long, there was also a chilly, sometimes quite strong, breeze. I was working, but considering that the conditions must be very good today, I decided to go for a short evening climbing session after diner. The boulder of choice, was "Didgeridoo (direct assis)". Not far from home, short walk, so ideal for a quick session. There are two videos on bleau.info, each showing a different method, one for taller and another for shorter climbers. I started trying the method for shorter climbers, but didn't quite feel the flow. Then for the taller method, it felt like my legs were too short or something. Having longs arms, but short legs, I ended up figuring out my own method, sort of in between the two other methods. Once I had decided on what to do, it went quite quick and felt rather soft for the grade. Great problem, nevertheless.
Fontainebleau - Bois Rond Auberge - Didgeridoo (direct assis) 7C
Two weeks ago, I spent a whole session trying the upper part of "Manyata", starting from a pile of stacked crashpads, but I couldn't figure it out and was unable to do it. I had given it a break since then, but this evening after work, I decided to go back and try the upper part again. After some time, I was finally able to figure it out and was able to do the upper part. I suddenly felt psyched and realized that it could go. A few attempts later, from the start, I almost flowed through the moves, executed the upper part nearly perfectly and topped out. This is the first known ascent since a key hold broke, back in 2016. I really enjoyed the process and am almost sad that it's over. It was a perfect evening after work project. The direct version is harder and more delicate than the right exit, so I'm giving it 7C.
On Friday, I worked a lot in "Day of Tentacle", in Apremont Sangliers. I was able to figure out a method for the first part, could do all the moves separately, even though the topout just barely, but had a handful of attempts where I fell off the last hard move, which is my crux. Below, a video with some of my best attempts on Friday, that I posted on Instagram.
Yesterday, I went back to "Day of Tentacle", this time joined by the good company of Olaf (Deppe), and I had again a few very good attempts, one of which where I couldn't have been closer to topping out, but still fell off due to a bad desperate move at the very end. Unfortunately, my left hamstring gave me a severe warning to stop trying, it had had enough for that day. I didn't mind it very much though and will be glad to come back to this quiet spot as soon as my hamstring allows me to. Hopefully again in the good company of Olaf.
This morning I met Olaf at Rocher de Télégraphe. We both felt quite tired and both were suffering from a minor injury in our left leg. Me, my hamstring, and Olaf at the back of his knee. I didn't expect much of the session, and mainly wanted to see what "Casser du Sucre" was about. Opened many years ago, but not having a single registered repetition, it was all mossed over again, so I warmed up with brushing the whole problem again, watching a new line being born, "Casser du Sucre (gauche)". A very logical line, starting with a sitstart from the ground, on the left, with two fairly good crimps. From there, take a tiny sharp crimp left hand, make a big move to the right, to another small crimp and top out in "Casser du Sucre". This was before I realized that "Casser du Sucre" starts more to the right under the overhang, crouched and with one knee on the ground.
Fontainebleau - Rocher du Télégraphe - Casser du Sucre (gauche) 7B+(7B)
Olaf was trying "Nouveaux Horizons", a traverse on slopers on the other side of the boulder. I joined him and quite easily flashed it.
Fontainebleau - Rocher du Télégraphe - Nouveaux Horizons 7A(6C+)
While Olaf was trying "Nouveaux Horizons", I had a better look at the description of "Casser du Sucre", and it was then that I realized how it actually starts. It looked quite hard, but I was able to do first and hardest move immediately. I turned on the camera and sent it right after. This honestly felt less hard than what I done earlier and is not more than 7B in my opinion. Nevertheless, both the direct and left versions are pretty nice and I had a fun time with Olaf.
Fontainebleau - Rocher du Télégraphe - Casser du Sucre 7B+(7B)
I watched Olaf unfortunately fall off "Nouveaux Horizons" a few times, even though he normally cruises through the move where he always fell, when doing it separately. I had to leave , but I'm sure he was still going to do it. It turned out to be a good session after all.
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.
