Alpine Logistics

A few weeks ago Julia and I went for a walk in the upper reaches of Valle Elvo, Piemonte. On the way back I saw what looked like some boulders in the forest, so we side tracked and went to investigate.

By the river bank, nestled amongst brambles and covered in moss an array of huge boulders grow as is from the earth…all inclinations and sizes. Cleaning off some of the vegetation we found that the rock is a solid gneiss, in some places smooth, in others scattered with holds or split by cracks.

Excited by our new discovery we returned a few days later with a group of friends armed with brushes, brooms, crashpads and chalk bags! Our friends were also enthused by this new climbing location and within a few hours the first two problems were born. One involves a mantleshelf reminiscent of bouldering at Fontainbleau, grade around 6c; the other is a beautiful overhang with a series of intense and complex moves on crimps and slopers to reach the top. It awaits a repetition but has been graded around 7b/7b+.

We also cleaned the bottom half of an appealing lay-back crack but the top section requires a ladder or a rope, so it’ll have to wait until next time. Walking back we had a look at the remaining boulders. With some patients and determination we estimated that there must be about 60 boulder problems in all…photos coming soon!