Send Climbing

Seb adds another.

Les Plumes de Calcaire (5.15a/9a+) First Ascent

After several years of developing hard routes at Pic Saint-Loup, has found, and sent, another incredible new line.

“I bolted this route around a year ago with the idea of creating something truly hard to climb. There was this untouched section of the wall where you couldn’t really see many holds, but there’s always that little hope that it might go. So I started bolting, and ended up discovering a perfect section with amazing pinches sculpted straight out of the limestone.

“The route starts with a physical 8a-style intro featuring big dynamic moves, followed by a 7c+ boulder problem, a good rest, and then the famous 8a boulder section on pinches. To finish climbing this beautiful wall, there’s still a demanding 4-move 7b+ boulder problem. This part is both extremely intense and very endurance-based. To finish the route, you join “Hélix au Pays des Merveilles,” with the difficulty of that section being around 8b.

“The original vision for this line is to continue through the main wall all the way to the top of the cliff. The version I climbed corresponds to the first pitch of this big project.

“Now it’s time to go for the full line. The project adds a hard 9a after this first 9a+ pitch, with basically no real rest…”

More to come on this mega line. 💪

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