[Bonjoy]

I suspect most of us are guilty of going for a week in font and not really straying off the beaten track. Cuvier, Isatis, Cuisinere etc if it's dry, 95.2, Cul de Chien, Apremont or Elephant if it's drying or showery, maybe Petit Bois, Canon or Buthiers if we are feeling adventurous. It's like a Frenchy coming to the peak and only going to Cratcliffe, Plantation, Curbar and the Roaches. You've only got to skim through the Bleau site to realize there are shed load of classic problems dotted about the less well known venues.
 I guess the reason we do is that we don't want to risk a precious good weather day in font exploring something that might turn out to be mediocre. With that in mind hit me with some knowledge. Tell me of the oddball places you've been, maybe just to look around on a wet day, what's good, what's kack. Pictures would be even better.

 My contribution:

Gorge da Houx -
 Had a look on a wet day. Looks like a great full day venue. Gargantoit being one of the best looking probs in the forest. Ecaille de Lune looked a classy steep 7c on friendly holds. Some good looking highballs. ****

Drei Zeinen -

Agained, had a look on a rainy day. Lots of 7 n 8s, some looked pretty good, none really looked mega. ***

Bois Rond -

Small area near DZ. Didn't look worth a revisit. *
Have heard the nearby problem Hotline 7b+ is exceptionally good and worth going to on it own. Approach from Petit Reine though. We tried to find using the map in 7s n 8s coming in from DZ and got totally lost.

Mont Pivot -

Only a few probs. A good 7a+ wall thing (if you can handle mono pulling) and a great steep 7c arete to it's right. Plus the easiest 7c in the forest Double Detente (more like 7a/7a+).**

Rocher St Germain -

Looks good on paper in the 7s n 8s book, pretty poor in reality IMO, although the classic Megalithe(?) looks pretty good. Didn't bother getting boots out of bag*/**

Conquibus Long Vaux -

Went to in the rain and found a couple of dry roof problems. Fata Morgana block looks good for hardcore beasting. Didn't get to the 7c roof at the far end, but looks good on Bleau site. Preblems require a bit of finding and are spread out. Tonnerre de Breste 7b looked fantastic but was wet. ***

Has anyone been to Puiselet, it looks bo on bleau.com?

Feed me!

[Bonjoy]

Obviously judging by the avalanche of responses, you're all even more sheeplike than me  :roll:

[grimer]

i really liked malesherbes ( i think), there are two areas, picine, and the not piscine. One was a long conveyor belt of good stuff, the other was one of those hillsidey ones where you have to look round corners and that, which i prefered. A two venue day.

Having said that, it's not really off the beaten track, and you probably have been there. You just don't want to let on.

[mark]

Okay, here are a few...

Rocher Guichot
Not many hard problems but good for a day doing lots of 5s and 6s.

Franchard Sablons
Good, quiet area. Quite a few 7s and good for a day doing lots of 5s and 6s.

Gorge du Houx
Like you, only been on a wet day but looks great.

Drei Zinnen
It's actually very good. Lots of interesting problems.

Bois Rond
Good for a day doing lots of 5s and 6s. There's a bit of a theme here, isn't there?

Canche aux Merciers
Not really any hard problems but good for a day doing lots of 5s and 6s. Okay, okay, I'll stop. I don't think I've ever been to an area of Font where I couldn't have happily spent days climbing every problem from 5 up.

Gorge aux Chats
Presumably you've been here to try/do Rubis sur l'Ongles? Also, good for a day doing... Sorry.

I think I need to move to Font.

I think you mean Rocher Greau where you wrote Rocher St Germain. Megalithe is at Greau.

[saltbeef]

baa

[Bonjoy]

Have been to Malsherbes (Buthiers), it was bloody good and I want to go back. Some very high quality highballs with good landings from what I remember.

 I was thinking of Rocher St Germain, but the prob I meant was Megalight (not Megalithe)

[unclesomebody]

Good thread. Firstly, there is a megalithe at Rocher Saint German too. Confusingly both are 7C+ but there you go...

Gorge du Houx - Good venue. The high prow/arete listed as a project in 7+8 is Londinium, 8A. Looks very good. Just watch out for the boars. This is not a joke... between Gargantoit and de la terre et la lune is Boarnation. You have been warned.

Franchard Occidentale (Rochers de salamandre) - Ok area, with Menumental looking like a good problem. Menhir is a nice high arete, with a good landing, but doesn't seem to see much action so gets dirty.

Rocher du Mauvais Passage - Peter Pan is here, which is an amazing problem, so go to it! The project listed next to it is pretty gay.

Recloses - Small collection of very hard problems. Home to another Frigault 8C too. Hueco tanks is shit, but Opium, Narcotic (listed as 2. Project) and Narcotic direct all look good. Very sharp holds on Opium! Ask the keen youth!

Manoury - Good area, home to some excellent 7C's. Baguera is good, and Irreversible looks amazing. Highball arete on slopers, but good landing.

Rocher Greau - An area in a town! The classic Megalithe is here as well as many others to keep you going. Chaos is a great line, a little traverseish but still good. Tigre et Dragon looks amazing, and should definitely be sought out.

Boissy Aux Cailles (l'eglise) - Home to Hip hop and trip hop. Trip hop is stupid, but hip hop is good. Also there is l'arete de Boissy which is pretty cool but has sharpish holds to start. Eden Roc was pretty green on most visits, seems to be a water channel beneath a tree!!!
 
J.A. Martin - Big area, lots of easy problems, nice setting, and also the great looking l'etrave. Slightly harder now a hold has broken, but still doable and a great line. (most other problems in the 7+8 guide are shit)

Mont Pivot - Great looking area. All the problems look excellent, and am keen to get back there. Double Detente does indeed look piss, but pancras assis and kendo look good too.

Coquibus Montrouget - Don't bother. Everything there is pretty crap, and not worth a visit in my opinion.

Puiselet - Big area, lots of rock, and some great looking projects. The rock is pretty different from most font areas, some blocs are covered in holes and others are just super slopey mantle madness. Definitely one if you're keen to do some F.A's. Also home to font's version of the cornice, except made of sandstone, not solid, and looks like it's waiting to collapse. Oh, and there is an old aid route through it.

[dr blowfin]

my 2 eurocents

Puislet - explored on a wet day, some huuuuge boulders, some amazing looking problems though a lot of its very green. La Bassine looks awesome.

La Renaissance - up the hill behind La Merveille, down the way from Cuvier. I  thought this was a great little venue, some lovely problems all scattered around a foresty hill top. didnt see anyone else during two visits, presumably because it's a 20 min walk. green in some places but mostly clean where needed.

ps hello everyone - im usually a lurker

[MB]

La Renaissance - up the hill behind La Merveille, down the way from Cuvier

Do you mean La Reconnaissance? Cos that area looked great.

[Fj]

I've been there twice, and think its mint (although the second time was during a snowball fight).
Not as polished as the more popular font stuff and some nice problems.

[Jim]

Conquibus Longs Vaux

Good place to go in the rain. the 7c+ roof (a Prehension)is worth seeking out as is dry in rain and there is a 7a+ prob next to it to warm up on which also stays mainly dry.
Tonnerre de Brest (7b) is also worth seeking out and is a very good looking line and stays dry if the rain is in the right direction. James has done this.
Fata Morgana block is totally hardcore but some good looking problems.

Spanish Kev trying Satan i Helvete



also if you are a total westie and fancy some pain, try squeezing down the back of the fata block into the small slot to exit underneath. Toby did this after a lot of struggling and got cuts all up his back. Jesse looking on and Keenus lending a hand




Rocher Greau & Petit Bois

You go past Rocher Greau on the way to petit Bois and can see it from the road. Petit Bois is worth going to to do La Balaine which is excellent and a few nice red problems there. Big Dragon is also very good bt very hard (James also did this)
Had a quick look around Rocher Greau on a rainy day and it looked ok and spanish Kev tried le Toit du Greau



Always fancied going to Gorge da Houx. Its on my list for the next visit.

Roche aux Oiseaux

I'm very psyched to go back here. Some excellent problems inc Brazil, le toit (standing start to satan m'habite) and le Mandarin (hard version looks better) looks excellent

Recloses

somewhere to go in the rain. Opium is pretty good and very hard. Hueco tanks is utter log and definatley not worth looking at.

Maunoury

Baloo (or Baboo in the 7&8's) is excellent as is Baguera

Dame Jouanne (est)

La plafond is an excellent roof problem and l'Angle parfait is very fustrating. The purple circuit is also well worth doing (ask JB or Uncle)

JB on l'Angle Parfait

[dr blowfin]

La Renaissance - up the hill behind La Merveille, down the way from Cuvier

Do you mean La Reconnaissance? Cos that area looked great.

yep, I did, sorry...it's a great little spot...go!

[Bonjoy]

Anyone been to La Mare a Piat? That Orgasme Cosmique looks amazing. Or Mt Ussy or Cassepot?

[Scouse D]

Anyone been to rocher de la Reine?
this problem looks wicked- http://bleau.info/reine/1701.html
Le Miroir.

[Bonjoy]

On the subject of amazing looking probs. Anyone done this?
http://bleau.info/zinnen/1436-2194.html
Hotline

[a dense loner]

have been to mare a piat, it's toss but then again did you expect me to say anything else? it really is toss tho.

stinky pete's done hotline. reckoned it was one of the best probs he's done in font and E5 6c of anyone's money

trying to rack my brains about mt ussy and cassepot. think cassepot is where double axles is, if this is the case this is brilliant (spanish kev did it, we were resting) and looked at a 7c down the track which looked amazing but can't remember name. def recommended for a couple of probs. can't remember ussy :roll:

[Scouse D]

This looks awesome at Ussy
http://bleau.info/ussy/713-3683.html
Ussy Cat

[Rice Boy]

At La Reconissance

Watch out for; yellow/brown snow and piles of white loo paper . Had the misfortune of not looking where I was going and . . .

Stuff was everywhere but mostly on the paths to the boulders! Achtung!

[Rice Boy]

You get the '+' for climbing it topless and not being tickled off by the worlds smallest Holly tree.

[dave]

I been to reconaissance - it is OK with some decent stuff. like the escaflowne dyno is great, but the guidebook photo problem next to it is nonsense eliminate shit, and theres that ace 7b+/7c wall thing that andy did on sidepulls, but theres also some not great stuff. some stuff is smallish. Having been there once i probably wouldn't bother going back again but was glad we went that day.

rocher mofo passage is only worth visiting for petay pan, which is ace and felt like 7b+ to me. my tip is don't spend hours grating off the top hold of this problem on the first day of a week long trip, it hurts, even if you do eventually land it!

petit bois is alright but not much there really

had a walk round Oiseaux last time but we didn't climb (can't remember why, think it was end of day. be psyched to get on the satan prow thing and alea jacta est.

[a dense loner]

two quality probs them

i'm sure i've told you 5 of us went to petey paney and 4 of us turned back to the car immediately. the only one who wanted to stay was jim, which say's a lot, none of which is in jims favour :wink:

[unclesomebody]

that's because you are all miserable bastards. Peter Pan is indeed one of the best problems I've done in font. You see how it gets 4.5 stars on bleau? That means it's good, which is more than I can say for murmure...  :wink:

[Jim]

yeah misery.
"its too cold, its too cold" you were all chanting
PUSSIES

[saltbeef]

as for your declaration that something is shit dense, i'm assuming there weren't two possibly three crimps on a gently overhanging wall to the top of a boulder?(probably graded around the 7c mark!)

[fatboySlimfast]

Just got back from spur of the moment trip to font(sunday morning descision!) and what a good idea it was! Blue sky and cold temps for all week! had a great day at gorge de houx and went back on a rest day to take some photies.

beaut 6b+

Transition 6c

Ligne de Mire 7a

Gargantoit 7a/7a+
Good grade spread and excellent rock, very quiet. Theres a load of stuff on the backside of the hill from these probs whick look good as well.Word of warning it is quite easy to get lost cos the guide is not very clear(took me a while!) follow the route de Mont aigu from the car park with the cross stuck in the pile of stones(D301) and follow it down into a valley to the carrefour de Franchiere, the main area will be behind you and to your right with obvious path up to them. Try to follow the guide book and youll end up on the wrong side of the hill swearing and cursing french guide book writers.

[a dense loner]

nice pics fatboy, will be at plantation tomorrow aft if you're out

damn you saltbeef, and you uncle