All That Goes Up Must Come Down

You know the month or so of listlessness that follows the finishing of a really good book? Well, Fontainebleau was that book. I didn't want it to end but when it finally did I knew that whatever unfortunate books I picked up next would be disappointing. That meant the land of granite that I love and call home would seem a little bleak for a short while.

So now that I've been back in Sweden for over three weeks I'm starting to feel the "Font Coma" begin to wear off. The first two weekends back did nothing for my psych as Sweden's largest bouldering area seemed like a giant choss-dump and my local projects just weren't as good as I remembered. Fortunately we live roughly an hour away from Bohuslan and this weekend we cruised up and I was reminded that Sweden is amazing. There is nothing like new areas with great lines and a beautiful setting to remind you that you live in a bouldering paradise (but it's still not Font).

Here are a few pictures from one of our first weekends back in Sweden at Kjugekull, Sweden's largest developed bouldering area.

Our psych wasn't helped by the fact that the weather sucked. Here is Chris using the "Swedish technique" to dry some holds.

Chris on Flaming Star

Lina cruising one of Kjuge's best, Mödomsrovet

The problem that will bring me back to Kjugekull, Alla Vill Till Himmelen

Bishop Bouldering Video: Happy Boulders

Another video from the winter.  Hopefully a Font video will emerge in a more timely manner.
Enjoy

A Few more from Font

Here are a few more pictures from Fontainebleau.

Luke on the beautiful L'Étrave in J. A. Martin

Le Yaniro in 95.2 was one of the coolest problems I did.  The only time I've used a figure-4 for more than a party trick, and I removed my left shoe (like Luke in the picture) to help un-pretzel myself.   

Lars on Rocher Canon's best problem (in my opinion), La Théorie du Chaos.

Due to exploding elbows and some decree of restraint Luke and Chris actually rested but still found themselves out at the boulders supporting their obsessive friend (that would be me).  They humored me by going back to things after we had packed and got a taste of what Lina has to live with.  Thanks heaps.

Dosage in Buthiers was one that it paid off to drag my friends back too.  Last minute sends are always sweet.

Triplets on the Drifter Boulder

I ran into some a couple super cool guys while I was in Bishop this winter and we decided to all climb on the Drifter Boulder at the same time.

Font Photo Dump: Classics

While there are thousands of climbs in Fontainebleau some gain a bit more notoriety due to quality, history or something else.  These are the "classics" that draw crowds and become the sought after ticks.  Here are a few pictures of some of Fonts well known problems.

 Lars on El Poussah in Franchard Isatis

Lina on ego-crusher L'Angle à Jean-Luc (red 25) in Roche aux Sabot

 Emil on La Baleine in Petit Bois

 Luke on Sale Gosse in Roche aux Sabot

 Daniel working Big Boss in Cuvier Rempart

Luke wishing it was colder on Fourmis Rouges, Cuvier Rempart

Chris on Lady Big Claques, Buthiers

Égoïste, Apremont

Melissa on Science Friction in Apremont

The Font Wrap-up

I'm back in Sweden just in time for the perfect Spring temps but I thought I wound do a proper Fontainebleau wrap-up before the Sweden posts begin.

So it really is hard to grasp how much climbing there is around Fontainebleau.  If you were to visit just one area a day from the 7s and 8s guide it would take close to three months of climbing everyday before you'd see them all.  That's how much Font has to offer and it is far from tapped out for those willing to explore.  I like to keep that in mind when I go to Font, leaving project lists and  heightened expectations of crushing V-blahblahblah at home.

I feel there are too many great boulder problems in Font to spend days projecting just one when you would be missing out on so many equally amazing climbs.  I prefer to roll on Font time, which means I climb everyday possible, trying to see as much as I can and scrape up problems with difficulty corresponding to number of days on.  I find this schedule only works in a place with abundant 3 star problems of all difficulties and enough areas to make your head spin.

I pretty much count on Font's notoriously bad weather to force me to rest but this trip the weather was almost too good as it allowed me to climb 13 of 14 days.  Everyday we went to a new area and it was only on the last day that I even ventured to the extremely popular Bas Cuvier just because it seems odd not to go there at some point (it is far from my favorite area and the reason, I believe, some visiting climbers can come away with a less than ideal opinion of Font).  The amazing thing about this trip is that my tips didn't bleed (lots of tape was the key), my elbows didn't totally explode (just kind of) and I somehow managed to pull off some good sends nearly everyday.

It was nice to have spent a good amount of time in Font before (around two months) so I could be a little selective and save some skin but my gite mates (Luke, Chris and Oscar) were not so lucky.  For a little taste of how it is going for them check out Lukes blog, koanbouldering.com.

To sum-up, Font was great.  There was lot and lots of climbing but is it was the company that made the trip what it was.  My friends were huge, from booking the gite and making room in the car to following me aimlessly through the woods and baby sitting Hammie.  My friends are heroes.  Seriously,  thanks to everyone for hanging with Hammie and putting up with my need to climb all day everyday.  What would a neglegent father do without you guys.  Actually, I'm surprised Luke, Chris and Oscar didn't keep Hammie and kick me out of the gite, but I'm sure my willingness to change diapers had something to do with it.

Here are a few more pictures from the trip

 Hammie making tick-marks on her project.  I'm sure the Bleausards love this.

 Luke hopes that whispering sweet nothing will make the rock more forgiving 

 The super classic Égoïste in Apremont

 Justin fires Onde de Choc in Apremont

 Chis roof climbing on Retour aux Sources at 95.2

Oscar pulling on slopers

Textures

Here are a handful of reasons I love Font