Les Gaillands

Crag Summary

Les Gaillands is famous for being extremely easy access, with routes aplenty and also very busy. Our visit was no exception and on top of that, it was stinking hot! We really would have given it a pass if it wasn’t for my partner insisting we get a couple of climbs in on account of the next week being dedicated to non-climbing trail-running UTMB race.

So in summary, there are certainly more exciting and scenic spots to climb in Chamonix. But even from Les Gaillands you can marvel at snow-capped peaks and you can certainly find a route to suit you. My top tip would be to find a time when it is not being fully sun-baked.

• Style: Single pitch sport, a few little multis that are good for practicing skills
• Parking: 45.91493, 6.84827
• Topo and Approach details: The ‘Office de Haute Montagne‘ in Chamonix has all the guidebooks and info you could ask for. They’ll even photocopy pages if what you need is less than a full guidebook warrants.
• We visited on: Tuesday, 27th August 2024
• Who else was there: lots of climbing parties – including some big guided kids groups

Nearby

Chamonix is a mountain-lovers paradise. If you’re rock-climbing you’ll be here outside of the ski-season. Cable cars and views galore, including the famous ‘Mer de Glace ice cave’ which the kids enjoyed.

Some of the local crags that caught my eye for the family include:

• Le Brevant – accessed easily via 2 cable cars (so there is a cost associated) and a short walk. Looks like a lovely vert cliff face with never-ending views.
• Les Joux – looks like it has views, river, shade – a range of climbs, potentially on the shorter side.
• Aguille l’Argentiere – a longer walk in but looks like an incredible rock feature that would be a very fun outing.
• Servos – similar to Les Gaillands in terms of convenient road-side, easy climbs.