Petzl RocTrip, Prilep: Black Cat, White Cat

From September 25 to 28, the 2014 Petzl RocTrip caravan stopped over in Prilep, Macedonia (FYR). Between dark clouds and sunny skies, RocTrippers were granted a rare and privileged experience, being some of the first to sample one of the most beautiful bouldering areas in all of Europe.

Hold on dude! All done dude!

"I love this country and the people. They're a lot like me. A bit rough when you first meet, but they open up and welcome you like family when you get to know them," explains Philippe Ribière, whose autobiographical film bears the fitting title, "The Wild One."

This is his fourth trip to Prilep, so suffice to say he has played a key role in the area's development since 2010. He seems to know the jumble of boulders like the inside of his pants pockets, which are as numerous and disorganized as a hill in Prilep. Promising. For all who ask, Philippe shows them around with unbridled enthusiasm. Skipping from one boulder to another, from one trail to another, around goats, blackberry bushes, and junipers, he describes the area with a mix of pride and shyness.

"Right here is Baba Low, a great area to warm up. Over there is Alien, a hard boulder problem. For the name, there's no need to draw a picture, just take a look. Right now I'm working Cocoon, 7a (V6). It's a bit reachy for me."

Look out, spectacular rock!

"From far away, the hills, with their boulders scattered everywhere and the scrubby vegetation, made me think of Hueco Tanks, Texas," says Charlotte Durif. "As you get closer," she continues, "The fantastic orange granite boulders, with their shades of green, reminded me of Bishop. And, when grabbing the holds for the first time, I felt like I was climbing in Targassone."

When playing the comparison game, a very systematic Arnaud Petit takes the cake.

He adds, "I would put it this way:
- Hampi (India) for the huge boulders sitting on smooth slabs,
- Hueco, indeed, for the overhanging pockets,
- Bishop (California), yes, and also for the turtle shell looking rock,
- and Bleau or Annot (France), for the smooth holdless mantles."

And you, Stephanie, what do you think? "I don't really care; the area doesn't remind me of anything! I don't like to compare. I prefer focus on what is unique and special about an area." Ok, ok, we get it.

A hole in the hand…

Without a doubt, the chaotic landscape in Prilep is spectacular. The two hundred RocTrippers present show their enthusiasm upon arrival. Mobs of climbers scamper off to lay their hands on the local granite. The first boulders are just five minutes from base camp, which is located in a tobacco field just a stone's throw from the city. Once back in camp, gathered around a campfire to stay warm from the cold north wind, everyone shares their impressions.

"The boulder problems here are easy to read," shout Brazilians Junior and Fabio. "But it's one thing figuring out what to do, and another to actually do it!"

"Overall the ratings are a bit soft," says John, a seasoned climber from Australia. "It's confidence inspiring when you start out, but elsewhere it would not have been the same."

"What's important," replies Axel Ballay, world-class globetrotting boulderer, "is that overall the ratings in Prilep are consistent."

The topic that's all the buzz is not something you talk about, but something you see. Here the rock is ABRASIVE. "You know that you've arrived in Prilep when your fingertips start to get holes," chuckles one RocTripper. "And you know that you're leaving Prilep when your hands are all taped up and your knees covered in scratches, just like a kid!" adds another.

Extreme brushing

We come across a group of big kids just off one of the beaten trails. Clutching onto a smooth slab, a three-climber pyramid has cleverly placed a fourth on top. The latter, armed with a metal brush, is busy cleaning of moss and lichen. The unstable human structure suddenly wobbles and then collapses. Everyone starts holding their ribs.
- "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourselves?"

Miha and Joži stand up, laughing.
"It's called 'extreme brushing'. We even came up with a rating system. Sometimes it's harder to clean up the blackberry bushes and the lichen covering the boulder than it is to actually climb the thing!"

Miha Hribar and his merry group of Slovenians have put up at least three-quarters of the 450 problems, from 4a (V0) to 8c+ (V16), in this chaos of boulders. Every year since 2010, armed with billhooks, sheers, and brushes of all sizes, they have traveled here from Slovenia. "We finally decided to rent a bus, since there are so many friends from all over Europe who join us. Germans, Croatians, Bosnians, Kosovans, and even French, like Philippe Ribière." They are ecstatic to have published the first guidebook for the area at the same time as the Petzl RocTrip. "We were convinced that Prilep had an international appeal. Today that dream has now become a reality," Joži Palič happily concludes.

A hint of the Orient

With a population of 70,000, Prilep still has the same virtues as the little gem of the Orient that charmed Nicolas Bouvier in 1954: the covered market, with its countless vegetables and sheep's cheeses, the poor red brick neighborhood, its dirt roads and cute kids with their never-ending smiles.

"This is a city where you can casually see a donkey inside a Yugo (similar to a small Lada) with its head sticking out of the rear right window and its tail out of the rear left!" laughs Erwan Le lann. "The stage in Macedonia has been great. Through the city's wonderful hospitality, you can see that they clearly understand the potential their boulder covered hills represents for sustainable tourism. For the climbers, they seemed to truly enjoy being here. My goal, through the Petzl RocTrip, is for places, climbers, and local peoples to all meet. Most RocTrippers will come back to visit or will talk about the area to their friends."

To the sweet sounds of a seriously Balkanized DJ Lafouche, before heading off to Greece and Meteora, every RocTripper folds up their crash pad one last time. Warm and comfortable wedged in the crease, with plenty of memories, a few drops of dried blood, and the high-pitched meows of a black cat, of a white cat.

Guillaume Vallot

For more information and the guidebook: prilep-bouldering.com