“It has to be accessible, that’s the most important thing”. At our feet lies an assortment of paint pots, brushes and rope. About us trees and boulders stretch for miles around. Now retired, Charles and Jean-Yves are active members of CoSiRoc and represent one of a small number of local groups committed to the vital service of cleaning and painting the climbing circuits in the forest of Fontainebleau.
Known for its sumptuous palace, its renaissance architecture, and its international business school, Fontainebleau has earned somewhat of a reputation as a bourgeois Parisian getaway. However thanks to certain gifts of nature and the dedication of some so-called hippies, its fame for climbing now surpasses that of the pomp and circumstance of the French monarchy in the sporting world. Climbing attracts visitors from far and wide looking to test their strength against the boulders of Fontainebleau, so much so that nowadays names such as Jacky Godoffe and Jean-Pierre Bouvier seem more at home in the forest than Napoleon Bonaparte or Louis The Fat.
The continual growth of climbing tourism at this year-round venue necessitates copious measures to maintain and protect the forest for future generations. However whilst the big names of Bleau are celebrated, rarely are the communities who have contributed to the development of the climbing scene and the care of the climbs themselves given much consideration by those who profit from their legacy.
Before volunteering with CoSiRoc I hadn’t given it much thought either, being too caught up in the pursuit of my personal climbing goals to leave time for anything else. As such, when I first joined the association I had no idea of what they actually did and was merely hoping to find people to climb with at my new local crag. What I actually found was a vibrant community, united by a shared interest in the sustainability of my favourite hobby.
Legend has it that the boulders of Fontainebleau forest have been the objects of climbers’ attentions since 1870, but it wasn’t until the 60s when threat of urbanisation loomed over the forest that CoSiRoc was born. Once considered the national organisation for the protection and equipment of climbing sites, CoSiRoc lost momentum in 2003 after the disappearance of chairman Daniel Taupin in a mountaineering accident. The organisation has since recentred its efforts on Fontainebleau and the surrounding forests, where its activities are primarily carried out by a handful of individuals such as Gérard, Jean-Yves and Charles.
Even on a regional scale the maintenance of climbing circuits is a Sisyphean task. Not only can the cleaning of a single boulder take four people an entire day, but Fontainebleau Forest encompasses more than 200 bouldering sites, with multiple circuits in each location and each circuit containing around 40 to 100 climbs. Not to mention that the forest plays by its own rules, so whilst it can take a day to rid a boulder of its coating of lichen and moss; it takes just a matter of weeks for nature to work its magic, adorning the rock with a new garnishing of plant life. CoSiRoc’s work knows no completion.
As well as investing their time, CoSiRocians suffer for their art. Diligent and meticulous, years of climbing circuit maintenance have taken their toll on Charles who now suffers with tendonitis – a condition that hounds many climbers but is aggravated all the more by brushing the boulders. Despite this Charles is not given to complaining, often claiming whimsically that “aches and pains are just part of being an athlete” before resuming his work. Nonetheless there’s no denying that this work is hard graft.
These volunteers aren’t athletes by profession. Jean-Yves has been opening circuits for more than 30 years in Beauvais (Nainville), juggling his love of climbing and the forest with full-time work up until his retirement a few years ago. As a result of decades of investment he gives the utmost consideration to every climb in the circuit. Once a problem has been discovered or rediscovered it is scrutinised, tested by climbers of all shapes and sizes, and graded before it is granted a place in the circuit. Each decision is taken extremely seriously. Everyone makes a contribution, and every opinion counts.
When it comes to climbing circuits, it’s all about the detail. Even the journey to the next boulder is carefully mapped, with every effort made to avoid the climber posing their feet on forest floor and picking up grains of sand and mud which will erode the fragile sandstone. Even when the circuit seems complete, the discovery of one interesting boulder, previously overlooked, can spark a complete transformation of the circuit, meaning that Gérard must erase all of his paintwork and start afresh.
This painstaking approach is vital to CoSiRoc’s vow to protect natural spaces. To this end the volunteers are perfectionists when it comes to aesthetics and any misshapen arrows or illegible numbers are quickly erased and righted. They also keep an eye on erosion of climbs in the circuit, occasionally excluding a climb or moving an arrow to avoid further damage. Such measures are controversial but necessary to protect the boulders from overuse.
Through their shared interest and investment in climbing, the CoSiRoc volunteers have become close friends. Their work serves as evidence of their amity, not only by way of the entertaining and original names given to each climb, but in the composition of the circuits. To Jean-Yves, accessibility and sociability are key factors in the success of Fontainebleau’s climbing scene and he often re-orders entire circuits to ensure that climbers of different levels, following different circuits, can start and finish in near enough the same place. However as much as this measure is well received by families and other mixed ability groups, it can cause conflict with other climbers.
Despite the benevolent intentions of these volunteers, there’s no escaping politics. CoSiRoc aren’t the only party maintaining the circuits and with a reigning nostalgia for the rich local history, they often endure criticisms for their less traditional values. Seemingly insignificant changes to a circuit, such as changing number 13 to number 11 or extending a traverse, can incite conflicts and objections. With so many individuals emotionally invested in the forest, such conflicts can quickly turn into unpleasant competitions over who can shout the loudest which leave little space for mutual understanding. Albeit hard to forget, such animosity is thankfully rare and the general understanding that we can’t all agree all of the time often prevails. Above all and in spite of some grumblings, the work of each organisation in the forest is greatly appreciated by the public, even if this public isn’t aware of who they owe their gratitude to.
CoSiRoc didn’t invent these climbing circuits – people have been painting little arrows on rocks since the 40s – but they play an anonymous yet important role in maintenance of the climbs on an entirely voluntary basis. Through taking part in their activities I have had first-hand experience of the time, effort and consideration involved in protecting the freedom that climbers enjoy in this forest and have witnessed the value that such freedom brings to the community.
As climbing becomes ever more popular, protecting areas such as Fontainebleau will become increasingly essential if we want to preserve the boulders for future generations. Expecting everyone to invest as much time in maintaining crags as CoSiRoc is unrealistic, but we could definitely all take a leaf or two out of their book and make small efforts to contribute to the sustainability of our sport.
Francophones can follow CoSiRoc’s activities here.
Hati Whiteley 