Annot

I recently stumbled upon a large story in the world of climbing. With a quantity of rock equivalent to that of Fontainebleau, yet better friction, less crowds and a drier climate, Annot could soon be the go to bouldering destination in Europe. I was just given an assignment by a US magazine to produce a photo story on the area and I made my first trip to photograph the area this past weekend. I have attached a couple images. Currently there are over 1200 problems but it has a 10,000 plus potential and the next 25 years are sure to be the golden era of this climbing area.

TRAVEL
- Annot is in Southern France about two hours north of Aix-en-Provence. The camping is nestled in the forest on land owned by farmers. Cost for camping is 2.5 euro a night per person which includes hot showers. The farm also offers dinner that needs to be reserved a day in advance. Dinner is a feast and an experience not to be missed as you sit and eat with the family. Cost 15-20 euro per person.

CLIMBING
- Annot is a relatively unknown bouldering area with sandstone blocs of all sizes. Tons of established classics but also infinite potential for new lines. Season: Spring to early winter. Fall is best.

PHOTOGRAPHY
- Only a small percentage of my time is spent actually pressing the shutter. One of the hardest things is always gaining access or finding the right people to photograph. The people of Southern France are notorious for being closed. Combine that with the fact that I hardly speak the language and you can imagine that I was quite apprehensive about being able to get the job done. So far I have been really lucky as I hit it off with one of the key developers of the area. Vincent was on France’s climbing team for a number of years and set up the first “just” bouldering gym in France. My night in Annot was spent trying my best to follow the conversation of six french climbers (well into the wine) discussing anything and everything at a fast pace. This persisted into the wee hours of the morning and climbing didn’t begin until late the next day! I have two months to complete the assignment.