Climbing Session: La Jungle (Gorges du Loup)

New achievement in today's session at La Jungle. It was Adri's first visit to the crag, and we joined Alix and Marco, who were there since 4pm.

We didn't have much time, so after warming up in the 5c, we went for more serious matters. I had been to the crag before, and I had some unattended business. We skipped the two 6a+ and we went straight to the right hand side...

De la terre et des hommes, 6b (redpoint)

I could not send it last time, but today I was prepared for the crux ;-)
Another 6b for my ticklist, yaaaay!

Climbing Session: Le Gentil (La Turbie)

Amazing climbing day in Le Gentil. First, I thought I had already been to the crag, but when we got there I got a bit confused. To be honest, I am still not sure whether it was my first time or not. We spent the whole afternoon in the crag, the weather was perfect and we climbed in the shade after 3pm.

View Le Gentil (La Turbie) in a larger map

The routes are nice and very well bolted, although the rock is a bit abrasive. The list of routes can be found in the V3. Also, there are multiple online topos.

Cathy essence de myosotis, 5+ (on-sight)
Des pensées pour Didier, 6a+ (on-sight)
Jo la basse, 6b+ (flash, many thanks to Alix)
Mélanie éclat de martagon, 6b (redpoint, thanks to Adri :-P)

I couldn't send Mélanie éclat de martagon in my first attempt. There are two bellies that are not very intuitive, and I failed to pass the first one straight away. I finished the route and I left the quickdraws there, for the guys to try.

Then, Alix arrived and we tried Jo la basse. This 6b+ has a crazy overhanging part, half way to the top. It looks quite scary, but in the end it only takes a couple of long, boulder-style moves to get through it. After watching Alix on-sighting it, I got inspired and I decided to give it a try. I felt quite comfortable and light, and I managed to flash it :-D

After that, Adri tried the 6b that I equipped, but 3 meters away from the chain he got really pumped, and he could not make it to the top. I was about to go and get my quickdraws back, when I remembered Alex's advice, saying that I should stop climbing in top-rope, and it worked quite well :-) I took the rope down and started from scratch. Result: redpoint, yaaay!

And to complete the day, nothing like a very well deserved dinner at Les Santons, a restaurant that I truly recommend, not far from the crag. Filet de boeuf rossini: fresh, high quality meat, with a thick layer of pâté foie gras on top to make it more moist, accompanied with mushrooms and vegetables, 32 eur. Sending 6b and 6b+ in a single session is priceless!

One of my best performances so far. Yiheeee!

Climbing Session: La Bagarée (La Colle Sur Loup)

Soft initiation session in La Bagarée. We went with Guille, Javi De La Puente and his girlfriend, Ana, who tried for the first time yesterday. We did multiple routes, starting at 3, and we increased the difficulty gradually. Well done guys, hope you enjoyed it!

For the rercord:

Bobo Leon, 5 (on-sight)
Bluk, 5+ (on-sight)
Ludique, 6a (on-sight)
La Colle au bout des doigts, 6a (on-sight)

@Guille La Colle au bout des doigts is the one you were working in the end. Project? ;-)
@Javi & Ana Looking forward to seeing you again in the crags

Climbing Session: La Jungle (Gorges du Loup)

I forgot to post an "Out on vacation" entry, but that's exactly what vacations are all about, right?

I went back home, in Catalunya, for a few days. It looks like nothing has changed there, and everybody's lives are exactly where I left them. I spent some time with my family and friends, and managed to relax. I did some alternative activities, such as hiking and mountain biking, to help stay fit.

The later days I stayed with Jas in the UK :-) Looking forward to visiting you again my sunshine!

I came back on Sunday, and this week I am already back to work, both professionaly and for climbing. On Tuesday Alix and I went back to The Jungle, to try some of the routes we did not explore last time:

Arachnide, 6a+ (on-sight)
Le livre de la jungle, 6c+ (top-rope, 1 stop)
Sceptique Eric, 6b+ (lead-climb, 2 stops)

I was a bit afraid at first, but I felt more confident after chaining up the initial warm up route. I have not lost the edge during holidays, yaaay! Arachnide is quite technical, with a complete rest half way to the top.

Le livre de la jungle is a really beautiful route, but very tough at the same time. The initial moves are very explosive, and after that you have to keep going, as there's only one bad rest a bit higher. As most of the routes on the right hand side, it is slightly overhanging and very long. The crux is half way to the top. It's just a couple of hard moves, but the problem is that you are already pumped when you get there. The idea is to economize as much as possible, as usual ;-)

Still pumped from the 6c+, we decided to explore the only 6b left. Sceptique Eric is very long and technical, with good rests. I put my lead climber hat back on, but I could not chain it up. There's a very mysterious section between points 2 and 3, and I had to stop to figure out how to get through it. Alix has more expertise; he was capable of going back down and studying that part from the ground. After the third point the route is very nice, technical but not too difficult. The crux is right before the chain, where there's an overhanging part that is quite complex and physical. I had no energy and it was almost dark, so I had to stop there as well.

Looking forward to my next climbing session. Cheers!

Climbing Session: Le Phasme (Gorges du Loup)

First visit (and probably not the last ;) to Le Phasme, in Gorges du Loup. Even though the crag is still quite dusty, it is very promising. It has been equipped so short ago that routes don't even have names yet. For those who have been to Mesa Verde, Le Phasme is just facing it, on the other side of the river and a bit higher. Here's the map:

View Le Phasme (Gorges du Loup) in a larger map

And here the only guide I have found so far:

One day, 2 new projects for the TODO list :-). I worked on routes nº4 and nº11 (if I am not mistaken). Both are really nice routes:

Nº4 does not have big jugs, its mainly flat horizontal edges and slopes. You really need to dose your energy if you want to chain it up.

Nº11 is quite long and physical. There are big holds and columns, long moves, ... quite sporty. I missed a left hand and run out of energy just 2 moves away from the anchor :_( Otherwise it would have been one of my best on-sights.

Thanks Marco and Alix for the great session!!

Welcome to the jungle

Monday's after work session was full of adventures.

We went climbing with Alix, a new climbing partner who just moved to the region. Our goal was to explore a new crag called La Jungle, in Gorges du Loup. Following our instincts (and some references we found on the internet ;) we parked our car by the road and went straight into the jungle.

Not everybody can access the crag: steep dirt paths, dense vegetation and crossing a river, are some of the challenges you will face. Fortunately there are kairns marking the way to go, and a few static ropes on the steepest parts. Although the approach is not really long (around 10 minutes), it's already a good warm up.

La jungle is divided in two parts:
The rock on the left is vertical and shorter, with a huge roof in the upper part. Some of the routes have 2 anchors, as difficulty increases drastically in the roof.
On the right hand side routes are quite long (around 30m). Even though there is no huge roof, they are slightly overhanging and sustained.

Alix on-sighted the four routes we tried. I had trouble in some of them:

BB Geek, 5c (on-sight)
Comme quoi, le caca tient, 6a+ (on-sight)
De la terre et des hommes, 6b (missed a foot hold, on-sighted otherwise) :-(
Ptit insupportable diurne, 6b+ (chained-up in top-rope, headlamp)

I created a map that explains how to access the crag. Please follow the kairns and keep an eye on the rocks above you (I don't guarantee exact precision).

View La Jungle (Gorges du Loup) in a larger map

Although the crag has been equipped a short time ago, routes are not too dusty.
I truly recommend visiting it, routes on the right hand side are really nice.

Many thanks to jegrimpe.com for the topo.

Latest addition to my safety gear

Safety is specially important when it comes to rock climbing.
I stress tested this device last Thursday in La Bagarée ;-)

This spray is far more effective than the bracelets I had. By combining them both, I went back home without being bitten, not a single time :-).

Some people are very lucky to be immune / not attractive from a mosquito perspective. For the rest of us, I truly recommend this spray; it really works wonders!

Climbing Session: La Bagarée (La Colle Sur Loup)

Chilled afternoon with Guille and a friend of his, Joa. Gradings in La Bagarée are definitely not very consistent: From the 3 routes we did, the hardest for me was the one that was supposed to be the easiest.

Monsieur Spoc, 5+ (on-sight)
Le Triomphe Des Grossses, 5 (on-sight)
Ça Tombe Bien, 6a (on-sight)

Guille is learning fast. He performed very well, leading the 5c and top-roping the 6a.
Joa did great as well, topping up the first 2 routes.

Also, I noticed our 7a must have another anchor above. There were a couple of guys trying it, and their rope went all the way to the top. We will have to go again and start working on the second part :-)

Climbing Session: La Bagarée (La Colle Sur Loup)

One of the purposes of this blog is to keep track of all my climbing activities. Thus, allowing me to control how often I climb, and to measure my progress and achievements.

So, here's the first official record:

A big group of friends (around 10 people), some of them beginners, went to La Colle Sur Loup after work. I climbed with Matthiew, and although we got there a little later than planned, we managed to do:

Fort Djebel, 6a (on-sight)
Padac Ricar, 6b (on-sight)
Robocab, 7a (top-rope)

The first two routes are quite easy for their grade (most of the routes in La Bagarée are), so they were a good warm up.

Robocab is a very physical, short, boulder style route. It starts with a couple of easy moves that lead to a large horizontal roof (that's the key part of the route). It took us 6 or 7 attempts to figure out how to get over this roof, but finally we found our way :)

The crag itself is quite slippery, there are few big holds and you find mainly flat edges. The flat edges enforce the use of your feet thus improving your technique.

View La Bagarée (La Colle Sur Loup) in a larger map

As usual, the mosquitoes were very happy to see me back in the crag. It's been a while since I last went, but some things never change.

Rewind: Chateauvert, August 2009

The idea was to spend the weekend in Marseille, doing some multi-pitch climbing in Les Calanques. We camped on Friday, and after a very cozy dinner by the camping gaz (with some wine ;) we went straight to bed.

We woke up very early in the morning, unmounted the tents in the dark, and quickly drove to our destination crag. What? Before sunrise? what's wrong with you guys? It had to be that way, because the authorities close the road in the morning (6am if I recall well), to avoid tourists and protect the region (or so they say).

We were complete zombies, yet we realised it was not going to be a good day. The wind started blowing very strongly, and the radio gave us the worst piece of news: the authorities had forbidden climbing for the whole weekend. We looked at each other and thought.. screw them, we're already here!

But then, after the mandatory dose of coffee, we assessed the situation again, and we decided it was not worth it. Not only for the potential fine, which were ready to pay, but also for the real danger and chances of falling. They were right, that wind was indeed very bitchy. So there we were, Iñaki, Christiane and myself, sitting by the beach, having breakfast as the sun rose. That was it, a weekend completely wasted, the whole trip for nothing.

After the initial disappointment and already on our way back, we decided to stop in Chateauvert. Even though it wasn't multi-pitch, we would at least climb a bit. As it turned out, our alternative plan ended up being an amazing climbing session! We really made the most of our day :-)

If you guys are closeby, Chateauvert is a must. There is a nice cheap camping area in Correns, not far from the rocks. On the other side of the crag, in the middle of the fields, an Australian couple, very nice people, have a pizza van / restaurant. I don't know whether it is the post-climbing effect, but the pizzas tasted delicious to me. The rock is unique, some routes have holes that remind me of those of Swiss cheese, and there are challenges for all levels. If it gets too hot, there's a river by the crag, so you can always go for a quick refreshing swim.

Looking forward to going to Chateauvert again!

Dear climbing wall

Thanks for being there in the cold dark winters, or whenever the rain makes it impossible to go outdoors. Don't take it personally, I am not choosing real crags over you, I just like you in different ways :-)

It would be nice if next season you could be a bit more sensitive with our skin. If you are, I promise I will bring you plenty of newcomers. Please keep switching your makeup every so often, we like to see you in new colors! The tough challenges you propose are quite good for improving our strength, stamina and contorsion capabilities. Gradually, these moves come out naturally whilst we're on the rock.

Today was our last day at the climbing wall in Garbejaire. The guys from COV are on vacation during August, so the facilities will be closed until September. Many thanks for all the great afternoons and see you soon!

What are your motivations?

Motivation is a key factor for progressing and being able to send harder routes.

There are some people that enjoy the simple fact of being outdoors, surrounded by trees, and spending time with their friends whilst doing a physical activity. In modern times, being able to escape technology and getting back in touch with nature and fresh air for a few hours is already a very satisfying reason to practice rock climbing.

So, if you are comfortable with your climbing skills and just want to enjoy the activity itself, there are plenty of crags out there waiting for you to discover them ;-)

On top of that, rock climbing can be a very challenging and engaging activity. There are all kinds of routes, at all levels, and a broad variety of climbing styles. Each route hides a unique sequence of movements, in essence, a puzzle waiting to be solved. The higher the level, the harder and more demanding the puzzles become. When you really get into the discipline, all these challenges become very engaging.

If you feel you have been stuck on the same level for too long, no matter if you climb 4, 6a or 7c and you don't see yourself making it through to the next level, think about this:

What are your motivations for climbing?
Do you really want to progress?
Are you unconsciously getting comfortable within your level?

If you truly want to improve and you try hard enough, sooner or later you will see the progress. In the meantime, remember, being out there is already worth it!

Hello world!

I have created this blog in order to register all my climbing activities, thoughts, findings and milestones. I hope this little contribution to the rock climbing community will help climbers (including me) to find the necessary tips, motivation and mindset to evolve in this exciting sport.

A few words about myself? I am currently living in the South East of France, a region where I discovered and have been enjoying rock climbing for nearly 3 years now. Before that, I would have never imagined that I would be capable of climbing and that I would become so passionate about it. You guys should give it a try!