Action Directe is a sport route in the Waldkopf area of the Frankenjura in Germany. It was first climbed by Wolfgang Güllich in 1991 who suggested a grade UIAA grade of XI which equates to roughly 8c+/9a. It has since settled at 9a making it one of the first of the grade in the world.
The route is famous for its brutal, uncompromising climbing on one- and two-finger pockets. While training for the first ascent Wolfgang famously made use of the first campus board in the world (the board was erected in the Campus Centre gym in Nürnberg, hence the name).
After an easier initial section leading to a ledge and hands-off rest the route consists of around 20 hand moves, a pure power-endurance testpiece.
The route is named after the French far-left militant group.
[1] Written in Stone, Nov 2023 https://open.spotify.com/episode/3XjUWgzU7IMJgEWPzequbq?
[2] Written in Stone interview with Ben Cossey, Nov 2023 https://open.spotify.com/episode/0jLxfy5CRlOTykTmtG7MZe?
[3] Written in Stone interview with Alex Megos, Nov 2023 https://open.spotify.com/episode/5nhDlvoMlXj4jvCROnwSh6?
31 successful ascents and 3 unsuccessful attempts recorded.
| Climber | Style | Ascent Date | Suggested Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wolfgang Güllich First ascent. 11 sessions. | Lead | worked | 14th Sep 1991 | |
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With this ascent Wolfgang became one of the first people in the world to climb a sport route graded 9a, though at the time he suggested a grade of UIAA XI which translates to 8c+/9a. Famously, he trained specifically for the route by doing single finger campusing. |
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| Ben Moon | Lead | did not finish | Apr 1992 | |
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Ben spent 3 days working the line and 2 days on redpoints. He reached a high point moving left towards the top of the route. He then got injured and was unable to try the line any more. [1] References |
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| Alexander Adler Second ascent. | Lead | worked | 9th Sep 1995 | |
| Iker Pou Third ascent. | Lead | worked | 7th Jun 2000 | |
| Dave Graham Fourth ascent. | Lead | worked | 21st May 2001 | |
| Christian Bindhammer | Lead | worked | 14th May 2003 | |
| Richard Simpson | Lead | worked | 13th Oct 2005 | |
References[1] https://www.instagram.com/p/B_5YoPZj3Jm/ [2] https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/climbing/rich-simpson-makes-6th-ascent-of-action-directe.html [3] https://www.thebmc.co.uk/action-man Questions arose around whether Rich actually climbed the line and when asked he was unable to produce a belayer or any witnesses. |
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| Dai Koyamada | Lead | worked | 15th Oct 2005 | |
| Markus Bock | Lead | worked | Between 15th Oct 2005 and 23rd Oct 2005 | |
| Kilian Fischhuber | Lead | worked | 26th Sep 2006 | |
| Adam Ondra | Lead | worked | 19th May 2008 | |
References |
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| Patxi Usobiaga | Lead | worked | 24th Oct 2008 | |
| Gabriele Moroni | Lead | worked | 17th Apr 2010 | |
| Jan Hojer | Lead | worked | 22nd May 2010 | |
References |
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| Piotr Savack 9 sessions. | Lead | worked | 23rd May 2010 | |
| Adam Pustelnik | Lead | worked | 10th Oct 2010 | |
References |
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| Felix Knaub | Lead | worked | Oct 2011 | |
| Ben Cossey | Lead | did not finish | 2012 | |
References[1] https://open.spotify.com/episode/0jLxfy5CRlOTykTmtG7MZe? |
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| Rustam Gelmanov | Lead | worked | 26th Mar 2012 | |
References |
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| Alex Megos 1 session. | Lead | worked | 3rd May 2014 | |
| Stefano Carnati | Lead | worked | 14th Jun 2016 | |
| David Firnenburg | Lead | worked | 29th Oct 2016 | |
| Stephan Vogt | Lead | worked | 4th Apr 2017 | |
| Mélissa Le Nevé First female ascent. | Lead | worked | 21st May 2020 | |
| Buster Martin | Lead | worked | 4th Oct 2022 | |
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The first British ascent. References[1] https://www.instagram.com/p/CjikrxCjRQm/ [2] https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2022/10/action_directe_9a_by_buster_martin-73164 [3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfL9_r5SIDA [4] https://www.climbing.com/news/hubble-or-action-directe-the-first-9a-buster-martin/ |
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| Dylan Chuat | Lead | worked | 21st Apr 2023 | |
References |
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| Moritz Welt | Lead | worked | 13th Oct 2023 | |
References |
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| Stefano Ghisolfi | Lead | worked | Nov 2023 | |
| Michał Korban | Lead | worked | 25th Sep 2024 | |
References |
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| Nico Pelorson | Lead | worked | Oct 2024 | |
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The first frenchman to climb the route. References |
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| Lukas Mokrolusky | Lead | worked | Mar 2025 | |
| Pepa Šindel 9 sessions. 25 attempts? | Lead | worked | 12th Jul 2025 | |
| Satone Yoshida 2 sessions. 7 attempts. | Lead | worked | Before 12th Oct 2025 | |
References |
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| Alex Huber | Lead | did not finish | ||
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Alex was able to link the route from after the jump, but was convinced the jump was not possible for someone of his size. [1] References[1] https://open.spotify.com/episode/7hei30STtvpjEBFqkFPCYi? |
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