UKC

Our Friday Night Video this week is a little adventure in the Tsaranoro massif, in the south of Madagascar. Sean Villanueva and Siebe Vanhee spot a major unclimbed line on Tsaranoro Atsimo and head upwards armed with a drill and skyhooks for a ground-up bolting mission. Usually Sean said he...

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In reply to UKC News:

Popcorn at the ready

In reply to UKC News:

Great video guys, thanks.

sean seems to be almost as good at film making as he is at adventure climbing. Given the homemade low budget of them, he always is just brilliant at story telling.

In reply to UKC News:

Great vid, many thanks.

In reply to GDes:

Bolt cams are a nice touch, never seen them before.

In reply to GDes:

Brilliant story telling, no thrills, perfect.

In reply to UKC News:
So why did those other guys get slaughtered on here for bolting that other thing on another African island into submission but these guys don't? Is it just because one of them is quite famous and because it's a miles better film? Not taking sides; just interested.

In reply to Robert Durran:

Beat me to it, Rob! Yes, where's the spectacularly ill informed righteous indignation?

Great film, by the way. And as Ged said, the bolt cams were a great idea.

In reply to jon:


I could easily provide some if there is a demand for it

In reply to Robert Durran:

I know

In reply to Robert Durran:

Perhaps because they were climbing 8a on a huge big wall with (from what I could see) very little opportunity for placing traditional gear asides from skyhooks? Whereas is the other video the climbing looked pretty doable and there was obvious gear all over the place.

In reply to ad111:


The comment about lack of protection possibilities seems fair enough, but I fail to see the relevance of the grade.

In reply to Robert Durran:

I suppose it's a well established ethic there due to the lack of cracks. All other routes there seem to be bolted.

In reply to GDes:


Exactly that. In addition, the few crack systems that exist are generally choked with bushes and tough grass, though there are exceptions, of course. The faces, on the other hand are eminently climbable being covered with little edges, but with little or no chance of protection.

In reply to UKC News:

Just listening to and looking at the way the video is put together, I think there is a lot more to be critical of than the bolting. We need to take a long look at how we think about the people we meet and the enviroments we interact with. I'm not really surprised the film is the way it is - it recreates a familiar story of pioneering westerners writing their journals, modern technology meeting primitive lifestyles, locals with little care for time. So, no, I'm not surprised, but I am disappointed.

In reply to benmorr:

It might interest you, in that case, to read about Camp Catta*, the climbers' camp at the foot of the cliffs. Take the time to read about their reforestation** programme, their relationship with the village and the villagers. Be careful not to fall of that horse.

*Created by French climbers over twenty years ago, the name is a pun on Yosemite's Camp quatre and also the local name for the lemurs.
**The local population (and of course that of much of the rest of Madagascar) have cut down most of the trees for fire wood.

In reply to jon:

Thanks Jon for bringing up Camp Catta - I will read about it. I don't think the fact of its existence takes away from my point about the way the film is constructed, reproducing a standard narrative of travels in exotica. I'm sorry you read my comment as being delivered from a high horse. I'm just disappointed that the story wasn't framed differently.