'Le Poussin' multipitch aid climb added to Verdon Gorge, France

The first stage of the new GEAN group (the French National Excellence Mountaineering Group) took place in April and included some aid climbing. The Paroi Rouge in the Verdon Gorge is a legendary cliff, famous for its beautiful routes, and our goal was to establish a new line there over three days. Léo Billon had spotted a potential unclimbed line on the left side of the face, and Esteban and I thought, Why not? We were a little nervous — none of us had much aid climbing experience — but armed with two haul bags, gear, and food, we set off.

Esteban started up the first pitch which eventually turned out to be one of the hardest. This was followed by a pitch we managed to climb free, and then we reached an obvious line of weakness, clearly visible from the foot of the face. I tackled this pitch, which starts with a wide crack before resorting to aid on bird beaks and hooks. I reached a small terrace, which provided comfort for the portaledge night. One bolt was added for extra security at the belay.

The next morning, Esteban took over the lead and climbed an obvious crack system to the right. A mix of free and aid climbing led him to join the belay on the nearby route Guy Heran. This heads straight for a roof, while our route heads left via an arching traverse to reach some cracks and then a small cave. Protection was moderately good, and at the belay I placed another 8mm bolt for greater safety.

As we slowly made progress, two friends were repeating Metallic Ko to our left; their presence motivated us on this austere face!

Léo started up the next pitch, which turned out to be the hardest of the route; despite its steepness, unfortunately the rock was rather poor. At the next belay we decided call it a day; the last 2 pitches had taken a long time to decipher.

The following morning the next 2 pitches shared sections with Guy Heran sections. The rock is really compact here and we then decided to finish our line by climbing the last two pitches of Guy Heran.

For those wishing to repeat our line: take about twenty bird beaks, lots of pegs of all shapes and sizes, and 3 racks of cams up to number 6. Only the first and the sixth belay need constructing entirely; at least one bolt protects the other belays.

We topped out after three days on the wall. It was a great adventure, especially with all the vultures circling around us. And a chick, who watched us for 3 days next to the river - check out the photos to see what we mean and why the route got its name!

- Kilian Moni, Chamonix