My winter holidays were over, and the anticipation of the next break was meant to sweeten the waiting time in between. So I wanted to get started with the planning right away. Two weeks of Easter holidays needed to be filled meaningfully. But how? And above all, with what, with whom, and where? Question after question came to mind. I thought it over and came to the conclusion that it should be an active holiday with moments of relaxation and, of course, plenty of fun.
Bouldering in Fontainebleau – The preparation
I sat down at my laptop and started typing in a wide range of search terms – climbing holidays, mountain biking, relaxation, yoga combined with climbing tours, bouldering trips, and much more – until I eventually came across the Goodtimes-Sportreisen website. The pictures immediately caught my eye, and the descriptions of the various destinations and holiday options appealed to me right away.
And the best part was, of course, that a week of bouldering in France – more precisely in Fontainebleau, just 50 km from Paris – was on offer within the time I had available. The inquiry about available spots was quickly written, and now I was hoping for a positive response. The reply came very quickly, and I was overjoyed that there were still enough places available. I didn’t have to think for long, said yes right away, booked my train ticket, and planned a few hours in Paris on both the outward and return journeys. Holidays, here I come!!!
Arrival at the Goodtimes bouldering camp
And then my trip was just around the corner and I started to wonder if it was really the right decision. Spending a week of your precious vacation alone, without much experience in bouldering on “real” rock, with people you don’t know and don’t know anything about? But the joy prevailed and when Matthis picked me up at the train station in Fontainebleau, all doubts were gone. I found out that our little group was to remain super small for the whole week. Exclusive care for a week – it doesn’t get any better than that. When we arrived at the gîte, the others greeted us with a warm welcome and K****n (my room-mate) and I quietly moved into our cozy little house, settled in and immediately felt at home.
Catering at the bouldering camp
On the first evening, we were spoiled by J*** and I***’s delicious pizza variation and then got a first insight into the schedule for the week ahead. Cooking and sitting together in the evening became a favorite habit and was a well-deserved end to the sometimes exhausting and exciting day. The food was always varied and delicious, of course decided and prepared together. Everyone contributed their own ideas, which sometimes led to adventurous creations such as roasted cauliflower leaves – which were really delicious 😉 .
Creativity, flexibility and openness were not only required for bouldering, no, we were also able to let off steam at dinner. In our evening rounds, we reviewed the previous day and the team always gave us the best plan for the next day. The various games that we were able to discover together were particularly fun: Thanks to K****n (a game developer by profession), we were the first players to try out one of her games and we had a lot of fun doing so.
Bouldering in Fontainebleau
The first day of bouldering was of course exciting and a bit of a struggle at times. But thanks to the great support from the team, there was no giving up. We were introduced to the various bouldering problems step by step. As there are so many possibilities in Fontainebleau, there was always a suitable spot for everyone. You always found one or more partners who would tackle the problem with you. It was the first time I experienced what it means to take on a project and work on it. I left a few projects behind in Fontainebleau that are waiting to be solved and I’m already looking forward to tackling them one day.
One of the most impressive days was the day on which we tackled and completed a course. At the beginning, we were faced with just over 30 boulder problems, which we had to complete in a set order. One condition was that you were not allowed to touch the ground between the boulder blocks – but we relaxed this a little, as it was sometimes absolutely impossible. This challenge captivated us all and we concentrated and eagerly climbed boulder after boulder. On this day, I realized that climbing a route flawlessly is not always the problem. A much bigger challenge is the exit and the descent afterwards. Small ledges and gaps in the rock sometimes turned into huge deep trenches. But we all surpassed ourselves and achieved incredible things that day. It was fantastic! The fact that I learned so many new things every day and constantly had to make decisions about how and, above all, whether to do it now, made me incredibly grateful for the evening relaxation and mental hygiene with the rest of the group.
More than “just” bouldering
On our rest day, everyone was able to do the things they wanted to do. We lazed around, played until we dropped and explored the area. We went on a short hike in the woods of Fontainebleau and rediscovered the bouldering forest in a completely different way. We climbed small elevations and enjoyed the wonderful view despite the brief rain. Like every day, we looked for a cozy spot at lunchtime and ate our homemade packed lunch. It was all very quiet and relaxed. Ideal for letting off steam one last time on the bouldering blocks the next day.
My Goodtimes conclusion
Even though we were only able to discover a fraction of this extraordinary bouldering area, we got a first incomparable impression of it.
This week in Fontainebleau turned out to be a complete success in every respect and I couldn’t have made a better decision. A big thank you to the great Goodtimes team – you are simply unique!!! Merci beaucoup et à bientôt!
