[Bubba]

Ok, so many would say there's no point in going beyond Font as there's enough for anybody there, but where else is worth a trip?

I've been to Meschia which was great but now it's shut.....

Targasonne?

El Escorial?

Cresciano?

Anyone been to any of these - worth the extra hassle  :?:

[mark]

La Capelle. Great little sandstone bouldering area north-west of Avignon. Brilliant rock, lovely surroundings, reliably good weather. Not many problems Font 7b and above, but under that there's loads to do and most of the problems are great. La Boule and Les Milles Faces are as good as anything I've done at Fontainebleau.

More details and a topo at http://www.apeindex.com/archive/lacapelle.shtml

[Pantontino]

Cresciano is well worth a visit. I went about this time last year and had a great week. We visited 3 other crags (all within about an hours drive): Chironico, Magic Wood and Brione. Chironico was superb, Magic Wood was a bit strange, but worth a visit for bizarreness of it all and Brione was stunning.
Cresciano itself is an excellent crag, but I haven't kept up to date with the access situation(?) of late.

It cost me probably half as much again as a week in Font, but I rate this as one of the best bouldering trips I've ever had.

I also bouldered a bit on a family trip to Sardinia in the spring. I went to a nice granite area for a day, but have subsequently seen references to many other crags around the island. Not quite in the league of the Swiss crags, but worth considering because of the low cost factor. (Mind you, I don't really know anything about the other crags - they could be world class?)

[Bubba]

Chironico was superb, Magic Wood was a bit strange, but worth a visit for bizarreness of it all and Brione was stunning

Is one of those the place that Ben Moon goes off on his own too in "Stone Love", assuming you've seen it of course?

Sardinia is positively covered in bouldering areas - there's a great site somewhere, I'll dig out the url...

[Omega]

Targasonne?

Anyone been to any of these - worth the extra hassle  :?:

Targasonne is sweet.  Only an hour by car from Perpignan (cheap RyanAir flights from London) and cheap as chips.  Basically the area is a huge hillside of orange and brown granite boulders high in the Pyrenees.  The boulders are on the south facing aspect so it gets loads of sun in winter (but might be a bit warm in summer).  There is a good campground right in the heart of the boulders and open air thermal hot pools only 5/10 mins drive away.  And the weather is SO much better than Font.

As for the climbing, although there is heaps of stuff to do (up to font 8b/8b+) the potential for new problems is enoromous.  You can buy a guide from the Tabac in Targasonne but its a little out of date so its best to befriend a local (who are generally super friendly).  Loads of steep problems on positive edges and some nice sloper problems too - grades are a little softer than Font but not by much.  All in all its a great spot for a week of bouldering action (although the rock is almost as sharp as some so-called 'mountain grit' so you'll leave with NO skin).

There's a topo on topbouldering.com (if that's still running?) and some pictures as well.

[Bubba]

I'm sold!

Sounds wicked - I'll have a dig for links. I spoke to the TopBouldering boys about it a while ago, and we did almost go there. Not sure what's up with TB, it doesn't seem to have been updated for a while.

[Pantontino]

If memory serves me right (I haven't watched Stone Love for ages), there is some footage of Chironico.

I say, just go: the weather is much more reliable than Font (a familar theme) and the locals are friendly, you can even do first ascents and the fresh atmosphere is indicative of a happening place.

(By the way, I work freelance for the Swiss Tourist Board)

[Bubba]

Hmmm....Mottarone looks quite nice...granite in a beautiful setting.