So its Autumn and there has been some great conditions for alpine climbing and I have consequently lost a bit of power and resistance but a few indoor sessions and the new finger board seams to be helping me to get back in shape for some good sport climbing. Ok I have started to train specifically in order to be able to get my ass up an 8a+. Having been up the Matterhorn twice and air lifted off Grand Jorasses in the last weeks I have only added leg muscles and not a great recipe for sending hard on the crags. On top of this I have been a bit tired from a flue but now I'm taking advantage of the dry and sunny weather in Provence and enjoying the amazingly good climbing in St Leger.

This weekend it was crazy hot (climbed and belayed all day dressed in only my Moon Climbing DWS shorts...) and crowded but its all calming down. I have never bothered hiking all the way in to the "new" sector La Baleine in St Leger and in a way I'm happy I left this sector to be explored. Its unreal cool with amazing tufas and colonnettes. This is a new climbing style for me so I'm super psyched on the kneebar thing and the powerful style. Most of the routes on La Baleine seam to be 40 meters and are very demanding. I tried a 7c+ "Le concierge est sur le parking" but it was so busy and next to it was an even nicer looking line called Coloscopie a 40 meter 8a with some unreal cool colonnettes and features leading up to a really steep wall and on to more tufas. It’s my project and I think I can dispatch this one in a few more tries. It’s really my style and I just need to get it really dialed in so I can climb it fast and efficient.

If you go to St Leger please respect the rules at the "camping/parking" and don't camp there permanently. If you are in a tent you need to dismantle it every morning and pack it away. It’s forbidden to camp there but as long as there is no camping it kind of accepted as long as we all behave well and don't litter the place. The topo for the new sector is available in the Gite "Terre Rouge" about 300 meters from the Parking.

This is a list of what I have managed to climb during October, not that bad given all my alpine outings.

8A    RP    Coloscopie    St Léger / Baleine
[WORKING ON] Unreal climbing on one of the best spots I have ever climbed 40m *****

6b+    OS    Vivre libre    St Léger/ Sous l'oeil de baleine
Super hard for the grade ***

7c    RP    Conciliabule avec le diable    St Léger / Le tempie de la méduse Happy with Second GO, steep, steeper and then pull hard as F****. A battle. 40m

7b    OS    Tout est chaos    St Léger / Ca peut chémar
Really nice with intense finish on the vertical top wall 40m**

6c    REP    Va comme le vent    St Léger / Sol sombr
Long and varied  **

6c    OS    Les colonnes d'Hercule    St Léger / Sous l'oeil de baleine
Great climbing but hard for the grade and a bit run out ***

7b+    OS    Chute de chèvre    St Léger / Sous l'oeil de baleine
Really cool and very good climbing. Hard after the roof... ***

7a    Rep    C'est amusant     Plampinet / Sector 2
So much good climbing never easy 40m ***

6b+    REP    2 qui l'étienne, 3 qui l'affine        Plampinet / Sector 2
Steep and long 40m ***

7b    REP    De pire empirique    Plampinet / Sector 2
The definition of continuous climbing AWESOME! ***

7b    REP    Papa Pouit    Pouit, Retro flash
55m finishing in a 45° roof ***

6c    REP    Bob et les ferratlieurs    Pouit
Long Nice all the way even if I have climbed it 20 times its fun 42m ***

6c+    REP    Que du Bonheur    Pouit
Long and one of the best routes on this sunny crag ***

7a+    REP    Canicule    Plampinet / Sector 2
The pump is gone I'm week X 2 ***

7a+    OS    Margalef    Mont Dauphin / Raph
New route on the new sector, cool ***

6c+    REP    Le gros lot    Plampinet / Sector 2
Steep and fun ***

6c+    REP    Vite du numeraire    Plampinet / Sector 2
Hard for the grade ***

7a    REP    Monumental Paradise    Mont Dauphin / Raph
Stamina fiesta...47m    ***

6c    REP    La Grandelle    Mont Dauphin / Raph     ***

6b+    REP    2 qui l'étienne, 3 qui l'affine        Plampinet / Sector 2
X 2 ***

6b+    REP    Le temps qui court    Plampinet / Sector 2
*

6c+    REP    Pas cool, hein     Plampinet / Sector 2
X 2 **

6b+    REP    2 qui l'étienne, 3 qui l'affine        Plampinet / Sector 2
X 2 ***

7b+    RP    Final fantasy    Tournoux / Sector 4
Hard compared to other routes on the same crag. 5 star! *****

7a+    REP    Olympic crack    Tournoux / Sector 4
40m stamina climbing ***

6c+    REP    Le jour le plus long    Tournoux / Sector 4
So cool ***