“It’s an area of the past,” said Alex Megos who travelled to Buoux, a limestone crag outside of Apt in southeastern France. In the 80’s, climbers from around the world travelled to test themselves on the rounout picket and slab climbs and the area became known for it’s hard climbs.
On his first trip, Megos made quick work of the classics flashing Ben Moon’s Agincourt (8c) and La Chiguette Du Graal (8b+). He also climbed Le Rose et le Vampire (8b), La Mission (8b) and Miss Catastrophe (8c), establishing a solid foundation for the technical style there.
After dispatching the testpieces, Megos pushed himself farther. Le Grand Saccage (9a+/9b) located in the Brillant Sonne zone defies the standards of the Buoux. Bolted by Adrien Boulon, the 20-meter line starts with an intro of five bolts of 8b to a 8a+ boulder in a 70 degree roof. “After that you have an easier section and one last dyno from a mono to a jug,” said Megos.
On his first trip to the historic area in March, Megos spent three days working on the steep limestone line. When he returned in April, he spent another three days on the climb before redpointing it for the first ascent of the route.
The route’s notoriety comes from the it’s difference from the surrounding lines. The steepness differs greatly from the more vertical classics of the rest of Buoux. For the route, Megos learned how to properly wear his kneepad. He had been wearing the pad over his pants and hadn’t properly adjusted it to make it stay. However, the technical limestone kneebarring proved more difficult than the obvious kneebars of the granite in the Flatanger cave. The route pushed Megos to develop his technique and opened the steep terrain of the classic area, showing the potential for hard climbing there.
Noting the modernization of the climbing area, Megos said, “I wanted to call the route “Buoux is Back.”