Trip Reports 2006

15th September 2006

My last week and a half this summer was spent working for I.S.M. After a cold ascent of Mont Blanc over two days and a day of cragging next to Chamonix I helped out on a Classic Alpine Ascents week. Our first three day trip was to the Trient Hut at the edge of the Mont Blanc Range. The walk in to the hut was in great weather but it soon deteriorated and the next day was cloudy and snowy. We headed out anyway as visibility was not too bad and climbed the Tete Blanche from the Col do Tour. This is a great warm up route with some rock, some snow and moderate altitude. We went up the Petit Fourche as well before abseiling through the cornice off an ice thread anchor in very Scottish conditions. At least Graham and Phil from Inverness were used to that kind of weather!

Our second climb from the Trient Hut was in perfect weather. We crossed the Trient Glacier to traverse the north and south summits of the Aiguille du Tour. This made a great climb with a couple of pitches to get up the north summit, an interesting descent to the gap and lovely scrambling to the south summit. This is a very popular peak and hundreds of people can climb it each day however at the tail end of the season there were only a handful of people out despite the weather and conditions being perfect.

After a night in Champex we drove to Arolla and walked in to the Dix Hut. The path crosses the Pas de Chevre where steep ladders lead down on to the glacier. We traversed a short section of rock ridge from the Pas de Chevres to the Col de Riedmatten which is a nice little scramble with lots of bolts and a wee abseil. It just adds an hour on to the hut walk and makes it much more fun.

Next day was wet and windy so, after looking outside at 5am, 6am and 7.30am, we dropped our ideas of climbing Mont Blanc du Cheillon and went up La Louette instead. This is a non-technical summit but can be viable in not so good weather. Our last day was even wetter so we headed down to Martigny for lunch before spending a nice afternoon rock climbing in the valley to end the week.

5th September 2006

Some more settled and warm weather gave Nic and I three great days of training based around the Vallee Blanche. We traversed to the Torino Hut on the first day making use of the seracs in the middle to do some crevasse rescue practice. It's worth reminding yourself of how it all works - holding the fall, making an anchor and escaping the system, preparing the snow lip at the edge of the cravasse and constructing a pully system - each time you head out to the Alps.

From the Torino Hut it's a short walk around to the Tour Ronde. In snowy conditions there is a snow slope leading to the Col Freshfield that provides the easiest ascent to the top. Slightly longer is the ridge from the Col d'Entreves which leads to the Col Freshfield by avoiding all the gendarmes. However you can traverse the crest of this ridge over the gendarmes with many short pitches, a couple of razor sharp rock aretes and a wee abseil. It's about AD and great as a training route as it requires many changes of rope technique and route finding. We managed to decend the snow slope direct back to the glacier and spent a second night at the Torino Hut.

The snow froze properly for our last day so we spent some time using the steep slopes near the hut looking at crampon technique and ice anchors before traversing the Vallee Blanche again. We climbed the Cosmiques Arete on the Aiguille du Midi to finish with a smooth and efficient ascent of a mixed alpine ridge in great weather and conditions.

1st September 2006

With mixed weather staying with us Gary was doing a good job of getting himself acclimatised for Mont Blanc. He climbed the Petite Aiguille Verte and spent a night at the Torino Hut before heading up to the Gouter Hut. The forecast changed again so I set out to meet him, taking the first telepherique from Les Houches at 8am. I met up with Gary at the Gouter Hut at 12 noon for lunch and we decided to go for the summit that afternoon. We left at 1pm and took three and a half hours to climb to the summit followed by a quick decent back to the hut in time for dinner.

Climbing Mont Blanc in the afternoon requires very settled cold weather with no chance of afternoon thunder storms, a combination that doesn't happen so often. However, if it does work out it takes away the pressure of leaving the hut at 2.30am along with a couple hundred other people, it is warmer and light and the experience can be fantastic. Gary and I had all this - we made a super smooth, fast ascent and had a great time. The following day we just descended the Aiguille du Gouter and did some crevasse rescue training near the Tete Rousses Hut before heading down to Chamonix.

27th August 2006

Descending the snow arete out of the Aiguille du Midi (a ridge of snow 30cm wide with the glacier 200m below on the right and Chamonix 2800m down to the left) is intimidating enough on its own. Doing it the first time you wear crampons with no previous alpine experience is quite a challenge! This is what Siobhan did with encouragement from Ian! We carried on to traverse the gentle slopes of the Vallee Blanche under the most impressive scenery anywhere in the Alps to stay in the Torino Hut above Courmayer.

Unfortunately the weather broke down for the second day with 30cm fresh snow and, despite our best efforts, we didn't manage to get back on foot and took the telepherique instead. When there is no visibility and no trail on a glacier with tricky crevasses it is really quite a serious proposition to cross. Given a trail to lead through the seracs and crevasses or just good enough visibility to see the way there is no problem but we had neither and nobody was getting across. However the Helebronner bubbles give such a fantastic panarama that it is no loss using them to get back to the Midi and complete a good experience of glaciers in many moods!

25th August 2006

The first couple of weeks gave us bad weather in the Alps with snow falling down to 1800m around Chamonix. I was glad to be at home on my holidays! When I got back the weather was still mixed but slightly better. Working for Martin Moran I climbed the south ridge of the Weissmiess (a good bad weather option) and then spent a day rock climbing near Arolla followed by the excellent via ferata at Evolene. We went back to Saastal again to do another via ferata in the gorge below Saas Fee before walking to the Weissmiess Hut. The weather cleared up and we had a great day climbing the Fletschorn with the stunning backdrop of Mischabel glinting in the sun.

1st August 2006

The Italian High Level Route starts and finishes in Zermatt in Switzerland! Graham, Clare and I did a good version of this "Spaghetti Tour" over three days including five 4000m+ peaks.

We took the first lift up to the Klein Matterhorn and left in perfect weather to cross the Breithorn Pass and walk around the south side of the Breithorn. The snow was in great condition and the trail was good so we got to Pollux, the first of the Twins, in quick time. The usual route on Pollux climbs an easy ridge that steepens to a 40m crux tower with the use of some handy chains. A fine snow crest then gets you to the summit. Descent was by the same route before picking up the bags and going around to Castor, the higher Twin. This is a steady snow climb with a tricky bergschrund and a very narrow snow arete to finish with. There is no way to protect this kind of snow ridge other than by being slow and careful, ready to step down the opposite side to anyone on your rope falling off! A bit of rope in your hand can give an extra second to step down if required. An easy descent then leads to the Quinto Sella Hut and a warm welcome with superb pasta!

To get around Liskamm you need to cross Passo del Naso, a snowy shoulder on the south side. This can get very icy and although it is only about 40 degrees from horizontal it often requires several pitches with ice screw belays to climb. After negotiating some bad snow on big crevasse bridges we found a thin cover of crispy snow glued onto the ice so we just walked up and over Il Naso! A quick descent and you're on Monterosa with big open slopes and lots of people on its ten summits over 4000m. We went up Ludwigshohe before carrying on to the Margherita Hut in deteriorating weather, the highest hut in the Alps at over 4500m and perched right on the summit of Signalkuppe!

The weather did not improve and the hut was struck by lightening a few times! Next morning it was still windy and snowy so we had to ditch our plans of climbing Dufourspitze, the highest top of Monterosa, and descended the Grenz Glacier. This involves descending 2000m down a very tormented glacier so it is not really an easy option. However, we again tied in with another team, this time a guide with one client who had been down that way a week previously. Many, many crevasse jumps, windings and thoughts of light things got us to the train down to Zermatt, satisfied with a great three days.

This route can be changed around to suit all tastes and is highly recommended as the mountaineering is brilliant and the food and huts superb! It can be done in five fairly mellow days of glacier travel or it can include AD climbing on Pollux, Lyskamm's famous traverse or its Cresta Sella, and Dufourspitze. The biggest prerequirement is good acclimatisation beforehand as it doesn't drop below 3500m for the entire trip!

27th July 2006

This week I was climbing with four guys from near Crinnan in deepest Argyll. Bill, Brian, Simon and Norman are all experienced hillwalkers and into all sorts of events like Ten Under The Ben and Relentless 24 in the Autumn apart from Norman. He started walking last October and had a quick introduction into the vaguaries and peculiar delights of the Scottish winter before arriving in Chamonix for four days of training before trying Mont Blanc. Our first day was spent on Les Grands Montets using the lifts to get to 3300m straight away and going over some crampon technique, glacier travel and crevasse rescue.

Then a three day trip to Italy with a walk up to the very busy Vittorio Emmanuel Hut and some rock climbing in the afternoon. La Tresenta was the summit for the next day, 3600m with some airy scrambling at the top and an easy descent. Then an early start for Gran Paradiso (4061) itself which we climbed in four and a half hours - a very good time. We managed to enjoy the summit rocks without too many other people there apart from Kate and Clare who we descended with. We headed down towards the Chabod Hut where there was a winding trail with many weak bridges and jumps over crevasses so we were all happy to have many anchors on the one rope. The walk down from the hut was in a brilliant thunder storm which flooded the roads on the way back towards Mont Blanc.

However it all cleared for the following two days on Mont Blanc. We were joined by an American Guide, Matt Farmer, and made the summit from Cosmiques Hut in 6 hours 20 minutes despite a long queue forming at the Mont Maudit Shoulder. The views were stunning but we didn't stop for long before descending all the way past the Gouter Hut to the tram at Nid d'Aigle, 2400m of descent! The Grand Couloir was kind to us but a helicopter was picking up someone not so lucky - a reminder of the risks after a very good week of climbing. All four guys made it up Mont Blanc for charity in very good style and are currently looking for their next challenge!

20th July 2006

Judith and I enjoyed a morning of cragging at the Guides Crag in Chamonix yesterday. Even at 9am it was very warm and by 21 noon it was nearly too hot for hard climbing so we got the best of the day. Then it was off to the Aiguille du Midi and a quick walk to the Cosmiques Hut. After a 1.30am start Jane and I got to the summit of Mont Blanc after 6 hours 20 minutes of climbing. Completing the Haute Route gave us both our walking legs and good acclimatisation so it all went very well. The only down side was that the summit was shrouded in mist for about an hour in the morning, just when we got to the top! So no views from the summit but great panaramas on the ascent and descent back to the Aiguille du Midi. The Mont Maudit Shoulder is steep and icy with fixed ropes and is causing some tailbacks - a bit worrying when it is not obvious what the ropes are attached to at the top! Well done to Jane for a great ascent!

17th July 2006

Early season is the best time to complete the High Level Route from Chamonix to Zermatt. This traverse is very popular on skis and is relatively quiet in the summer months but offers great mountaineering and a brilliant journey. Judith, Jane and I did the trip over seven days starting on 11th July. The weather stayed perfect for the entire trip with glorious sunshine and some afternoon thunder storms but only when we were safely in the huts. The route starts by walking up to the Albert 1re Hut above the Chamonix Valley. It's an easy two hour walk so there is plenty of time to get on to the glacier to practice glacier travel and crevasse rescue techniques.

The first big day goes up the gentle Tour Glacier to cross into Switzerland. We climbed the Tete Blanche before dropping down and crossing the Trient Glacier. A brilliant airy path took us off the glacier and along a ridge to a chairlift above Champex. The reliable Swiss bus service got us from Champex to Bourg St. Pierre and a shower and good food in the dortoir.

Day three is entirely uphill! Luckily there are many meadows of wild flowers on the way up to the Valsorey Hut and the views opening out behind you as you climb are magnificent. From the Valsorey Hut lies the crucial section of the whole route, the Plateau du Couloir. This is a 600m slope, very exposed, and covered in anything from hard ice to rubble! We found great conditions with some nice snow to kick steps into and hold the loose rocks in place. The hut guardian thought the snow would only last one more week though.

It's a long descent down from the Plateau du Couloir and there is another col to go through plus a climb up to the hut to finish. The fifth day is more gentle underfoot but there is a lot of it! We went up the Otemma Glacier which was mostly dry ice but which appears to go on forever. At last we got to the Vignettes Hut for a coffee before descending to Arolla for a bed and good food in a hotel.
Another uphill only day took us to the Bertol Hut where there is some great rock climbing belayed from the hut! It is perched precariously on the ridge and several steep ladders must be climbed to get to it. From the hut, the last day of the trek goes around easy glaciers to the Tete Blanche. The view from this modest peak is fabulous! The Matterhorn, Dent Blanche, Dent d'Herens and many other magnificent 4000m peaks are dominant and we timed it just right for the best light to enjoy the show. However it is not yet over - a tricky descent of the Stokji Glacier is a last test with many large, open crevasses and a winding trail. We teamed up with Marc and Jonas who were making the traverse of the High Level Route (plus!) at the same time. Having four people on a rope on a tricky glacier is far safer than two separate teams of two so everyone won. The last walk down to Zermatt is long and hot but we were sitting having a coffee by 3pm feeling very satisfied!

15th May 2006

April and the first half of May often offer the best ski touring conditions in the Alps. Our ski touring trips this year included a full circuit of Gran Paradiso (Italy's best kept National Park and 4000m mountain) and some time watching the fresh snow fall in Valais in Switzerland.

We toured Gran Paradiso in six days starting at Pont in Valsaveranche and walking and skinning up to the Riffugio Vittoria Emanuelle. The second day took us over a col at 3300m before a great ski down, another climb through a col and a second drop to the Pontese Hut, 1400m of downhill skiing altogether! Day three took us back up to 3300m and probably the best and steepest downhill skiing towards the village of Lillaz after some walking through the trees to 1600m. The halfway point in Valnontey was celebrated with a hot-tub and sauna!

Day four was uphill to the Sella Hut but we couldn't resist going up a bit higher than we had to for some great downhill turns leaving the tracks for all to see at the hut! A big day followed over the Gran Serra with some steep skinning and a short scramble to the very exciting summit. An abseil and downclimb before a great descent and another climb through a col took us down to the Chabod Hut, one of the better huts in the Gran Paradiso where all the huts are superb! Our ascent of Gran Paradiso on the last day was stopped due to bad weather with cloud and fresh snowfall making the crevassed glacier too dangerous a place to be. Instead a climb up to the cloud base and a challenging ski down to the valley brought us full circle back to the cars.

We celebrated a great tour by enjoying the fresh snow at Les Grands Montets in Chamonix before it warmed up and got too heavy in the afternoon. A day of travelling round to Bourg St. Pierre in Switzerland set us up for the last section of the Classic Haute Route over the Plateau du Couloir with an improving forecast. However, over the following two days it snowed continuously, putting down 60cm altogether with strong winds above 3000m creating highly avalanche prone slopes. Despite trying to get to the hut on what was promised to be a good day (but which turned out to be another day of steady snowfall) we decided to quit and came home. This substantial fall of snow is great news for the summer as it will add to the already good cover on the glaciers and summits for the summer season of Alpinism.