Chaîne du Clapis – secteur Vistemboir · Dentelles de Montmirail · France
Easy to bailBolting confidence: high
The classic easy multipitch of the Clapis south face, first climbed in 1964 and now fully re-equipped: a slab, an easy rightward ramble, an obvious corner and a superb steep 5c pitch on very grippy rock with a short airy traverse. A 5 m scramble reaches the crest for a view of both sides of the chain and Mont Ventoux.
The route
Vistemboir gives its name to sector 6 of the Chaîne du Clapis, the south-facing wall above Lafare. Four pitches of rising difficulty lead to the crest. The first two are a warm-up, the third follows a clean corner, and the fourth, steep and sustained with a rest in a big hole before a little traverse, is the reason to come. Descent is by abseil. SummitPost singles out this sector for its well-bolted mid-grade multipitch routes. Several neighbouring lines share the upper wall, so take care to stay on route on pitch 4.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 5a | 30 m | Up the slab following the expansion bolts, with one harder move near the top. Short enough to link with pitch 2 on a 50 m rope, with drag. You can also start up Égoïne, to the right. |
| P2 | 4c | 25 m | From here on the protection is glue-ins. Easy-angled slabs with a little vegetation, slanting firmly right. Slings help with rope drag. |
| P3 | 5b | 30 m | Straight up the obvious corner. Some flakes are loose: a May 2026 party calls them very wobbly. Leave the corner on the right to belay on a good platform. There are four belays in a row here, two of them on the platform; the left-hand ones are in line for the next pitch. |
| P4 | 5c | 30 m | A superb, steep pitch on very adherent rock: straight up with one 5c move to a big hole, where you can rest with a shoulder inside, then a short airy traverse right on small holds (a second, well-protected 5c move). Chained belay just after the traverse, or two belays a little further right. Several lines leave the third belay; take the most obvious, with the belay visible from below. A 2025 party warns that it is easy to stray onto a 6c. |
| P5 | 3 | 5 m | Optional: a short scramble to the crest, where an old rusty belay stands on the left. A 2026 party found two solid bolts joined by a grey rope on the crest, and loose stones. |
Getting there
From Beaumes-de-Venise take the road towards Lafare. About 2 km before Lafare turn left onto a small road (signed for the Domaine du Grand Montmirail according to a 2026 report) and follow it almost to its end, to the compulsory car park with an information board about the vultures that nest here. This is 'P5' in the local guide; the road towards the Col d'Alsau is closed to traffic and the old P4 car park can no longer be used. An on-demand bus runs from Carpentras to Lafare and Beaumes-de-Venise; the car park is about 2.5 km from Lafare.
From the car park, left of the vulture information board, follow a good path marked with blue and yellow dots towards the Dentelles. After about 15 minutes, below the walls, take a good path to the right marked with a blue cross, before you reach a sign for the Dent Hadamard sector. You reach the face where 'Égoïne' is written in blue. Take the track to the left into a small wood: Vistemboir is the right-hand of two lines there, on 10 mm hangers, with the name painted at the foot and on a small stone.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
Parking du Clapis (camptocamp waypoint 189183)
Point from camptocamp waypoint 43247 (Chaîne du Clapis)
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: 44.15222, 5.03889 (crag) · Parking: 44.14660, 5.03353
Getting down
Abseil from the fourth belay. Camptocamp gives 2, 3 or 4 abseils. An April 2026 party went from the top to the third belay, then straight down to a chained belay on a platform (mind the trees), then 45 m to the ground. The camptocamp page for Égoïne, which shares the top pitch, says that with two 50 m ropes two abseils of about 45 m reach the ground via a belay just down and left of a prominent juniper. A May 2026 party descended from the third belay in two abseils via the first belay of Égoïne.
Retreat
Easy to bail
Abseiling is the normal descent and the belays are chained with maillons, so you can go down from any of them. A May 2026 party stopped at the third belay and reached the ground in two abseils via the first belay of Égoïne.
Safety
Sun and weather
South-east to south facing below a crest at about 487 m, sheltered from the mistral, which is why it is climbed from autumn to spring. It is too hot in summer. Reports run from late September to May. Between 15 June and 15 September the Vaucluse massifs can be closed by prefectoral order on days of high fire risk; the decision is published after 18:00 for the next day and there is a fine for being on a closed massif. In autumn and early winter organised boar hunts take place in the massif on some days of the week.
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.
Climate figures for Dentelles de Montmirail are not available yet
What to carry
Camptocamp lists only two or three slings for the rope drag on pitch 2. No source gives a quickdraw count for this route; a combination on the same wall asks for 14 to 15 when pitches are linked. Two 50 m ropes make the descent quick; with a single rope plan on four short abseils.
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 Vistemboir.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
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Read the cautions
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Around 5c · about 5 pitches
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Committing
Austria · Inntal (Haiming Geierwand)
The easiest worthwhile line on the lower tier of the Geierwand. Most people know only its first pitch as a single-pitch climb, but four more good pitches continue to the big ledge on edges and pockets, with a long traverse and a short chimney in the middle. Mostly around 5a with a few 5c passages.
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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.