[tommytwotone]

Come on then...open the floodgates!

Travel:

Any cheap ferry / tunnel / flight type deals?

For drivers, here's a french autoroute thing:

http://www.autoroutes.fr/index.php

Staying there:

Last time we went the bivi site on the N7 near Bas Cuvier was closed by order of the forestry people, so alternative accommodation info would be cool I guess.

Places to go:

Know Petit Bois was rated by mates of mine, I'll checking it next time I'm out, any other hidden gems?

What about stuff for wet / rest days?

[dave]

short of very good offers on the mainstream ferry operators, generally for 5 days or longer Norfolkline is cheapest - currently bout 100notes if you book in advance.

[Tim Heaton]

Apparently there is another free campsite, if you look at the 7+8 guide I think there is another bivi. It's really near Rocher St. Germain and according to some bloke on UKclimbing:

I haven't slept there because I live nearby but I know the place well. It is pleasant enough, just next to an access road to the horse race track (nice little track with a few meetings a year, worth a visit), and near a group of boulders - St Germain, blue, yellow and orange circuits.

It's a level, cleared bit of forest on sandy ground, no problem for tent pegs or flooding, but thats's it. No facilities, not even water I don't think, so you will need a water container of some sort.

Nice spot, but it is just that, a bivouac

Some of my friends are planning on staying there this week so should know more then.

[BoulderHog]

There's another bivi site near Bois le Roi, opposite the maison de forestier 10 min walk south along the main road (not N6, a D1something). It's Forested and has water, I'm fairly sure it's still open, because it was always so quiet. Easy walk from Bois le Roi station and 30min walk to Rocher Canon.

I've stayed there a couple of times before and been the only person : warning - something big walks through there at night and makes a noise like some kind of hell beast . . .

Petit Bois is a very good area, classics like poids de soupirs dyno, the strangely graded mur de son and big dragon, plus a great highball with crux at top (6C I think).

[dave]

petit bois is not bad. that highball 6c is Big Jim.

nur de son felt solid 7c when i tried it!

[BoulderHog]

Big Jim, that's the one, it's a good problem.

I think Mur de Son is a strange grade cos the first time I tried it I really had trouble just getting the first move (I had to do a dynamic jump thing), it felt 7C. A few months later I went back and did it first go with static start, felt 7A. I know plenty of good climbers who find it nails, and an equal number that think it's piss. Maybe next time it will feel 7C again - that's why it's strange.

Forgot to mention La Balaine (I can't spell, means whale) which is a really good 7A nearby.

I also like Merciers in Trois Pignons, if you enjoy big campus moves on positive holds and pockets there is a great problem called Rage Dedans, starts in a cave and breaks out onto a slab, absolutely worth the visit, 7B+. Around the other side of this boulder is the big dyno 8a sute de puce, but if you finger traverse the start left to right and finish up a finger crack, you get a nice 7B that is no soft touch.

[dave]

i think its supposed to be 7a if you start with LH on the high sidepull, and 7c from the lower holds.

[BoulderHog]

Yeah, that sounds about right, but you would have to be unbelievably tall to reach that left hand crimp from the ground (or stood on many pads).

I either fell into the left crimp or did the move into it static, so I still think it's a strange grade.

The full sit start looks really obvious, maybe this is the original 7C method? Not tried it though, just the holds look fairly good.

[Johnny Brown]

warning - something big walks through there at night and makes a noise like some kind of hell beast . . .

Petit Bois is a very good area, classics like ... big dragon

can you not do simple maths?

[a dense loner]

[dave]

[Tim Heaton]

O.k. just got back from my summer trip to Font and thought I would report back on what to do when it`s too hot to climb.

1) Day trip to Paris, RER train goes from Boigneville and Gironville to the West of Milly. I think it costs 8 Eu but you need to have change as it doesn`t take notes but if you don`t have a ticket apparently you can just jump the barrier in Paris. If you want to look around the museums don`t go on a Tuesday as they are shut all day.

2) Buthiers, base de loisirs. Costs about 5 Eu to get in for day then you can come and go as you please. Has a swimming pool with slide and crazy golf. Only down side is that you have to put up with an awful lot of schoolkids and people wearing speedos - you are not allowed to go swimming in shorts. Might be nice to combine a day here with the bouldering at Massif de l`Y. Had a look around this area, shit the problems look high and hard - we alomst gave up climbing when we saw one of the 7c`s had 3 aid bolts before halfway. Big respect to anyone who can complete even the easiest circuit here.

3) Cyclops near Milly, this is a curiousity type thing which you can go on a guided tour of a couple of times a day. I didn`t go so can`t say more than that.

4) Gardens of Fontainebleau chateau, quite nice for a wander round with an ice-cream.

5) Barbizon town, found a very nice creperie on the main street which had a fixed menu for 12 Eu. Even came with a glass of cider which was actually nice and didn`t remind me of sitting in the cemetery aged 15 then being sick on the way home.

Now as for the climbing, well it was very hot so I would very much recommend trying to get out as early as possible in the morning as it stays vey humid even until 9pm at night. Places we liked in the heat were Apremont Bizons - quite small but had a good little orange circuit to ease you in gently to the climbing style of Font that tested your all round ability and balance e.t.c. Not much hard stuff although Shoot felt quite nice - have to go back and try it when it`s a bit colder - but you could always just walk to Apremont Ouest over the road and try what felt like the harshest graded problem in the world in Crazy Horse  :shock: . Other shadier places we visited and enjoyed were Bois Rond, red circuit looks good (and hard), Rocher Guichot - nice blue circuit and up on the hill at Isatis wasn`t too bad either although the heat did give me an axcuse as to why I couldn`t stick the top of Kangeroo City despite getting a whole hand over about 10 times, it was nothing to do with being weak and shit honest

[Tim Heaton]

Am back off to Font and the end of this week and wanted to brush up on my all round ability rather than spend ages just trying/failing on the harder stuff. What are everyone's recommendations for good circuits that have a bit of everything in? Don't mind what colour it is anything from yellow to white.

I have only done the blue one at Isatis and the red one at Sablons. The red one at Sabots looks good too although not done it all.

[Scouse D]

Sabots red is one of the best around I reckon- a bit of everything but generally quite burly.

[dave]

reet burly - not one to do with font elbows.

i liked the reds at gorge aux chats, reeeeeet nice.

[dobbin]

Am going on the weekend, can anyone supply directions to the Formula 1?

[dave]

drive through font on the main road from the carrefour de obelisc take the road toward moret sur loing (if you find yourself heading to nemour you've gone wrong), and just before the dual carrageway stops you'll see it lit up on your left, apparently with no way to turn off to it. you have to drive past it then swing off back left to get to it.

mappy.com

[cofe]

hmmmm, this font place looks like a good crag, i wish is was going in 26 days time.......... :

[Bonjoy]

Am headed font wise easly 2004, what's the deal with gites? Want to get a nice one fairly close to the action, hit me with some knowledge.

[dave]

lovejoy you wanna book well in advance to get anywhere near the action.

essone gites (i.e. trois pignons)

font gites: (i.e. rest of forest)

[Bonjoy]

Cheers word. We am going in March so hopefully might be Ok.

[Bonjoy]

Link one is giving me this choice of regions:
 Region 1 : Le Hurepoix
 Region 2 : La Beauce
 Region 3 : La Brie française
 Region 4 : Le Gâtinais français

 Which is the flava for the three pignionions?

[Bonjoy]

You wish to come with animals : YES   NO

 :shock:  
What type of website is this dave?

[dave]

its the pink one (ever heard of a map>?).

do bees count as animals?

[Bonjoy]

The bees will still be hibernating in March.