Castelvieil – south-west face · Calanques · France
CommittingBolting confidence: high
An airy pillar on the sea cliff of Castelvieil, the headland that closes the Calanque d'En Vau. You abseil 90 m from the plateau to a ledge above the water and climb back out on superb rough limestone covered in water pockets and tafoni: delicate, moderate and fairly sustained, with a traverse under an overhang to finish. Remote, quiet and exposed to the afternoon sun.
The route
Castelvieil is the fortress-like headland west of the Calanque d'En Vau, between Cassis and Marseille. Vide et Eau climbs a pillar on its sea-facing wall in five pitches, of which the first is an optional 15 m warm-up from just above the water. The body of the route is a long 5c+/6a pitch on water pockets, a short 6a+, an easy link and a 6a with a memorable traverse under an overhang. The rock is very rough and sound. Access is by two 45 m abseils from the plateau, so you must be able to climb out. The plateau is a long walk from any road and almost deserted compared with En Vau below.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Bolts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 4b | 15 m | 5 bolts | An optional warm-up starting 15 m above the water, on average rock. The 15 m abseil to reach it snags easily, and most parties skip it, especially in swell. |
| P2 | 5c+/6a | 45 m | 11 bolts | A splendid long pitch on water pockets. The glue-ins are spaced and the crux is oddly placed between them, so you have to climb between the bolts. |
| P3 | 6a+ | 20 m | 6 bolts | More fine rock. The belay is optional. |
| P4 | 5a | 20 m | 5 bolts | Easy link, usually run together with pitch 3 (45 m in all). |
| P5 | 6a | 30 m | 10 bolts | A very fine pitch with a traverse under an overhang. It ends on the plateau at a belay of two unlinked glue-ins. |
Getting there
Park beside the Route de la Gineste (D559) between Marseille and Cassis, by the barrier at the Carpiagne military camp. The Route Gaston Rébuffat and the old Col de la Gardiole car park have been closed to motor vehicles since March 2019 (135 euro fine), so add 15 to 30 minutes on foot by the path to reach the old car park. The Marseille to Cassis bus no longer serves the Gineste and Carpiagne stops, at least for now. Many parties come on foot from Cassis instead, by En Vau.
About 1 h 45 to 2 hours to the abseils, from the Gineste or from Cassis. From the Gineste reach the old Gardiole car park by the red-marked path, head for the Calanque d'En Vau, pass the forestry house on its right, and after a short descent take the right-hand track over the crest and down into a valley. At the first hairpin take the brown-marked path down to the valley floor and follow signs towards En Vau. About 100 m before the calanque take one of the paths on the right up a scree slope to the Brèche de Castelvieil. From the notch follow red marks south along the crest, pass the Trou du Canon and climb the first chimney (3c, very polished, with bolts). Continue to the plateau and along the west cliff, past the dip where the Ramond traverse exits, the abseils of 'Swing' (dead pine) and those of 'Les Dents de la Mer' (flat slab below a large tree). About 100 m further are two isolated pines just before a very marked corner (the exit of 'La Vieille Dame'); the abseil anchor is 50 m beyond that corner, a little below the edge. Two 45 m abseils, those of 'La Lune et le Sabre', reach the big ledge. The route's second pitch starts about 50 m to the left facing the wall, on a fine pillar at the foot of a terrace, with the name written at the start. The first pitch starts lower, reached by a 15 m abseil from the end of the terrace on the seaward side.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
Route de la Gineste, roadside parking at Carpiagne (camptocamp waypoint 106822)
Point from camptocamp waypoint 624518 (Calanques, Castelvieil, Face SW)
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.
Coordinates: 43.19879, 5.49703 (crag) · Parking: 43.23711, 5.49951
Getting down
From the plateau return by the Trou du Canon abseil, the normal descent of Castelvieil, or more quickly by the ledge of the 'grand rappel', and walk out by En Vau to Cassis or back to the Gineste. One party took about 1 h 40 from the Trou du Canon to the Cassis car park, including a swim.
Retreat
Committing
Once you have pulled the abseil ropes you are on a ledge above the sea with no walking exit described; the way out is to climb the route. Each belay has a stainless chain, so you can abseil back down to the ledge from part-way up, but that does not get you off the cliff.
Partly inferred from the route facts
Safety
Sun and weather
The wall faces south-west to west and takes the afternoon sun: it can be very hot, and is at its best from October to May. In mistral it is windy but climbable; without wind the face becomes an oven. Swell wets the bottom pitch and the lowest holds can feel greasy. The climbing takes 1.5 to 2.5 hours; with the walk the day is 6 to 8 hours.
Sun on the wall · SW-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.
| Measure | Jan (usual season) | Feb (usual season) | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec (usual season) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 10 | 11 | 14 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 27 | 27 | 23 | 19 | 14 | 11 |
| Mean daily low °C | 4 | 4 | 6 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 8 | 5 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 8 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 11 | 8 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 182 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
11 quickdraws and 2×50 m ropes; with 2×60 m the big ledge is reached in two long abseils from the stations on the route itself. No nuts or cams. Helmet, and plenty of water.
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
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 Vide et Eau.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
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The big modern classic of the Calanques: eleven pitches in three tiers from the foot of the Candelle plinth to the summit, sustained in the sixth grade on grey water-pocketed limestone above the sea. Two walking ledges split the day and offer escapes. The eighth pitch, a 6b+ diagonal along a flake, is the one people remember.
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An easy adventure on the brown pudding-stone of the Bec de l'Aigle at La Ciotat. You abseil into a sea-level gorge, traverse a few metres above the water and climb cobbles past two caves to the crest, finishing with an airy bolted ridge. The climbing is never hard; the unusual rock, the abseil approach and the setting make the day.
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Committing
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The classic of the Socle de la Candelle, the big plinth of white limestone below the Grande Candelle. Eight pitches slanting right to left, sustained at 5c with a 6a slab, steep and athletic for the grade and well polished by sixty years of traffic. Often combined with a route on the Candelle above for one of the great days out in the Calanques.
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Around 6a+ · about 5 pitches
Switzerland · Furka
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6a+5 pitches170 m
Spain · Montserrat
A modern linkup over two pinnacles on excellent conglomerate. Overhanging 6a and 6a+ walls alternate with easy 'potato-field' slabs. The new bolting makes it one of the most reassuring long lines in the massif.
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France · Verdon
A 1985 classic of the Escalès, a grade harder and noticeably bolder than Les Dalles Grises next door. Five pitches on pockets and slabs, starting with polished rising traverses and finishing up a sculpted wall of vertical flutings, an overhanging crack and a bulge at 6a+. You need to be solid at 6a to enjoy it.
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Germany · Ammergauer Alpen
The popular sport line of the Geiselstein south face, straight up to the summit cross. Long, steep pitches on excellent rough limestone, sustained at UIAA 6- to 6 with two short passages of 6+ and one easier pitch on less reliable rock. Never easy and never crowded with bolts: you climb between them.
6a+5 pitches210 m
Read the cautions
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.