La Turbie climbing

Crag: La Dalle a l'Oiseau, La Turbie, Monaco
Routes: La San Nom (f4+:led), Le Rappel (f4+:sec), La Tribu de Chantal (f5:sec), Le Diedre des Limaces (f4+:sec), Plien la Vue Directe (f5:sec), La Radine (f6a:led), Combien ca Coute? (f5:sec), UNR (f4:sec), L'Envolee de Jeanine (f5:sec), Diedre de la Republique (f5+:sec), La Dextre (f5:led)
After a night in the centre of Cuneo, I was desperate to salvage something from the trip after missing out on the main objective yesterday. However, prospects looked bleak as it started to rain in the main piazza of Cuneo as we left the hotel. This became absolutely torrential as we crossed into France after the Tende tunnel, so we were forced to abandon our designs on the granite crags above St Dalmas and Sospel. Instead, we drove all the way to La Turbie above Monaco in a remarkable deluge which luckily  stopped as we arrived at the car park poised above Monaco's stadium. After walking down the zigzags that lead to La Dalle a l'Oiseau, just one of the many crags that litter the hillside above Monaco, the sun came out and the rock was miraculously bone dry. Still desperate to salvage the trip, I went straight for the classic line of the crag: the soaring groove line of La San Nom, which despite its French grade gives a superb 35m long British VS pitch. Pocketed slabs give way to the main groove, which has two steeper sections taken on big holds, then some easy bridging, before a steep crux move just before the top to gain a final juggy wall. A tremendous pitch, neatly sustained at a fairly gentle standard - but interesting throughout. Le Rappel is another long pitch up superbly positive pockets and flakes, while La Tribu de Chantal is a little harder - we did the top half, which finishes up an awkward prow via some tricky moves. Vic then led the obvious corner/diedre to the left, which gives some polished bridging and is rather overshadowed by the arete to its left taken by the superb Plien la Vue Directe. This is a fantastic, photogenic line - quite elegant but rather polished especially higher up. Easy slabs lead to a small platform, then delicate moves up the crest of the vertical arete with stunning views out over Cap Ferrat to distant Esterel. The sun was now warming things up quite dramatically, and I was feeling reasonably strong (by my pathetic standards) so upped the grade with a lead of La Radine on the right of the crag. This gave sustained and excellent 6a climbing, quite technical up a steep series of positive but tiny edges to gain a pocket. This just took two fingers, and a steep pull gained bigger holds and a short easy slab. A final groove led to the top: great stuff and another satisfying, clean lead, arguably British E2. The other routes up this wall were lengthy pitches in a similar vein but much easier (L'Envolee took the crack separating the slab with the steeper walls to the left). Vic then led another obvious classic corner line, the polished Diedre de la Republique, with tricky bridging and a surprisingly strenuous and awkward crux right at the top. We were tiring after hundreds of metres of steep and sustained climbing, but I wanted one more lead so went for the unheralded but excellent La Dextre. This looked scrappy from below, but actually gave a very varied and long pitch, up steep pocketed limestone walls to gain a layback before another wall led to the top. Ran back up the steep zigzags to the car by way of hopelessly inadequate training for next Saturday's Peris Horseshoe race!