La Rose et le Vampire (8b), Buoux. Even if you haven't heard of it, you may have felt its legacy - The Rose move - either on the rock or at your local climbing wall.

The route, one of the most coveted at its grade, was first climbed by Antoine Le Menestrel in 1985, who described it as follows:

This wonderful line is a vampire. Her holds cut through my fingers, they skin them raw and I lose my fingerprints, my identity! Her holds, I grab them like a stem covered in thorns in order to climb up to the calyx of the flower, my sweat waters it. This line has taken me over and it's all I can think of, all I want is her. I have been vampirised. This line is thirsty for my blood to feed her own beauty, I live solely for her.

This cross-through opens my face to the world. Thanks to it, I offer you a rose. With you who are watching me, I create an emotional team, I become an artist.

On the 6th of January, Lucy Mitchell became the latest climber to join Le Menestrel's ranks and 'become an artist', with her own ascent of La Rose et Le Vampire.

A notable ascent in isolation, Lucy's is made even more impressive due to the fact that just over a year ago, shortly after reaching a new high point on the route, she found herself in hospital, with an injury that threatened to put an end not only to her dreams of climbing the route, but to her ability to climb altogether.

We got in touch with Lucy to find out more:

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Congratulations on climbing La Rose et Le Vampire! It's such an iconic route, with one of the most photogenic moves in climbing - was it the route's history and aura that first attracted you to it, or something else entirely?

Thank you. The history certainly plays a part! I mean what sport climber doesn't have it somewhere on the list!

I first got my eye on La Rose on a youth trip, probably a decade ago now, when a young but super strong Dominic Burns was fighting his way up it! It was miles beyond me at that point, I didn't even pull on… but I never really stopped thinking 'maybe one day'.

Your ascent comes almost exactly a year after you got quite a serious injury - can you tell us a little bit about the injury, what happened, and how it affected you?

Yea, not a day I care to remember!

The day before I had actually just hit a high point on La Rose, totally out of the blue. It was my second go on it that trip. After a terrible first run earlier in the day, there I was on a bonus attempt just before dark, having just fallen at the last bolt. I'd climbed out of my skin and I felt on top of the world… was I actually going to do it this year?

Sixteen hours and one mistake later, I was anything but on top of the world!

The following day we'd gone to Venasque. A route I had been trying turned out to be wet, but a new guide had just been produced showing lots of new routes and variations to go at. May as well start with No. 1, a long traversing overhang (it looked dry).

Halfway through I was looking up into a sea of quickdraws, and had no idea of the line to take. I clipped in hard to an extended in-situ draw. Talked through what the guide said, looked up and thought, 'yep I know where to go'. Off I went (still clipped in) three or four moves later - it was a really long in-situ draw! - I went 'big' for the next hold, and boom. The draw went tight, pulled me down, and I swung under an overhang and cracked my knee full force off a sharp edge… goodbye knee cap… goodbye dreams!

Comminuted, compound, displaced, you name it, I did it. In short, It was smashed to bits!

The upside was I got really lucky that the Ortho team in the local hospital really knew their stuff, and cared that I got a chance to get back to doing what I love. I really can't say thank you enough. I was in surgery the next morning and got as much of it as possible put back together with a plate and too many screws!

I knew it was bad when I did it, that deep gut feeling never lies.

In that moment I decided that unrelenting positivity (and the odd 'it's ok to be sad' day) was the only way through! Yesterday was gone, and best to move on.

Today is where I am at, and we go from there. 50 degree knee flexion on day one … 52 degree on day two. Amazing! Go me! Lets not forget the day I put my own socks on again… that was a day! I unashamedly over-celebrated every small win, and it got me through!

For a balanced picture, a lot of it has also been pretty grim, it's sore, slow, frustrating, it doesn't work like it used to and it may never - though I haven't given up yet!

My immediate goals changed … but my attitude, not really. If anything, I am maybe a little better for it. Mentally anyway… likely not physically!

What advice would you give to someone who's struggling with an injury right now?

I can only really say what I feel and what helped me. The process will be different for everyone. But if it helps … my top 3…

Have Feelings!

It is ok to be a bit sad, frustrated, even a bit angry sometimes, it is good to get it out. Stuff sucks!

But you also have to come back out of it. I'd give myself fifteen minutes to be as mopey as I like. At the start it was every few days, then it was every few weeks, then eventually every few months. But after that fifteen minutes is over, I am back to the positive. 'What can I do to get this better', 'Look what I did today', I did a lot of talking to myself!

Know that what you are going through is tough, that you are doing really, really well for just keeping with it. Give yourself more credit than you think you should!

Find the wins… no matter how small!

I'd pick out at least one positive everyday, a micro movement at the gym that was better, an 'oh that was actually a little less sore to do that', and I would celebrate it, even just to myself. Sometimes I'd celebrate to those around me, who really were ever so kind as to listen, agree, and celebrate with me - even though they were likely thinking 'yea ok, you walked up some stairs'!

Keep moving!

I got to work on what I could still do, I had a portable fingerboard away with me, and got on it almost immediately, I went to the wall even just to hang out as soon as I could, I pulled on a wide variety of fingerboards! Not because I was a hero, but because I was scared. I have seen people get injured and stop going to the wall for months. The return is brutal. I thought if I can stay as strong as I am now, whenever I can get a shoe on again, hard as it may be, it'll be a lot easier than getting started from zero!

Somedays I definitely didn't want to, but I ALWAYS felt much better after!

On that magical day when I could put a shoe back on and vaguely weight my leg, I was strong and fairly fit. I couldn't move my foot from hold to hold (which after initially being a little distressing was quite funny) but I didn't feel out of place or overwhelmed being back on the wall. It felt like I had never really left.

Let's talk a bit more about the route itself - was there any one part of it that felt like the crux for you?

Ha, yes, got a bit off topic! I mean it all felt pretty hard!

The rose section at the start, the cross through felt miles away, and the big throw upwards after. But once I did that section once, I rarely dropped it. I did usually have to have a small word to myself before leaving the ledge about actually remembering just how hard to try on it.

Physically the hardest part for me was the move over the bulge. Normally it is done with a big throw off a good undercut to a pocket. No matter how hard I tried, no matter how many different feet I found or bumps I could use I couldn't make the distance.

There was a mono out left, that is normally used to stabilise after the move and get your feet up for the next big lock. That ended up being my key. It was a pretty precise four move sequence. It was hard, but at least the movement felt right for me. When I first did this move well, all of a sudden the route became a possibility.

In the end the crux for me was numb fingers! But a sunny day and a hand warmer in my chalk bag fixed that :)

Talk us through your process on the route, and through the ascent!

I had sporadically tried it on trips the past four years. It was never a main focus, but for me it was a great way to train power while I got to work ticking off some other classics in Buoux that were slightly more my style.

It was also really tough on skin, the pockets are sharp, and I felt a bit broken after a session on it, so I would end up just having a day here and there on it in between trying some of the amazing fifty metre overhanging routes that I was really there to do!

Last year was the first time I could say I managed all the moves and made a good link.

I had kept it in my mind the past year, but I wasn't sure I could do it. That last go felt like the one, and so much had changed since then.

But I had to try! First go up this year and I could kind of convince myself that the moves felt a little easier… second go that day and I was sure this wasn't the year!

I had a few days enjoying the long steep climbing I had missed so much, and with my happiness topped up I thought 'Oh, it will be good for me to get back on it'.

This time. Pretty good, all moves first go. Cool. Next go there I was again. Higher that the year before, dropping the second last hold this time.

Game on!

But as we know, climbing likes to humble you, I then proceeded to drop that same move seven more times… mostly with numb fingers, once a damp hold, and once just... because.

I didn't want it becoming a nightmare. I didn't want to hate the route. But I REALLY wanted to finish it. After enough years climbing, I know it's a process, I know I have to believe I am not going to spontaneously just get worse at it (not physically anyway), and I know I have to believe that if I keep my head together, it'll happen. (This by the way, has taken a lot of time and a lot of work to get to!)

So I went and had some fun again, on some big long routes, remembering what it really is all about and smiling a lot!

The next day… 'This is the day' I thought... Attempt one, fall off below the second crux … Oh dear. All my fears are coming true, I am getting worse. I missed my chance. This is not the day!

Scrap that, I just didn't do the move right, I forgot it's a 110% effort move, and it needs to be perfect.

That early fall ended up being a blessing in disguise as it took the pressure off a little, I could get a new high point again, and I had just done a big link to the top, with a bit of flash pump. If I got to below the lip the next go, I could talk myself into 'You literally did this link earlier on. You did it pumped. Off you go!'

Next go … I kept it together, I gave it 110% and it happened. Phew.

How did it feel to finish such an iconic route, especially after a difficult year?

I am just delighted I held it together and climbed it well.

It was in the back of my mind as a goal, a motivator from day one. Some days it was encouraging, and some days I thought, 'There is no way'.

I tried not to care too much about it, not to make it a thing! But deep down, I cared a lot. I am really proud of myself sticking with it.

Finally, what's next for you?

Life-wise:

It's back to work now! We just moved into a lovely new build (Climbing wall - Boulderworld Belfast) in November and I can't wait to get stuck into some setting, some events, some coaching and a lot of enjoying the new angles, walls and boards!

Climbing-wise :

In between Buoux days I have been getting on well with a few 8c's and 8c+s that I would just love to do, so that will keep my 'time to get fit and strong' fire topped up till the next time!

Lucy has since climbed Darwin Dans La Cave, 8c, in Aix-en-Provence.

Knee-wise:

I should probably get back onto the rehab grind, whilst I am climbing well, the journey's not over and it is far from 'better', this was just a break, but a good one at that!