Bouldering in Fontainebleau

Fontainebleau is situated 90km south of Paris and can be simply described as the best bouldering area in Europe if not the world. The majority of the bouldering is to found in the forests that surround Fontainebleau, which makes for a magical and unique setting. The sandstone rock is of fantastic quality and the landings are generally soft and sandy. The bouldering sometimes requires brut strength, but that is rare, most of the time you need excellent skills in balance, footwork and technique.

The unique circuits that have been developed here are colour coded, that lead you from boulder problem to boulder problem and there are literally thousands of them for every level of rock climber. From the yellow circuits for the inexperienced climber; to orange, blue and red circuits for intermediate climbers; and white and black circuits offer the top end bouldering experience. There are also many individual extreme problems outside of the circuits, generally graded at Font 8a and above!

The area is huge with many excellent bouldering locations. Some of the main areas are described below:

(1) Bas Cuvier & Gorges d' Apremont. Located just off the N7 into Fontainebleau Bas Cuvier was the first set of boulders to be developed and could be described as Fontainebleau's temple of climbing. There are many classic problems here at all levels with 6 circuits plus a further 3 circuits close by at Cuvier Rempart, all within the main forest. Apremont is another popular area of the forest as it is such a vast and rugged terrine with an abundance of routes at all grades with 24 different circuits. It is also the closest area to the popular village of Barbizon.

(2) The Trois Pignons area. This is easily the largest rock climbing area of the Fontainebleau area - hundreds of square metres of forest, white sandy beaches and perfect sandstone boulders, and over 60 different circuits. The landscape of the sand and trees means you are constantly in and out of the shade as you complete a circuit, and the sand provides the best and softest landings in the whole area.

This is a good place to be based, as it is very central to all the bouldering. There is also a good campsite in this area call La Musardiere near Milly-La-Foret, which is open from mid February to the end of November. See our Fontainebleau accommodation page for more information about this campsite.

(3) Franchard and Fontainebleau. Again located in the main forest area Franchard is one of the most popular sites. The rock is very sharp here, which will test your fingers and your edging ability to the full. In all there 15 circuits at all grades including the famous mountain circuit. This mountain circuit consists of 6km of easy bouldering, which is linked together to make a very physical excursion amongst the trees and rocky crests of Franchard. There are also a small number of circuits just outside of Fontainebleau itself mainly to the south and west.

(4) L' Elephant. Near La Chapelle-la-Reine to the southwest of Fontainebleau is the areas most famous boulder - The Elephant. This iconic boulder is seen on many postcards and also has some great problems on it. L' elephant circuit is also excellent though the boulders are generally higher than most other areas of the forest.

There are a couple of guidebooks that cover the bouldering at Fontainebleau, essential to determine which circuits to do and find the start of them. Both guidebooks can be bought from our shop.
Fontainebleau Magique published by Jingo Wobbly. This guidebook has selected 50 medium grade classic circuits. As well as covering the main popular areas such as Diplodocus and Cul de Chien, it also covers some of the less well-known circuits that have remained hidden from the majority of climbers in recent years. Excellent diagrams of all the circuits covered.
Fontainebleau Climbs. This purple cover guidebook covers more circuits than the Jingo Wobbly guidebook and again is aimed at the mid range climber, though doesn't go into as much detail. Still there are excellent circuit diagrams for all the circuits covered.