Sébastien Berthe, who two weeks ago sent Rayu, including a flash of the hardest pitch which he gave a personal 8b+ grade, has done Orbayu (8c). Both 500-metre routes were done ground up in one day. So far in 2023, the Belgian has done La Rambla (9a+), sent 100 7A's in Font in one day and onsighted Ajo crudo (8c). (c) Erwan Rucay

"Last week I sent Orbayu in a day on Picu Urielu, Picos de Europa on my first ever day climbing on it. This 500m 8c multi-pitch is located on the West Face of Picu Urriellu, more commonly known as Naranjo De Bulnes in the Picos de Europa National Park, Spain. The 14-pitch line is in part a free version of Mediterraneo, an aid route established in 1980, and was first climbed free in 2009 by Iker Pou and his brother Eneko. Previous repeats were carried out by Nicolas Favresse and Adam Pustelnik in 2011, Cédric Lachat in 2014, Edu Marin in 2016, Gorka Karapeto in 2017, and Siebe Vanhee in 2020.

On Friday 25th of August, together with French climbers Soline Kentzel, Ugo Monier, Erwan Rucay (last two came to take pictures and climb a bit in the first pitches), we started on the first 7c pitch at 7:15 am. I climbed fast and strong through the first 4 pitches (graded 7c, 8a+, 8a and 7a, but are most probably easier than that) flashing or onsighting all of them. I arrived at the base of the crux pitch around 10 am, feeling fresh, confident and ready to try hard!

The only bad news: the weather was changing a lot, and clouds were dangerously coming closer and closer. The name of the route, “orbayu”, comes from the very typical low clouds coming from the ocean that are literally eating you: wet fog and not much visibility. The least we can say is that we had our dose of Orbayu that day! As soon as I started climbing on the 8c pitch, Orbayu clouds were on us.

My first flash go stopped quite fast: I fell at the crux due to a wrong beta. Then, I spent almost an hour finding my way up to the anchor and dialing the beta. After the crux, the final bit of the pitch has no bolts anymore and is quite tricky: quite physical climbing, slippery pockets (pinscars where aidclimbers would put pegs), hard to protect,... Back down to the belay, I felt confident and optimistic about my chance of success that day.

Unfortunately, my second attempt didn’t really go as expected: the clouds were soaking us… Rock was still dry, but ropes, draws, skin were wet. Rope drag was terrible due to water on the rope, I slipped once, I slipped twice, but stayed somehow on the wall. But after a battle on the crux, this try ended badly: I fell at the last move of the section with a split fingertip, a bloody wound on my index finger.

The orbayu was coming in and out and it was impossible to predict when it would be time to climb. After a really long rest, I put some tape on my finger and I went for the third try. It ended the same way as the 2nd. Things were going bad and my chances of doing it were decreasing drastically…

I felt tired and pessimistic. But Soline, Ugo and Erwan were so happy and psyched! The mood was great and I can only recommend you to bring in your own multipitch project 🙂 I decided to give it a last go, just for the game. The climbing was hard, I was slow and weak. skin hurt. The crew was cheering so much. The battle was on! Somehow, thanks to those guys, I climbed my way through the crux. I now needed to stay really calm and focused. I took my time and fought so hard in the final section, feeling tired and pumped. What a moment to finally clip the anchor after about 30min of fight! Wow, I couldn't really believe what I had just done… It was 5pm (spent about 6-7 hours on that pitch) and we had to be fast: there were 10 more tricky pitches on gears… I onsighted the following 8a and Soline and I kept moving slowly (quite easy climbing but interesting protection and itinerary) to the top of Picu Urielu! “Cumbre” above the clouds, it was 11 p.m. We finally reached the parking lot at 3am, getting lost a few times in the very wet clouds on the way down… Ugo and Erwan were still waiting for us with food, grateful! A nice 21hours-day! Thanks to Soline, Erwan, Ugo, Siebe, Nolwen, Kico and Alvaro!

Note: Hard for me to give an honest opinion about the grade of the crux pitch. Conditions were probably not optimal and I struggled quite hard… Previous climbers gave it around 8c. Compared to the other sport climbs I’ve done around here, it felt similar to the 8c’s I’ve tried. Still, I would not be surprised if it was 8b+. It is probably harder than the crux pitch of Rayu. Anyway, another great climb out there!"

Siara Fabbri sent Creatures of Comfort (8A+) in March. Here is an interview with the antimatter researcher after she did her first 8B+. In the 8a ranking game, the 30-year-old is #5.

Roxane Durand, who did her first 8b at age 34 , and three 8B+'s already this year, has sent Agressif you want (8c) in La Ramirole. (c) Gilles Photography

"A physical, powerful, and methodical path. I put my fingers on it at the end of summer 2021, at first it was abusing me, but today I tamed it! 6 sessions in 2021, 7 in 2022 post-school recovery, and 6 this year to clip this much coveted belay.

My first real 8c, here's the secret recipe: 1 - In the heatwave, return to your post-injury recovery project 2 - Realising we can still move 😊 3 - Lose 20°c in 2 days --> Monostopper the track 4 - Embark with the golden Marjorie Juarez for a day session from Nice, the very last day of my holidays 5 - Whistle at the chain 🤩🥳🎉"

Can you tell us about your climbing background and how you live your daily climbing life?
I started in 2000 and have climbed more and more often over the years. I spent 10 years living near Fontainebleau but I'm more a cliff climber.

I am a Physical Education teacher in high school and since 5 years I live in Nice and have enough free time to climb 3 or 4 times a week on the many crags around Nice like Gorges du Loup, Peillon, Castillon... The climate of the region really allows you to climb in pleasant temperatures 365 days a year 🙂

Alex Megos reports on Instagram from his impressive 12-day trip to Vingsand and Hell. In total, he sent 20 boulders 8A to 8B+, and a 9a, including four 8B flashes; The Bavarian, Verden på Lørdag, Hulefesten and Ormen Lange. (c) Dinosaauuur

Can you tell us more about your trip and the quality of the boulders in Vingsand?
It was truly amazing to spend a bit of time in Vingsand! The quality of the boulders is stunning. The rock is very similar to the rock around Flatanger, so everyone who has been there knows, it doesn't get much better. The place itself with all its Fjords and small towns is absolutely beautiful. Despite the world class boulders there are not many people though. In my eyes, the potential for new stuff (boulders and routes) is still huge. It just needs a few motivated people with some time.

Tanguy Merard has completed the second ascent of Seb Bouin’s Beyond 9a (+) in Pic St Loup. With this redpoint, the 19-year-old has done seven routes 9a and harder in just the last month. (c) Igor Martinez

"It was Seb Bouin's video in Beyond integral 9b/+ which made me made me want to go climb there. I visited the place for the first time last week when the temperature was 40 degrees. Although it was not very enjoyable, it gave me an opportunity to practice my methods and discover a great new route. I returned for two days to make some attempts in the first part (9a+). I made some good attempts and successfully passed the first boulder step [crux] (7C+), but unfortunately, I fell in the second boulder, not far from the final jug.

I then came back when the temperatures dropped and it was 40km/h of wind and it felt 10° so it changed completely. It [just so] happened on the first run of the day, everything was perfect, I was in good shape, well rested and I had good methods. I succeeded in the crux then I continued on this magnificent tufa to reach the chain, it was really pleasant I was able to appreciate the ascent on these last meters of colours. I really enjoyed climbing and that's what's cool. Now back to Grenoble for the start of the school year and back to the bouldering and training to get back in shape for the big project, the Pamphlet in Entraygues."

Adam Ondra has been on a family trip to Croatia climbing at, Vranjača where he onsighted five routes 8a to 8b+ in one day. Later he bolted and made the FA of A je to! (9a+). At Paklenica the following day he onsighted another three routes 8a+ to 8b+. The Instagram picture is from Moskito (8b). "Short, burly but very visionary route from the Austrian climber, Gerhard Hörhager, that I was very happy to onsight in the crazy heat☝️"

Adam is currently in Arco for the Rock Masters and as a warm-up for the event he did the FA of Chiave della volta (9a). ”40 meters of slightly overhanging madness, one of the best in Arco in my opinion. Just incredible route that felt around 9a/a+?”

Adam has redpointed over 200 routes 9a to 9c, and has onsighted 197 8b+ to 9a, which is at least five times more than the closest runner-up.

Solomon Kemball, who previously has repeated two 8C’s, has done the FA of Poseidon's Wraith (8C) in Trewethet . He spent almost 30 sessions on it and was debating even calling it 8C+. (c) Annie Nesta Martin

”Poseidon's Wraith is near Boscastle on a 60 degree board that's 3-4 meters high and 10-15 meters wide which is relatively blank with a couple lines. This line is in the middle of the wall and is seven moves long with each move being somewhere between 7B and 8A+ individually.

The main issue with this bloc is it can seep from the rain and gets hit by the swell from the sea via a blow hole so even with usually small seas it will sometimes get drenched. To get it in good condition you need big winds in the right direction but low swell which rarely happens and it being so steep that some holds won't get hit by the sun to dry. Luckily I live twenty minutes away so I have just driven over to see if it's dry or not multiple times and it's fortunate that it's one of the best places to be so time down there doesn't feel like a waste.

I spent 15 sessions of climbing on it last year in which I managed to do all the moves individually but not many links the best being putting the first 3 moves together which in themselves are around 8B+/C. This year I spent another 13 sessions to finish it up.

I struggled with grading Poseidon's Wraith and was debating giving it 8C+ and I think the main goal is to try and expand the amount of 8Cs and trying 8C+'s around the world the first one I want to go up and try to finish is Isles of Wonder (sit ), up in north Wales and then try head out to Switzerland to sample some of the harder blocs [there].”

Pierre Marzullo has done La proue debridée (8c+) in Roche de rame. The 16-year-old has previously done nine 8c's out of which the first one was at age 11. (c) Emile Pino

"This route took me a total of 3 sessions, and I was surprised that it went so quickly because the first session was tough for me and it was hard to do the moves as a single move. I was surprised, however, by the first tries the following day, which were very promising. At that point, I knew that the sequence was possible, and the hardest thing to manage was the mental aspect, which is not what I'm best at. I often tend to put too much pressure on myself once I know I can do the route. But this time it all worked out pretty well and I managed to complete the route on the 6th try from the bottom after falling 3 times on the last crux😅. This is only the beginning and I don't intend to stop here, but I'm already very happy with what this route has brought me and I'm already looking forward to the next ones!"

So what are the next ones?
This route is a milestone for me, but it's only the beginning! A few months ago I tried Supercrackinette (9a+) a lot and came very close, so this is my goal for the winter. There's also the direct version of the 8c+ I did, Redoublement d'effort (9a) in which I've already worked out the moves. I think it can be done very quickly but I'll have to come back in a few weeks well prepared. There's also "Biographie" (9a+), which is my big goal for 2024 and which I've already started working on!

Can you tell us about your climbing background?
I started climbing at the age of 9, and quickly fell in love with the sport, so I progressed quite quickly. At 10 I did my first 8b and at 11 my first 8c. After that, I started to put more intention into competitions, but after 2 years of doing nothing but indoor climbing, I started to lose motivation, which led me to train less. I even thought about giving up climbing, but I hung in there and 6 months ago I regained the motivation I'd lost. So I decided to devote my life to climbing!

Sebastien BOUIN has established a new route at the crag of St Auban naming it ‘Jamming Destruction’ and proposing a grade of 9a+/b. The route, which features a hand-jam crux, is the direct start to an existing project that had been bolted by local climber Adrian Boulon. (c) Clarisse Bompard

"After realizing my hardest flash ever in Saint Auban, I was checking out some other projects at the same crag. There was a cool one on the left side of the crag bolted again by Adrien Boulon called "Destruction". I managed to climb this project in 3 goes, and it should be around 8c+. This route starts on the left side of the cave and I also saw there would be the possibility for a direct start from the lower part of the cave, so I bolted it. It looks a bit like "The big Island" boulder in fontainebleau. I was thinking it might be too hard at the beginning. But after few goes I found some crazy beta. Stay tuned for the video.

There is one particularity in this route : there is a crux with a full hand jam where you really need to wear a crack glove. If not, it feels impossible. As the crack glove is annoying for climbing hard on slopers, I didn't want to wear it for the first part. The problem was to put it before the second part and the hand jam crux. I found a kneebar right before the second crux, and I was able to put the crack glove on at this moment. I also found a kneebar right after the hand jam crux, where I was able to remove the crack glove. It's a bit of logistics, but it doesn't work if not. So, the first part should be around 8c+/9a, and then you still have to do the second 8c+ part. By my estimation, the full route adds up to be around 9a+/b”

Jack Palmieri started climbing indoors at age 27 and got hooked on climbing outside two years later after a trip to Fontainebleau in 2014. One year later he repeated Oppotrocity wobbly block (8A+). The 38-year-old has now done almost 500 boulders 8A to 8B+, out of which, 79 he's done in just the last 90 days. Pictured is Jack sending the classic, Isles Of Wonder (8B).

"I really only opted into the ranking scores out of curiosity when I saw the article. Didn’t know the feature was there. I just climb outside a lot, 3 or 4 times most weeks and never inside. I also don’t really like or choose to project so in turn get up my fair share of boulders. It’s strange in the UK, we have a lot more hard climbing than people think. It obviously rains a lot which in turn means a lot of limestone caves, these typically lend themselves better to link-up type climbing than most rock types so when summer comes and they are dry there is tons to do. Then winter the gritstone comes back into condition."

Can you tell us more about how you started climbing?
After 18 months or so I got taken outdoors by some friends I’d made at the climbing wall, once to Malham cove where I got spanked, turns out there are no coloured jugs leading the way up the routes and then on the gritstone over the winter, I didn’t take to it over those first few sessions, it was cold and the gritstone was so harsh on my unprepared skin!

Then around 2014 I went to Font for the first time and really enjoyed myself, since then I’ve just steadily climbed outside more and more. I’ve climbed inside just once this year I believe.

And you've knocked down 79 boulders 8A to 8B+ this summer?
I’ve gone a little crazy trying to do daft little challenges over the summer holidays as I have an abundance of time off whilst my son is off school. He often comes along and heckles while I fall off.

Are you doing any special training or just climbing?
Nothing at all in the way of conventional training, not even any fingerboarding. But most of the crags I go to are nice and steep, they suffice to keep me in shape.

How did you became a GB climbing team coach?
After a couple years of indoor climbing I’d started to do some coaching myself after doing some studying on getting myself in shape. I coached a couple of kids of the youth team and when a coaching spot became available I applied and was successful. It was a great job and I eventually moved on to a role with the seniors. In the end the travelling just became too much time away from my family and also ate in to my leisure time!