France
Europe's great limestone gorge. Away from the famous vertical walls, the Malines sector above the Chalet de la Maline has easier bolted pillar routes that start almost from the road. La Palud-sur-Verdon is the base. Climb in spring and autumn, because the south-facing walls bake in summer.
Where and when
Loading map
Malines sector, Verdon gorge rim · 822 m
| Measure | Jan | Feb (usual season) | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun (usual season) | Jul | Aug | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 7 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 23 | 26 | 26 | 21 | 16 | 11 | 8 |
| Mean daily low °C | −1 | −2 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 7 | 3 | −1 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 7 | 7 | 8 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 8 |
| Sunshine hours a day | 7.2 | 8.5 | 9.8 | 10.9 | 12.2 | 13.8 | 14.0 | 12.7 | 10.7 | 8.7 | 7.2 | 6.9 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 822 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis (about 10 km grid): the wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
3 routes
France · Verdon
The easiest way to climb out of the Verdon gorge: a long, wandering ridge of short pitches at grade 3 and 4 that starts close to the river and finishes near the rim road. The climbing is modest but the setting is the full Verdon. You walk down a steep path with fixed ropes to reach the start, so the route is your way back up.
4c9 pitches180 m
Read the cautions
France · Verdon
Seven pitches of compact grey water-pocketed wall high above the mouth of the Verdon gorge, with a view over the Lac de Sainte-Croix. It zigzags a great deal, so both leader and second need to be happy on traverses. A short, bouldery 6c+ bulge (6a/A0) is the only move above 6b+, and the final pillar pitch is the highlight.
6c+7 pitches160 m
Committing
France · Verdon
A modern (2019) line up a staircase of limestone pillars above the Chalet de la Maline, with short walking links between them. Harder than its old 6a grade suggests: recent parties report obligatory 6a+/6b moves on the first three pitches, and the last pitch is 6b+ or A0.
6b+10 pitches300 m
Read the cautions
Local words
France