Climbing in the Pyrenees
Limestone on the Petite Aiguille d'Ansabère and andesite on the Pic du Midi d'Ossau: a journey to the top!
With Aude & Guillaume.
Last week of August: Aude has just got back from the Dolomites, but a craving for the Pyrenees makes us hit the road.
Petite Aiguille d'Ansabère - South Spigolo
8 hours later here we are in the beautiful Lescun cirque... At least what we can see of it: the mist seems to have taken up its summer quarters there.
As stubborn as the mist, we nevertheless set off on the south spigolo of the Petite Aiguille d'Ansabère, which we did at least glimpse the day before.
Guillaume, heavily loaded with his camera gear, tries to climb the Petit Pic d'Ansabère to take advantage of a possible clearing and of the prime viewpoint to photograph us on the crest... Sadly, to no avail.
The climbing is pleasant, and the replacement of the old bolts with beautiful 12mm ones (!) lets you climb relaxed. A set of cams up to #0.75 is still needed to protect the pitches, not forgetting the micros.
The atmosphere is special: the narrowness of this spire plunged in mist gives the impression of climbing in mid-air!
From the two grade-7 pitches onwards, the rock is so compact that the bolting is almost complete; the cams stay on the harness. The climbing changes style and becomes truly superb.
A beautiful day, although the mist sadly didn't let us enjoy the view... All that remains is the descent, by radar in this thick fog (well described in the Petit-Bodet topo), and we meet up with Guillaume for a well-deserved aperitif!
Pic du Midi d'Ossau
After a short bouldering session at Pont-de-Camps, the next day we go up to set up our bivouac at the Lac de Pombie, at the foot of the emblematic Pic du Midi d'Ossau.
Petit Pic - Grand Pic traverse
To discover this complex summit, following a good idea from Guillaume, we choose the Petit Pic - Grand Pic traverse, which gives an overview of every nook and cranny of the beast.
A few moments wandering in the fog (this really is Scotland!) and we find the famous bicycle wheel that marks the start of the traverse. The blue sky is confirmed, at last!
Après quelques hésitations vertigineuses, Guillaume préfère ne pas trop réveiller ses démons et redescend. Nous continuons donc à deux cette jolie traversée qui déroule bien.
En 2h depuis la roue de vélo nous sommes au sommet du Grand Pic. L'itinéraire est malin et sans difficulté au delà du III et l'ambiance est superbe dans les méandres de ce Grand sommet des Pyrénées.
Direct south-east face of the Pointe Jean Santé
The next day, we put our rock shoes back on for a climb that promises to be beautiful: the direct south-east face of the Pointe Jean Santé. Opened in 1964, the Ravier brothers, together with Paul Bouchet, achieved a major ascent here that hasn't aged a bit.
In trainers and without a rope, we timidly start the first "3c" pitch... Right, we stop and finally get the ropes and cams out... The grades are no joke! The second pitch, 6b+ on slippery rock, finishes waking us up.
A few steps, a pretty traversing slab, and we step into the very beautiful open corner that marks the line with its obvious feature. The day is splendid and the clever route offers excellent rock and crazy climbing in a steep atmosphere: we have a ball!
500m of climbing later, we come out on the summit of the Aiguillette Jolly. The descent follows the Vires route, exposed but quick and recently re-equipped with pegs. Another beautiful day of Pyrenean climbing.
A big thank you, Guigui, for letting us discover a little of your country, which I very much hope to come back to soon!
Photo gallery...