Multipitch Atlas

I Cal Ana

Dent d'Orlu – South-East Face · Ariège Pyrenees · France

Easy to bailBolting confidence: high

The friendliest introduction to the granite slabs of the Dent d'Orlu: six pitches of friction climbing with a few steeper steps, shorter and better bolted than the face's big classics. It is the route to do when the weather is unsure or the longer lines are out of reach.

The Dent d'Orlu (2222 m), the granite tooth whose slabby flanks hold the long bolted routes of the Orlu valleyPhoto: vlecerf · CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo

The Dent d'Orlu (2222 m), the granite tooth whose slabby flanks hold the long bolted routes of the Orlu valleyPhoto: vlecerf · CC BY-SA 3.0
Hardest pitch
5c
Pitches
6
Length
230 m
Approach
40 min
Aspect
SE
South-east-facing
Rope
2×50 m

The route

Overview

I Cal Ana is on the right-hand part of the south-east face of the Dent d'Orlu, the 'little Yosemite' of the Ariège, where most routes are long slab climbs with famously spaced bolts. This one is the exception: 230 m, six pitches, grade 5b to 5c throughout and bolted more closely than its neighbours. The lower pitches are fine clean slab; the fourth is vegetated; the upper two are more varied. It ends at a ledge well below the summit and you abseil back down. Strong parties add the last pitches of the neighbouring Lézard, which are a little harder and less well bolted.

The climbing

Pitch by pitch

PitchGradeNotes
P15bSlab. A 2025 party found the bolts a long way apart here.
P25b+Slab that ends with a very thin section and an acrobatic step down and across onto a tiny ledge below the belay.
P35cA few moves that are not so simple to pass a steeper step.
P45bA vegetated pitch of little interest. It is easy to stray to the fourth belay of the neighbouring I Cal Puja: a 2025 party did and had to cross back.
P55cMore varied climbing with moves of 5c.
P65cLast pitch to the official end of the route. A 5c+ pitch of a neighbouring line continues above.

Getting there

Approach

To the parking

From Toulouse or Foix follow the N20 towards Andorra to Ax-les-Thermes, then the D22 to Orlu. Pass the village and, at the Forges d'Orlu, turn left onto the road to the national reserve and the Pont du Bisp. In July and August a shuttle runs from Ax-les-Thermes to Orlu. Park on the tarmac lay-by at the edge of the wood just after a cattle grid, shortly before the Pont du Bisp and the reserve car park (about 15 places).

On foot · about 40 min

About 40 to 50 min, steep. From the lay-by walk back down the road towards Ax for about 30 m and take a faint track on the right, before the Pont du Bisp. It climbs steeply through beech forest, marked by red dots on trees (a 2025 party also mentions yellow ones) and cairns. Do not follow the broad red dashes, which mark plot boundaries. At the foot of the face go right to the starts; the names painted in red are badly faded, so check the line against the CAFMA panorama.

Map of the walk-in

  • Crag
  • Parking

Loading map

The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.

Coordinates · crag

42.68981, 1.94339

Parking

42.68111, 1.94444

Orlu, Pont du Bisp (camptocamp waypoint 128846)

Point from camptocamp waypoint 187234 (Dent d'Orlu, Face SE)

For your phone or watch

Download GPX

Contains the route point and parking. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.

Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.

Getting down

Descent

By abseil down the route. A 2026 party notes that the last two abseils can be combined if you pull diagonally towards the start of Les Enfants de la Dalle. A 2025 party preferred the abseils of the neighbouring Assurance tout spit, which are less vegetated except for the first two. Then the approach path in reverse; wear proper shoes for it.

Retreat

Bailing off the route

Easy to bail

Abseiling the route is the normal descent, and the sector page says every route on the face is equipped for it. A party on the same face retreated from the fifth pitch of a neighbouring route in 2019 by abseil. The lower abseils cross vegetated ledges where ropes can catch.

Retreat from
Any belay.
Point of no return
None.
Carry
2×50 m ropes.
Basis
Stated in the sourcesCamptocamp route and sector texts; 2025 and 2026 reports of the abseil descent.

Safety

Hazards

  • Spaced bolts on the easy slabs by modern standards, even though this is among the best protected routes on the face.
  • Small loose flakes on the black 5b slab, noted in the route text and again by a 2025 party.
  • Wet rock after rain: a party on the same face in June 2019 turned back on streaming slabs and soaked moss.
  • The approach path is steep, faint and slippery with leaves.
  • Storms: the slabs drain a large face and become torrents in heavy rain.

Sun and weather

Conditions

South-east facing from about 1450 m, in the sun from early morning until mid-afternoon; too hot in a summer heatwave. The face is laced with vegetated ledges that hold water, so the slabs stay wet for days after rain. Camptocamp suggests the route for uncertain weather or when snow still covers the foot of the east face.

Usual season · May to Jul, Sep to Oct

Sun on the wall · SE-facing

Working out the sunlit hours for this month.

Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season

Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Central European time), for the 15th of each month.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Mean daily high °C225812161919151263
Mean daily low °C−6−6−4−1379963−2−5
Rain days 1 mm or more111212151817171713121211

● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 1785 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis. Temperatures are adjusted to the height of the crag; rain comes from a grid cell of about 10 to 25 km, and summer highs on sea cliffs can read a few degrees low. The wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.

What to carry

Gear

14 quickdraws and a rope that allows 45 m abseils according to camptocamp; the CAFMA topo says 12 quickdraws plus belays and a 100 m abseil rope, so take 2×50 m. Helmet. Stiff-soled shoes for the steep forest path.

Checklist

Quickdraws
14
Rope
2×50 m
Helmet
One each
Abseil device and prusik
The descent or the retreat involves abseiling

Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo

From climbers

Reader reports

Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to I Cal Ana.

Worth knowing

Tips

  • The CAFMA topo gives 2 h 30 min for the route; recent parties took about 4 h up and down.
  • With time in hand, continue up the last two pitches of Le Lézard (a 6a overhang, then a 5b corner), which a 2026 party recommends; the bolts are further apart there.
  • Neighbouring Assurance tout spit (6a, seven pitches) is the natural next step.

Open questions

Where sources disagree

  • Gear: camptocamp says 14 quickdraws and a 90 m abseil rope; CAFMA says 12 quickdraws plus belays and 100 m.
  • Classification: theCrag files the route as 'mixed trad' with 14 bolts, while camptocamp rates it P1 and fully equipped and CAFMA lists it as equipped. No report mentions placing gear.
  • Date: camptocamp gives August 2000; theCrag shows a first ascent dated 10 September 2010.
  • Bolt spacing: 'abundant' (2019), 'very modern and fairly close' (2026) and 'certain spacing between bolts' (November 2025) all describe the same route; the easier the ground, the wider the spacing.
  • No pitch lengths or pitch descriptions are published; the notes in the pitch list come from one detailed 2025 trip report.

Provenance

Sources

Same area

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Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.