Seb Berthe and Hugo Parmentier have tackled a new mega link-up in the Verdon Gorge. The goal: to string together five of the world-famous climbing area's hardest multi-pitch routes within 24 hours.
1500 meters of climbing, 50 pitches – 9 of them on the eighth, 25 on the seventh Franzosengrat and numerous tricky 6c/+ pitches. This is the latest adventure of Seb Berthe and by Hugo Parmentier in the Verdon expressed in numbers.
Earlier this summer, the strong duo faced a new ultimate challenge that would push them to their absolute limit: to climb 5 Verdon classics within 24 hours.
VAUTOUR: Verdon Abrasive Ultimate Tour
The two professional climbers' menu included five of the hardest multi-pitch routes in Verdon: El Topo (8a, 300m), Le Pornographe (8a, 350m), Jolie Fleur (8b, 250m), Dame Cookie (8a+, 200m) and Mingus (8a, 300m.)
The first challenge was to determine the appropriate order for the link-up, says Hugo Parmentier. "We had to plan to climb in the shade if possible, decide which routes we wanted to climb at night, take into account the type of effort each route required and think about our physical condition on the more difficult pitches."
It was a complete mystery because we had never done or even imagined such a gigantic challenge.
by Hugo Parmentier
Homebase in the campervan
The couple's van, parked in L'Escales, was both their home and base camp during the project. "We had everything ready: meals, water bottles, shoes and clothes for each route," says Parmentier.
The climbing-specific preparation was quite short. The duo tried out the five routes, tried to learn the moves by heart, worked out the strategy for the big day and at the same time tried to rest as much as possible.
“Undoubtedly our greatest endurance project”
On the eighth day after their arrival, the VAUTOUR started in the middle of the night. "It was a memorable, intense and epic push," summarizes Parmentier.
We managed the first four routes in 19 hours, but we were unable to finish the last one within the set time due to extreme exhaustion.
by Hugo Parmentier
"The VAUTOUR was undoubtedly one of the largest endurance projects we have ever undertaken and probably the largest ever attempted in Verdon."
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Credits: Cover image and videos Solidream, Jean Elie Lugon, Julia Cassou