Fontainebleau is the best bouldering area in Europe, located 90 km South-Eas of Paris, about an hour away.
If you like bouldering, or if you play boulder at least once a week, you should go to Fontainebleau at least once in your life. No climber, no matter their discipline, should miss out on a chance to visit the Bleau Forest.
I have had three opportunities to boulder at Fontainebleau. Here is a brief memorandum of my impressions of those times.
Bouldering sites at Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau set in beautiful forested location and contains over 35,000 boulder problems in 271 ares. The Rocks are superb sandstone.
The Boulder Season
The best time to boulder is the spring and the autumn. The summer (from mid July to mid august) is hot, though it is possible to find rocks that are in the shade. I recommend a spring as you can see Fontainebleau in all the glory of spring. But you can climb at any time of the year. It's only the rain that will stop you.
Fontainebleau Guidebooks
1️⃣ Fontainebleau Fun Bloc (Jingo Wobbly, Font Bloc volume1) 2️⃣ Fontainebleau Top Secret (Jingo Wobbly, Font Bloc volume2) 3️⃣ 5+6, 4862 straight ups in central Fontainebleau
4️⃣ 7+8, 3748 straight ups in Fontainebleau
There are several topos for bouldering. Before I went to Fontainebleau (2015), I bought a "Fontainebleau (Magique)" because it was the only one available at my local mountain gear store.
It was a topo that showed the location of the rocks, but did not give any details of the route, basically the route of "The Unique Circuits".
The best time to boulder is the spring and the autumn. The summer (from mid July to mid august) is hot, though it is possible to find rocks that are in the shade. I recommend a spring as you can see Fontainebleau in all the glory of spring.
When I went to Fontainebleau, I tried easy "circuit course" as a warming-up, but it was surprisingly fun 😁 Follow the arrows and climb the rocks. There are traverse challenges, a little overhang wall, and of course climbing down 😂
However, Fontainebleau (Magique) was not usable enough as a bouldering topo.
This topo is very easy to understand, with photos and route descriptions (grades, etc.). If you are not that picky and just want to enjoy bouldering (not circuits), this topo should be enough (30.9€ in November 2015).
2️⃣ Fontainebleau Top Secret (Jingo Wobbly, Font Bloc volume2)
Fontainebleau (Top Secret) has the same structure as Fontainebleau (Fun Bloc).
My personal feeling is that I bought Fontainebleau (Fun Bloc) as my first book and Fontainebleau (Top Secret) as my second book.
Because on our Fontainebleau bouldering tour, we also went to areas that are not in Fontainebleau (Fun Bloc) but are in Fontainebleau (Top Secret).
Maybe there was a problem with the area we went to. The route itself was interesting, but the areas listed in Fontainebleau (Top Secret) are dotted with enjoyable routes, so it was relatively difficult to move from one area to another.
Unlike the areas in Fontainebleau (Fun Bloc), the approaches to them were unexpectedly difficult to grasp and it was easy to get lost.
On the other hand, there are relatively few climbers, so it may be a good choice for those who want to devote themselves to the route quietly 🤔
3️⃣ 5+6, 4862 straight ups in central Fontainebleau 4️⃣ 7+8, 3748 straight ups in Fontainebleau
Personally, I find this topo very confusing. There are many routes covered, so maybe people who are used to going to Fontainebleau can use it.
Access to the Bouldering Area
Many of the major bouldering areas have parking nearby. That often means you don't have to walk far. The main area and other areas are also connected by small paths that cross the forest, making it relatively easy to get around.
Climbing Equipment
・bouldering crash pad
・shoes
・chalk
・brushes
Fontainebleau Grading
The Fontainebleau grading system was pretty tough for me. For example, some tasks such as (6a) were climbed crisply, but even (5a) couldn't be climbable. Even with a grade of (5c), it takes really strong mental control to attempt a 5m high slab challenge by Onsight. Go with routes which feel good for you, regardless of the grading.
Many of the routes are in close proximity to each other. If, after climbing, the experiential grade is too different from the topo grade, maybe you can check the Bleau.info website 🙄
The climbing areas I climbed at Fontainebleau (2015 & 2018)
Topo : Fontainebleau (Fun Bloc)
1️⃣ CUVIER (Bas)
4️⃣ Apremont (Chaos)
6️⃣ Èléphant (EST)
Topo : Fontainebleau (Top Secret)
8️⃣ Cuvier Rempart
9️⃣ Dame Jouanne
Depending on the season and weather, I personally recommend the following areas in the area we climbed
1️⃣ CUVIER (Bas)
2️⃣ Franchard Isatis
I think 🤔 it's close to the parking lot and there were plenty of challenges to enjoy 😊
🏡 Accommodations 🏕 🏨
I have had three opportunities to boulder at Fontainebleau, staying at the hostel in November 2015 and at the camp site & at the friend's Gite in April 2018.
🏨 Fontainebl’hostel (November 2015)
The owner, Patrick, speaks English, so if you don't understand French, that's not a problem.
The room we stayed in had 3 bunk beds with shower and toilet. It is a so-called dormitory style.
There is a kitchen in the common space, which we could use freely. There is also a refrigerator, and plates, cups, forks & knives are available for free use. There are also showers and toilets in the common area.
If you don't have a car, Patrick can pick you up and drop you off at the climbing area and/or at the station. Climbing crash pads are available for rent. Please check with him, for rates, etc.
For other information, the tourist information office at the Fontainebleau Avon station has discount coupons for Fontainebl'hostel (2015).
If you are looking for a simple stay in Fontainebleau, I think the rooms are clean and there is no problem. I would also recommend this accommodation for those who want to experience bouldering at Fontainebleau while sightseeing in Paris.
Fontainebleau Campsite🏕
🏕 Camping Les Prés (April 2018)
This campsite "Camping Les Prés" was chosen by my climbing friend 👱🏻🇫🇷 and I don't know why he chose it, but I have no complaints about it.
The lady at the reception desk speaks French, of course, but she also speaks easy-to-understand English, so it is not a problem if you do not speak French.
At this time of year (April 2018), the Camping Les Prés office was open in the morning from 9:00-12:00 and in the afternoon from 15:00-19:00.
If you want to use the camp site WiFi, it was extra.
The camp site Camping Les Prés sold several kinds of bouldering topos such as Fontainebleau (Fun Bloc). Bouldering mats (Crash Pads) and brushes were also available for rent (ask in advance for details).
We bought a little water (1.5L x 6) at the supermarket for drinking, but basically we used the tap water at the camp site for cooking and drinking.
I used the shower at midnight (1:00 am), but hot water still came out 😁 What about the high peak season ? 🙄
If I had to raise a problem with this campsite, it would be the toilets. As is normal in Europe, there were no toilet seats at this campsite either.
When barbecuing, we were told to use the barbecue-only site in the camp site. I think it is prohibited to have an open fire on the lawn. It was two places to grill. This time it was just us to use this site, so there was no problem, but I wonder how it would be during the Summer Vacation Season?
As for the power supply, I think it would be useful to have a plug for the outlets that are commonly used by people traveling in campervans. If you have this plug, you would be able to comfortably charge your cell phone and other devices during evening meals. This special plug can be purchased at the camp site.
If you don't have this special plug, you can use a headlamp or similar as you would normally do when camping. As for charging cell phones, there is a power outlet in the bathroom next to the toilet, which is commonly used in France, so it was possible to use it.
🏡 gîte at Fontainebleau
If you want to stay like you're living in France, check out 👉🏻 Gites de France
For the third time, I stayed at a gîte-like place in Fontainebleau. It was a rental house of an acquaintance of a climbing friend, so the situation was a little different from a regular rented gîte.
In the morning we had a leisurely meal with the owner and then went to climb Fontainebleau 😊
✍🏻 List of climbing routes which I have climbed 👉🏻 Fontainebleau, France 🙈
Comments