Just got back from a short trip to a really beautiful part of France, only three hours drive away. It's now time to take a rest and grow some more skin before the next trip.
The crags of Haute Bléone (north east from Digne les Bains) and the Ubaye Valley (near Barcelonette) are located in the beautiful Alpes de Haute-Provence, and are well off the beaten track, despite being close to the ever-popular destinations of Céüse and Orpierre. However, unlike those crags, you can have the whole crag to yourself and there's definitely no queueing for routes. The climbing is fantastic, well bolted and not polished at all. We climbed at Blégiers, Le Seuil and Les Herbez.
We stayed in our van right underneath the cliff at Blégiers, and at the excellent Camping River (in Méolans-Revel) which is a small, family-run campsite that provides an ideal central location for all the Ubaye cliffs; it's surrounded by stunning scenery; it's very peaceful and quiet; it's very clean and the showers are perfect. Plus, you can eat tasty homemade pizza, drink wonderful coffee (made from freshly ground beans) and eat fresh croissants and baguettes for breakfast. It's paradise! Hosts, David and Claire Clark, gave us such a fabulous welcome we didn't want to leave. We can't wait to return. Thanks to Marie-Jo for recommending such a lovely, friendly campsite.
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| A nice latte before climbing in the "snug". |
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| Relaxing in the afternoon sun at Camping River. |
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| Fantastic pizzas! Yummy! |
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| Et voila! |
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| Claire working hard, meanwhile David keeps us entertained with some of his tales. |
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| David with his Busby, recounting tales from his days outside Buckingham Palace with the Irish Guards. |
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| Looking towards the accueil. |
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| Large roomy plots (and bungalows too). |
It was too hot in the sun at Blégiers. So early, cold starts were necessary and we finished by 2pm at the latest. The routes tend to be short and the rock is generally slick and compact. There are also a lot of chipped holds (though we only did one such route). I would definitely recommend the classics "Mestrême Dream" (7c+) and "C'est Suprême" (7b+). More info can be found in "Topo d'escalade Bléone - Durance" (2016).
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| Is that close enough? |
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| Amazing sculptures at Blégiers. |
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| Half human, half fish! |
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| Sang et tas d'ame (6c) totally chipped but good fun. |
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| C'est suprême (7b+). |
Autumn is the perfect time for climbing in the Ubaye valley, the cliffs generally face south and there's usually a cool wind. The style is generally fingery with edges and small flakes, however the friction is usually very good as the rock is rough and grippy. At Le Seuil I would recommend "Le grimpeur égologique" (6b+), "Work less, live more" (6c), "Encore et encore" (7b), "Fromage râpé" (7b) and "Merguez et chipolata" (7b+).
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| Le Seuil. |
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| View from Le Seuil. |
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| La tecktonic des plaques (6c). |
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| La cours contre la honté (7c+). |
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| Equipée torchée (7c). |
Whilst I would also recommend "Tete de linotte" (6b), "Corail" (6b+), "Orange a mere" (7b+), "Rencontre avec l'Escher" (7c) and "La rose et le mollusque" (7c) at Les Herbez. More info can be found in "Couennes en Ubaye" 2éme édition-2016. There was also an article on Les Herbez in Grimper magazine (number 190).
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| My girls looking good at Les Herbez. |
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| Rencontre avec l'Escher (7c). |
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| Such a great climb..... |
