 50RP team on a trip to France. Buoux for the first time. Hell yes, finally! Such a historic spot. We arrive on a winter afternoon. Rather than packing to climb in the waning sunlight, we shoot off for a walk; to take a look at the different sectors and find the renowned classics. The main goal is obvious: get to Au Bout du Monde, the sector that’s home to La Rose et le Vampire, Chouca, Le Minimum, Il Était une Voie, La Rage de Vivre. I have a camera, my smallest setup. I know La Rose is signed at the start and I want a photo of the route name.  We keep walking and the crags seem to never end. Smooth, gentle features shape the immense faces, making it clear that to climb here, you need to know your footwork and movement. Bordered by multipitch lines, some sectors start high off the ground so we can’t take a look at the established routes and futuristic projects there without going up. The climbers are few; probably owing to the time. We’ve been walking for quite a while and we’re not sure anymore which climbs we’re passing now. We don’t have a guidebook. I come up to two guys, just about to give their project the last go of the day. I ask the belayer about the guidebook. He doesn’t have one on him, but he tells me Au Bout du Monde is a short walk further along. “There are some Americans there”, he adds, probably as a clue for me to know I’m at the right spot when I hear the accent. Soon we come to probably the last sunlit piece of rock in the whole area: this must be our crag. As we turn a corner from behind a big boulder, I (walking first) find out who the “some Americans” are: the first person I see is Chris Sharma. The party at the crag is actually mixed: there are French climbers as well. It doesn’t take us long to figure out: there are the legends Marc le Menestrel and JB Tribout, who’s about to belay Chris. I stop to watch his try. Chris power screams on a long move and misses it by millimeters. Before he got on the rock, the locals had advised him to wait a little longer, till the sun leaves the wall; that’s when it becomes cooler and the holds are easier to see. Chris admits he should have waited, with a smile on his face. He gives the long move another try or five. Watching Chris succeed on the move, Marc and I get talking. First about the routes in this sector and beyond, many of which are his masterpieces. Chouca, Le Minimum, Rêve de Papillon - these are just some examples of king lines opened by Marc, sometimes accompanied in the process by his brother Antoine, also an excellent climber.
Marc le Menestrel doesn’t really need much introduction. He is one of the few climbers who have added extensive and fascinating chapters to French and world climbing history. Apart from the routes mentioned above, Marc is known for adding many classics to the excellent walls and boulders of France, as well as doing outstanding repetitions, like the solo ascent of the ultra classic Chimpanzodrome in Saussois. He belongs to the leaders of the French free climbing movement, which was developing around the same time that redpoint was in Germany.
Accompanied by photos from Marc’s archive, though brief, our spontaneous chat is a beautiful insight into the 80s climbing vibe. Marc tells me about the time he met Kurt Albert and Wolfgang Güllich - it was in Pfalz (Güllich’s home area), when Marc was just 14 years old. He remembers Wolfgang to have been rather distanced and timid; a comparison to the French star Patrick Edlinger comes to mind. Kurt, on the other hand, was somewhat more gregarious. He praised Marc’s climbing, who was flattered.
14-year-old Marc climbing in Pfalz. During his 1982 trip there, he met the German climbing elite and impressed Kurt Albert with his skill. LEFT: leading Gorilla Dach, RIGHT: seconding Superlative (one of Güllich's most famous routes opened in his home area) Marc and Kurt have gone on to become friends and Albert has earned himself a spot in Marc’s heart. They met in Germany - Marc visited Frankenjura every summer for a few years - as well as in Siurana, while Marc lived in Spain. It’s no doubt the two got on well. For both of them - the professor of decision sciences and the mathematician - climbing and thinking constituted the very essence of being. In Marc’s words: “Climbing and thinking have been with me always. They are two main pillars upon which I have been developing myself.”
The funky belay techniques of the 80s. LEFT: Marc belays someone on Superlative in Pfalz using the camping chair technique (no need to wear a harness for that one). Credit: Marc le Menestrel archive. RIGHT: Kurt Albert also had a no-harness way - just holding onto the rope is enough, right? (Disclaimer: make sure you did your morning portion of 200 pull ups beforehand. Credit: Nina Quark archive. Don't try this at home - or at the crag for that matter. The tone of Marc’s voice when talking about Kurt says a lot; that’s why I wanted to let him say it himself - see below for an excerpt from our randomly recorded chat. Enjoy. “The friendship that I experience around climbing is certainly part of the meaning of climbing. With nature and sport, friendship is one of the 3 equally important dimensions of climbing.” Thank you, Marc, for this spontaneous exchange. It was a real pleasure to meet you, and in Buoux itself! ADDITIONAL SOURCES:
ADDITIONAL QUOTES: https://www.metoliusclimbing.com/beth-interviews-marc-lemenestrel.html IMAGES: Marc le Menestrel collection, Nina Quarg collection MAGAZINE COVERS: AlpiRando May 1987; Climbing Journal (Japan) June 1987; The Iwa to Yuki December 1986
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