Claret

Claret is a small, pretty village 20km North of Montpellier. The crag faces directly south on an escarpment just above the village, and is a useful stop over place en route along the motorways of the south of France. The climbing is steep and polished, and on hot days is best avoided, although the roofs provide shade and the rest of the crag loses the sun after about 4pm. It dries quickly after rain but some of the routes, especially the tufas, seep after prolonged rain. However in cooler winter, spring and autumn conditions, it has some testing and enjoyable routes. Grading is tough, perhaps some routes should have two grades, a boulder grade for the start and one for the rest of the route. The bolts are good, although often spaced with a good hold to clip from. All this, coupled with its easy access, makes Claret a popular crag.

Region
France - Languedoc-Roussillon
Rock Type
Limestone
Altitude
200m
Number of routes
300
Range of Routes
5b - 8c
Faces
South

Sport and bolted routes

Topo Ref Route Sport Grade Length Quality Description Tick
006 Le peril jaune 6b+
009 Martin Luther King 6b+
021 Miss terre en peril 6c+ 25m

Near the approach path

026 Margot 6a
027 Tac tac 6a+ 25m

Just right of the approach path. Very pleasant except for a hard polished move in the middle.

038 King of Bongo 7a+
043 Voodoo 7b
051 Hot tension 7c+ 30m

Just behind the two large immovable boulders

057 Guere d'usure 7a+

The extension is 8c and was on sighted by Adam Ondra

063 Clair obscur 6c 30m

Behind the first large olive tree that you meet on the path

080 Biotop 8b+
088 Le bal de la suer 7b 25m

The route starts behind the second set of olive trees on the path

101 Awele 7a
107 Houlala 6b+ 25m

Slippy and strenuous up to the third bolt then correct at this grade

111 La saison des amours 7a+ 30m

The broken crack and roof left of the tree

112 Il fut un temps 6c 25m

About half way along the crag is an obvious tree. Climb this in the vain hope to avoid a hard start. Continue up the crack with some technical jamming, moving right more easily afterwards.

120 Des margouillats plein les murs 6c+ 25m

After another hard start continue direct

121 Les vignerons de pic 6c 25m

Start as for the previous route but trend right with some tricky moves past the bulge

125 Horrible et mental 7a+ 30m

Facing the "tombstone" on the path

141 Coit ou double 6a 30m

Has a very conspicuous log placed to avoid the difficult start

142 Message personnel: "AVFF" 6b+
151 Le gardien du temple 6b+ 25m

Another hard start followed by more reasonable and less polished climbing

161 Best seller 6c
186 Les chants noir 7a 25m

Hard to start, run out to the 4th bolt, then easier to a gnarly finish. 7a? Really?

Crags in this region: