Fontainebleau,often referred to as Font by English speaking climbers and Bleau (pronounced "blow," not "bluh") by French speakers - is a hilly forest full of sandstone boulders about 50km south of Paris and close to the town of Fontainebleau with its famous chateau. It has been used as a bouldering area since the 1870s and has almost continuously remained at the centre of the world bouldering scene since the 1930s.
Possibly as it is quite unique for one area to exhibit so many desirable characteristics: a large number of classic problems at all grades - including classic moderates, largely excellent soft and sandy landings, a positive and active local scene, historical interest (possibly the first or at least very early ascents of the first 4, 5, 6 and 7s in the world,) a strange and surreally beautiful locale, much potential for development and finally, the subtle nature of the problems, requiring footwork, body position and general trickery, often making success as much a mental as a physical workout and as a result it is supremely satisfying. Oh... and highly addictive.

Yes. Prepare to learn how to climb all over again. Try to forget about the grade and understand what the problem requires and enjoying solving the puzzle and maybe learning something. Those who know my grade-grubbing nature will think this is a bit rich coming from me. Hey, it's still good advice. It's true many climbers avoid Font because their ego (or perhaps their sponsors) can't take them falling off a 5. As Steven Gough says, 7b+ sport climbers can fail on a 5+ quite easily. I saw Phillippe Le Denmat (one of the greatest slab climbers ever) fall off a 4c slab at 95.2 last November with my own eyes. I heard about Jo Montchaussee falling on a 4 last summer on a photo shoot for a Font guide at Roche aux Sabots that he didn't have wired!
How do I train for a trip to Font?Slopers and mantles. And dips. There's a lot of pressing and squeezing. Check out the musculature on many top Font climbers. They are generally beefy and gymnastic, not starving waif. Some will disagree but I think strong legs are helpful as well as strong adductors and heel-hook muscles. There are times on slabs when you just basically want to do a one leg squat. If there are slabs on your ticklist you may also want to super-glue your fingernails to your fingers too.
What is the rating system and how does it compare to other places?
The Fontainebleau rating system is a very unique and precise rating system. It has more theoretical grade steps than other systems and is popular among harder climbers worldwide - presumably because everyone will come to Mecca at least once in their life. It also solves the controversial 7b+ anomaly in the V system namely that 7b+ is a gateway grade to the harder problems but doesn't really map onto the V system without adding a separate artificial V8+ grade. The Font system also theoretically works well for moderate climbers because it goes down to 2a. In reality though, one would be hard pressed to tell the difference between say a 3a and 3b.
Confusingly, it uses the same symbols as the French sport system but is roughly 3 or so grades harder. i.e. as a VERY ROUGH guide, if you can redpoint 7b+ you should be working Font 7a's. This 3 grade differential narrows at the top end (i.e. if you climb sport 8b you should be doing Font 8a's) and widens at the lower end (if you are doing sport 6c+ you should be able to do Font 6a). This differential is borne out statistically in the 8a.nu database.
If you are used to the V system you can think of it kind of like the V system but with pluses. Everyone argues about the precise match up but roughly V3 is 6a/6a+, V4 6b/6b+, V5 6c/6c+, V6 7a, V7 7a+. V8 7b [V8+ 7b+] V9 7c, V10 7c+ and V11 8a. For more on V grades and how they link up to Font see the Rockfax website.
Why is it all chipped?
The dirty secret of Font. Many, many problems have been chipped, and it was very common before the 80s but completely banned now. Two years ago, a sad deranged climber chipped off some of the starting holds of famous problems (Fatman, Carnage, Medaille aux Chocolat). I heard he was accused of stealing holds from the local gym. His twisted defence apparently was, "why would I steal holds when I could take some of the most famous holds in the world like these ?"
Will I go to jail if I use Pof?
Not a French jail. This is another controversial and highly emotional topic and it's hard to have a rational discussion without some nationalism creeping in on both sides of the debate. Briefly, pof is dried pine tree resin that French Font climbers wrap up in cloth and smack the rock with to increase adherence. Some French climbers use it instead of chalk - usually older ones; most use both now.
CON: it's cheating; it makes the holds polished and glassy; you need more pof once a hold has been poffed, creating a vicious cycle; it makes the holds black and look like crap. Old French guys use it who climb harder than me. If you use it outside Font you risk bodily harm.
PRO: it's natural; isn't as visible as chalk; pof may prevent the surface erosion of the sandstone "skin" above the crumblier sandstone underneath; its use is recommended over chalk by COSIROC, the local climbing governing body, its use is recommended over chalk by bleau.info website; it annoys the British.
