Dent de Crolles – south-west face · Chartreuse (Dent de Crolles) · France
Read the cautionsBail with caveats
Two routes in one: a long rising traverse right across technical grey slabs, then, above the Sangle de Barrère ledge, steep athletic climbing on big holds through overhangs to a final crack under the big roof. Very good rock and equipment.
Climbing mode: Big type, screen kept awake, tick pitches as you go.
Highest point 2000 m above sea level (camptocamp route 360969).
Modern, well-placed bolting and good rock, but the obligatory level on the traverses is about 6b and falls there swing.
6cVIII-5.11b8 pitches · 150 mBail with caveats
Une seconde, la vie climbs the south-west face of the Dent de Crolles in two tiers. The lower tier is a long, technical traverse rightwards on grey slabs and successive steps, with crux slab moves; the upper tier, above the Sangle de Barrère ledge, is steeper and more athletic, finishing up an overhang on very big holds and a near-horizontal crack in the last roof. Parties praise the rock and the bolting and find it more varied than its neighbours.
The atlas doesn't show topos: they are the work of the people who bolt and document these routes. See the topo in Escalades Choisies en Vercors, Chartreuse et Dévoluy.
| Pitch | Grade | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| P1 | 5cVI5.9 | 20 to 25 m of slab, then walk up the grassy ledge. |
| P2 | 6b+VII+5.10d | Start of the long traverse right, along a more or less sloping shelf. |
| P3 | 6cVIII-5.11b | A slabby crux, then a steeper section over successive steps, still traversing. |
| P4 | 6b+/6c | Two overhangs. One bolt line goes straight up at about the third or fourth bolt, but the route keeps traversing right. Extend the bolt below the first overhang to reduce drag. |
| P5 | 6b+/6c | Start right (thread), then slightly left to an overhang taken by weaving. Out onto a small ledge. |
| P6 | 6bVII5.10c | Two steep walls, then a fine exit onto a prow. Belay on top of the block. |
| P7 | 6b+VII+5.10d | First a transition onto the Sangle de Barrère, an easy escape ledge: go up it slightly rightwards. The upper pitches start about 20 m right of the previous belay, below the left side of the huge roof 40 m higher (cairn). Then a fine varied pitch, rising right and then straight up. |
| P8 | 6cVIII-5.11b | An athletic overhang on very big holds, quite playful, to the almost horizontal crack in the last roof. A variant on the left near the end is about 6b. |
Drive from Grenoble to the Col du Coq (about 40 minutes).
About 45 minutes. Camptocamp starts from the col des Ayes: follow the path to the Trou du Glaz, which passes below the face. Just before it starts to descend, where it almost touches the cliff, leave it and follow the marked trail right (south) along the foot. The start is a 20 m slab (5c) leading to the second ledge, with a small cairn against the cliff; Pour qui sonne le glas starts 2 m to the left. A rockfall in winter 2025-2026 changed the approach: a September 2026 party passed above a small rock band on a chamois trail just before the new scree.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Coordinates · crag
Parking
camptocamp waypoint 104295 (Col du Coq)
Point from camptocamp route 360969 (same point as Kilukru)
Contains the route point and parking.
Points from published sources, not surveyed.
Coordinates: 45.30529, 5.84600 (crag) · Parking: 45.30250, 5.83667
From the top, descend on foot either left by the Trou du Glaz or right by the Pas de l'Oeille, about 1 hour back to the Col du Coq.
Bail with caveats
The Sangle de Barrère, reached after pitch 6, is an easy escape ledge off the face. Below it the line traverses right, which makes abseiling awkward; how the belays are rigged for abseiling is not documented.
France
112Emergency; sends PGHM or CRS mountain rescue
Emergency; sends PGHM or CRS mountain rescue
Position of the crag
45.30529, 5.84600
Marks the crag, not the route: give route and pitch.
Say what happened, how many are hurt, and where you are. Checked October 2026 (sourceofficial sources).
12 quickdraws plus belay gear. Rope length not stated.
South-west facing at about 1800 to 2000 m: cool in the morning even in summer. Parties have climbed it from June to October.
Forecast · next 7 days · 2000 m
Loading the forecast.
| Measure | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °C | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Low °C | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Rain mm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Chance of rain % | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Strongest gusts km/h | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Model forecast for 2000 m. It cannot tell you whether the rock is dry. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
Time plan · 8 pitches
Working out sunrise and sunset.
An estimate. Queues and route finding cost time, and shaded walls go dark before sunset. Local time (Central European time), flat horizon.
Sun on the wall · SW-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
From the aspect alone; terrain is ignored. Local time, 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun (usual season) | Jul (usual season) | Aug (usual season) | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | −1 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 12 | 15 | 18 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 4 | −0 |
| Mean daily low °C | −10 | −9 | −6 | −3 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 4 | 0 | −5 | −9 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 13 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 13 |
● usual season. 1991-2020 averages at about 1552 m; rain is for a 10–25 km grid cell. Weather and climate data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
No reports yet.
Around 6c · about 8 pitches
Switzerland · Sanetsch
The classic introduction to the Sanetsch at 6c: eight varied pitches up a pillar of superb rough limestone, with the hard climbing packed into a few well-bolted metres on each pitch. A steep corner mantel, a balancy wall, a fine slab and an airy exit from a niche. Tops out on grassy slopes with a walk-off.
6cVIII-5.11b6cVIII-5.11b8 pitches250 m
Croatia · Paklenica
Seven sustained pitches of 6a to 6c on the shady north face of Anića kuk, then an easy scramble out. A poor first pitch gives way to a steep ramp, a slightly overhanging 6c wall, an off-width and a fine finishing slab. The rock improves with every pitch.
6cVIII-5.11b6cVIII-5.11b8 pitches220 m
France · Presles (Vercors)
A historic 1966 line at Presles, revived by VTNO in 2019 as an eight-pitch combination on varied, mostly unpolished limestone. Steep juggy walls, a technical 6c corner-crack and a magnificent 45 m dihedral are the highlights, with a couple of weaker pitches on poorer rock. Sustained and stiffly graded: obligatory 6b.
6cVIII-5.11b6cVIII-5.11b8 pitches250 m
Read the cautions
Germany · Ammergauer Alpen
A steep line up the compact west wall of the Kleiner Säuling, ten minutes from the Säulinghaus. Wall and corner climbing on small pockets and edges, mostly UIAA 6+ to 7- (about 6a+ to 6b), with a crux that is 7 to 7+ free or 6 with a pull on the bolts. Belays on ledges and an abseil descent make it a low-commitment day once you have walked up.
6cVIII-5.11b6cVIII-5.11b8 pitches180 m
Researched and aggregated by AI from published sources, last compiled October 2026. It can be wrong, and bolts, anchors and access change: check a current guidebook and read the disclaimer.