The Jura Mountains are located on the western side of Switzerland, bordering France. The term "Jurassic" in a geologic period is derived from the Jura Mountains.
The highest peak in the Jura Mountains is about 1,720 meters, not much higher than the Vosges Mountains (1,424 meters) in the Alsace of northeastern France. Driving around the Jura Mountains, it looks somewhat like the Vosges Mountains.
The main difference is the color of the rock. The Jura Mountains have white limestone rock, while the Vosges Mountains are characterized by reddish-brown sandstone.
There are plenty of limestone climbing sites in the Jura Mountains, from Baume les Dames in the north to Cerdon in the south. These climbing sites offer fun for beginner and expert climbers.
In 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021, I had the opportunity to climb around the Jura Mountains with my climbing friends. Here is a memorandum from that time.
This weblog is a summary of climbing in the Jura mountains on the French side. Here, we will take a broad view of the Jura mountains.
In the case of the Doubs department, it is written as "Massif du Jura, Le Doubs", and in the case of the Jura department, it is written as "Massif du Jura, Le Jura" 😉
In case you are wondering, the Jura department in France is the southwest side of the Doubs department. So, if you tell your French friends that you went climbing in Jura, they will point out that you went to "Doubs".
So, even if you've climbed in the Jura Mountains, you can't say you've climbed in the Jura 🙄 or maybe you've only climbed in the Doubs 🙄
Rock Climbing Guidebooks
It seems that there are about 42 climbing areas in “les sites d'escalade” du Doubs. There are many local climbing topos.
Escalade au Pays de la Loue
The main climbing area is near Maisières-Notre-Dame. "La Barmaud" and "La Brême" areas are also included in this topo.
Hautepierre
👉🏻 La Brême
Le Porche de la Sarrazine
Mur du GAG Refranche
👉🏻 Roche Barmaud
Roche des Vannes (L'Arc de Cercle)
Baume-les-Dames
Baume les Dames (Escalade dans la moyenne vallée du Doubs) ⚠️ This topo is available at the Tourist Information Office in Baume-les-Dames (April 2019).
The area near Baume-les-Dames is beautiful and similar in scenery to Rurey ⚠️ Compare the cover of Baume les Dames topo and Rurey topo 😁
I have been going to Baume-les-Dames for three years in a row (2019, 2020, 2021). This is the most frequented climbing area outside of the Vosges Mountains!
The unfortunate thing about the area near Baume-les-Dames is clearly divided into two parts, Quint is an advanced area and Sous-Buen is a beginner area.
Personally, I can recommend Quint as a climbing area with beautiful walls.
👉🏻 Quint
179 pitches. Grade: 5 - 7. Exposition S/S/W.
Beaumerousse
Joland
La fente de Babre
Lonot
Rocher de Laissey
👉🏻 Sous Buen 158 routes. Grade : 3 - 7. There are many routes of grades between 3 and 6a. Exposition S – S/S/E - E.
TOPO ESCALADE RUREY :
SUR LES TRACES DES COUREURS DE MURAILLES 2014 - RUREY Escalade dans la vallée de la Louen
Many of the routes are more difficult than my personal grade. The area is beautifully landscape and can be recommended.
ESCALADE dons le Doubs 2022 FFME Gilles Blanchon
New guidebook for the climbing sector of the Doubs, launched in 2022. This topo lists 43 climbing sites and more than 3000 routes in the Doubs, which includes the regions of Escalade au Pays de la Loue, Rurey and Baume-les-Dames. You no longer need to carry 3 topos 😁
Sud du Jura - Guide des sites d'escalade
This is a topo of a climbing area on the south side of the Jura Mountains (Massif du Jura, Jura ). The photo on the cover looks good, but I'm a little disappointed that the route explanation is somewhat cheap.
Bonlieu
👉🏻 Crenans
La Cernaise
La Goulette
Le Truffet
Les Auvernes
Les Dalles du Marais
Les Trois Commères
Mancy
Mont-Robert
Orno
Saint Romain
Climbing Equipment
・ rope 80m
・16 quickdraws
Depends on the route you want to climb....
If you have a rope 80m and at least 16 quickdraws, you may be able to climb most routes 🙄 At least, I had no problem on the routes when I climbed.
Climbing Season
The climbing season in the Jura (Massif du Jura) seems to be outside of summer (July-August).
Of course, you can climb in summer if you choose the right area, but I guess it is more common to climb in the Jura mountains when you can't climb in the Swiss Alps or Chamonix.
Basically, the rocks of Jura (Massif du Jura) are limestone.
Access to Climbing Area
The areas we went to climb are relatively close to the parking lot and the climbing area, although La Barmaud is a bit of a lost 😅
The climbing areas I climbed in Doubs & Jura
👉🏻 Baume-les-Dames
1️⃣ Quint (#5)
2️⃣ Sous-Buen (#6)
👉🏻 Maisières-Notre-Dame
1️⃣ Rurey (#33)
2️⃣ La Barmaud (#36)
3️⃣ La Brême (#37)
👉🏻 Sud du Jura
1️⃣ Crenans
(#) refers to the site number 👉🏻 Des Sites D'escalade du Doubs ▶️ Les Sites Naturels d'Escalade
Quint
Quint has 9 areas along the river, with 179 (5a ~ 9) routes, south face and is an intermediate / advanced area.
The topo recommends carrying a 70m rope and 18 quickdraws. My personal feeling is that most routes can be climbed with 14 quickdraws.
Most of the routes are above (6c) grade, but I can recommend this area.
Sous-Buen
Sous-Buen has 13 areas along the river, with 158 routes, southeast face and is a beginner / intermediate area.
The topo recommends carrying a 70m rope and (maxi) 18 quickdraws. Except for "Le pilier des pirates" area, most of the routes can be climbed with 10 quickdraws.
The walls are a bit dirty in some areas, but it is flat from the parking lot to the crag, so families with small children should be able to easily access all areas.
Rurey
Ruey has 7 areas along the river, south face.
We climbed "Orange Sector", where the wall height was 22-30 meters and it was either a slightly hanging wall or a vertical wall. The long route requires 14 quickdraws.
I went to climb at Rurey several times (August 2018, September 2018, April 2019). South face was a bit reckless in the hot summer (August 2018). It hurts to feel the limestone stinging my fingers. The grade feels a little more spicy than Topo. Even if that were true 😆, the views are beautiful and I can recommend the area.
La Barmaud ▶️ Idylle & Karaya Sector
La Barmaud, Sector Idylle & Kasaya, is southeast face and is a beginner / intermediate area.
We went climbing in the hot summer season, but the lower part was shady and comfortable. Some routes climb about 35m, so a 70m+ rope is a must. If you want to climb long routes, this area is recommended.
La Brême ▶️ Les Chèvres
La Brême, "Les Chèvres" sector has two faces, east and south.
The wall is high and requires a 70m rope. This area is recommended as a beginner area.
Sud du Jura ➡️ Crenans (Hauteur, 25m)
Crenans is a small climbing area with about 48 routes and a maximum height of about 25m.
The wall is west face. When we went to climb (mid-April), the main area was still in the shade even after 1:30pm. The routes we climbed were all fun and unique.
The area around Lake Vouglans (Lac de Vouglans) near the Crenans area has many beautiful views, so you can enjoy sightseeing other than climbing.
Personally, I prefer to climb the longer route, so considering that it takes 4 hours by car from Strasbourg to this area, I don't feel the need to come all the way up here 🙄 However, if I were within an hour's drive, I would definitely come here 😆
🏠 Accommodation :
Baume-les-Dames (March, 2019)
La Maison Imparfaite (5 Chemin du Tunnel, 25110 Fourbanne)
Here is like a gite-type room for rent. There are two bedrooms, each with two single beds and three single beds. The kitchen is fully equipped with a microwave, pots, pans, and dishes, so you will not feel inconvenienced. Beer, wine, etc. in the fridge were available for a fee. The eggs were laid by the chickens in the owner's garden? It was free of charge.
Personally, I had no complaints, but the fact that there is a railroad track next to the house and the occasional train may be a bit jarring for those who want to experience the French country life.
The owner's wife was friendly, cheerful, and easy to talk to. By the way, the owner and his wife can speak German, French, and English, so it is no problem even if you do not speak French. It seems that if you book directly from the website, you can stay at a lower price than through a big agency.
Baume-les-Dames (February, 2021)
3 Rue Principale
Reservation through Airbnb. We spoke with the owner and his wife in French. They are nice people and the room was spacious (double bed, two single beds, and a sofa bed), but there is a main road in front of the house and there was a lot of traffic, so it was a bit noisy. I don't think there was wifi. Personally, I would recommend La Maison Imparfaite.
Restaurant :
La Finette, Taverne d'Arbois 🧀🍷🍺
22 Avenue Pasteur, 39600 Arbois
Whenever we go climbing around Jura (Massif du Jura 🇫🇷), we always have dinner here on the last day.
Dinner menu one day .......
soupe à l'oignon gratinée au côté fruité
fondue au comté
crème brûlée
vin..
Abbaye De Baume Les Messieurs BLONDE
The beer made at Saint-Pierre Abbey in the Jura province? It was recommended by the restaurant, so I tried it. It is a BLONDE beer, but it seemed to have a strong flavor.
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