Saturday 7th August 2021
Erik and I started our five day trip today aiming to tick off both the Eiger and Mont Blanc. Erik has been shut down by weather on both of those peaks in the past and it looks like the weather is a little against us on this trip as well with fresh snow falling as I type and high winds up top.
In any case, today was about acclimitisation and getting ready for the week ahead in the small weather window we had this morning before the frontal system arrived to turn the Chamonix valley into a tropical scene once again. The aiguille du Midi was looking like delayed opening and possibly shut all day so we met early and drove through to the SkyWay lift in Italy.
We climbed the Marbrees from north to south ticking off all the harder pitches and finsihing at the far end of the ridge rather than the usual abseil descent. Some nice new shiny bolts on one of the pitches which was good, where it was a bit more difficult to protect normally.
Quite possibly a lack of website updates for the next few days as we will be busy climbing. You can follow along on twitter or Instagram.
A rare clearing in the weather and a view of the Aiguille Marbrees.
Erik in the gloom on on some damp rock during on the traverse of the Marbrees. We climbed north to south to tick off all the more technical pitches.
Full gore-tex, belay jacket and warm gloves and yet still smiling. Just for the camera anyway.
Thursday 5th August 2021 travel & trip update
Good news for UK travellers (the vaccinated ones) as France is back on the “amber” list. We’ve had some bookings overnight and here are a few open trips we have scheduled.
A reminder that should things change on the travel front our covid terms would apply and you would get a full refund.
We are heading to the Monta Rosa peaks in September as well as Mont Blanc.
Private guiding also an option right through September and October this year.
Thursday 5th August 2021
A massive congratulations to Anish and Jamie who sumitted Mont Blanc on Tuesday after a long and windy ascent from the Tete Rousse refuge. The bad weather was coming in and so along with guide Ally they headed to the mountain early to see what they could do, despite the lack of normal acclimitisation. But with a steady pace and the agreement they would turn around if things got too windy or slow they plodded on up sumitting late on Tuesday morning.
And then rather than a night in the Gouter and a descent through the fresh snow that was due to fall overnight they grabbed some food and carried on down passing by the Tete Rousse again and catching a late train down from the Nid d’Aigle to the valley where I met them with beers and snacks!
A massive effort from all three, and top guiding from Ally.
It did indeed snow a lot overnight and on Wednesday putting down a lot of snow up high on the mountain. Lots of routes need time to clear snow off the rock or settle on the slopes. there are even avalanche warnings on the general weather forecasts for the area. The mountains are white!
For any trail runners out there that are keen for an endurance challenge we offer a one day ascent of Mont Blanc here.
High up on Mont Blanc wrapped up against the wind and the cold.
Apart from the wind the weather on Tuesday was really good and clear. Sunny but bloody freezing! Lots of layers, big boots and mittens required.
Tuesday 3rd August 2021
A busy couple of days with teams on the hill. Rock climbing at Brevant, Multi-pitch at Emosson and starting a Mont Blanc attempt before the bad weather arrives tonight.
Nice to finally climb “Aqua Concert” from the Emosson dam, a route I’ve looked at many times whilst starting the classic traverse of the Perrons. Nine pitches of quality climbing in the 5b to 6a range, with a few hundred meters of scrambling at the top to reach the summit. Highly recommended.
Nice to swing leads with Colin, especially as I got to lead the 6a ones 🙂 Swinging leads is something we do a lot with our climbing clients, on the right route as appropriate of course. Climbing with a guide isn’t about being “dragged up” something as the cliche goes.
Ally, Anish and Jamie currently on Mont Blanc trying to beat the bad weather which is forecasted for tonight and tomorrow. Hope to bring an update from the mountain soon.
A fair amount of fresh snow fell on Saturday night and Sunday with a reported 20cm at the Aiguille du Midi. This is settling down fairly fast but a few routes out of condition for the moment such as the Trois Monts route on Mont Blanc.
We are still scheduling trips for September, including a long weekend in the Gressoney area. The Italian Monta Rosa peaks are lots of fun and there are plenty of options depending on weather asnd conditions. Info and online booking here.
Colin following another long pitch on Aqua Concert with the Emosson dam in the background. Some steep and exposed climbing on this well bolted route.
Sunday 1st August 2021
If we get a solid 12 hours without rain, it feels like we’re doing really well at the moment! Picking routes that are going to be in good condition and out of any “weather” is the name of the game. We switched plans away from the Matterhorn which looked like it was going to be too snowy for us and opted for a series of more technical climbs based from Chamonix. See photos below.
During the past 24 hours it has rained hard again with fresh snow above 2700m and a reported 20cm + of snow at the Aiguille du Midi. This will put a few routes well out of condition for a few days whilst we wait for the snow to melt off the rock and settle down on the steeper snow faces.
At this rate, the autumn conditions for climbing classic north faces will be totally amazing. They are already looking very white and when the weather settles and the temperatures drop it could be superb. Fingers crossed we avoid any heatwaves for the rest of August. Although some sunshine would be a bonus 🙂
We have availability for joining groups or for private guiding in August and through September, so give us a shout if you’re thinking of a trip.
Looking across at the Cosmo jazz festival from our climb at Brevant. So good to time this right again. Rock climbing with Piano jazz and mountain backdrop.
The fantastic Perrons with the Emosson reservoir in the background. That’s us in the photo 🙂
Richard starting the harder climbing on the Peigne normal route. Despite the first lift being delayed an hour and afternoon rain showers we managed to bag the summit in plenty of time to catch the lift down.
Starting the top section of the Aiguille Peigne normal route. Steep exposed climbing on good granite holds. Proper climbing!
Wednesday 28th July 2021
After last week’s stellar weather it’s all gone a bit unstable and unpredictable on the meteo front.
We had a nice day up at the Aiguille du Midi yesterday before the evening storms, and then today it was a cloud and rain all morning. We made the most of it though and got some good scrambling on the Crouches traverse above the index lift at Flegere mid morning. Got a little wet walking in but it cleared before we arrived at the ridge and stayed dry (all be it cloudy) during the climb.
The weather looks like it’ll stay unsettled until the weekend, and we have decided to switch plans from our original objective, the Matterhorn and climb something else instead. Haven’t decided what that will be yet, maybe something low altitude and rocky or perhaps higher and snowy 🙂
Good news for UK travellers who can now return to England free from quarantine (if they are double vaccinated). That still doesn’t apply to France unfortunately, but for Swiss and Italian trips its good news.
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Richard posing for the photo on the north side of the Pointe Lachenel. A mix of harder ice and snow here which was great for some steeper climbing practice. The person in the background is coming off the normal route.
Laurene waiting for the rope to come tight at the foot of the Lachenel. The weather was a little “scottish” whilst we were climbing here.
Tim leading up the crux crack on the Cosmiques Arete. Still quite snowy in places and so we climbed in crampons for the whole route.
Richard following the same pitch.
Laurene and Tim towards the end of the Crouches traverse today. More like North Wales than the alps!
Friday 23rd July 2021
The end of a top quality week of climbing and guiding comes to a close, along with the stable weather. It’s been great climbing with Kurt, and we’ve managed to tick off a genuine classic route every day. I would have updated the blog sooner, but long days and normal guiding admin has filled the hours completely.
We tried to pick routes to take advantage of the good snow conditions and so to complete our acclimatisation after Tuesday (see below) we climbed the snow, ice and mixed route of the Contamine-Grisolle on the triangle face of Mont Blanc du Tacul. I really like this route, lots of varied terrain, short pitches and mostly moving together. We ticked the summit before slogging back down the normal route.
Other teams were out enjoying the ice as well including the Chere couloir, Contamine-Negri, Contamine-Mazeaud and I heard there has been activity on the bigger north faces such as the Matterhorn for instance.
Thursday looked like the best of the week, and so we drove through to Italy and traversed the Rochefort arete to the main summit from the first lift. We were back underneath the Dent du Geant by 11:30 and having been told (mistakenly) that the route was quiet we decided to climb the Dent as well (unusual to climb both big routes in one day). We overtook the lower team and then realised how busy the route was. It was the classic rope tangle with a couple of teams holding everyone else back. With the deadline of the last lift weighing heavily on our minds we had a very quick summit selfie before getting into the abseils and back down. We made it by twenty minutes, pretty tired but very happy to have ticked off both peaks. Two for the price of one!
There were teams heading across the Grand Jorass traverse, Kuffner ridge, Diable etc etc.
Today was windy up high and we had spent enough time up there this week anyway. And so to some classic Aiguille Rouge rock on the busy Frison-Roche (a fast walk down from the first lift put us first on the route) and then a very quiet Catyoucha man. The second route was quiet as it involves five abseils just to access the route! It felt like being back on a sea cliff. Great climbing, if only I had brought more than a litre of water!
Lots more guiding coming up, so will update the blog again next week.
Kurt pulling through an icy bulge on the Contamine-Grisolle on the triangle du Tacul, Mont Blanc du tacul.
Climbers returning along the Rochefort arete, with the summit of the Aiguille in the background.
Kurt on the final section of the Rochefort, just the Dent du Geant to go now.
Kurt on the final pitch of the Frison-Roche, high up on the summit buttress of Brevant. Great climbing – big hols, steep, some exposure and stunning background views. Such a good place to climb.
Tuesday 20th July 2021
Brilliant weather and fantastic conditions out here in Chamonix this week. Such a shame that the UK – France travel situation is so uncertain and impossible to plan for, making it extremely hard to plan trips at the moment.
For the lucky ones that are able to be in the alps there are a lot of great climbs in good condition. The snow from last week has stuck to the faces and we are getting good refreezes each night to keep the snow firm for early morning cramponing.
Lots of activity up at the Aiguille du Midi today with teams on the rock climbs along the south face, climbing Mont Blanc du Tacul via the normal route and the ice on the triangle face to the left. We are completing our acclimatisation and training ready for the end of the week, and having fun at the same time.
Yesterday we climbed the classic Papillons arête and today the classic Rebuffat route on the Eperon des Cosmiques at the Aiguille du Midi before finishing up the arête to the station. Climbing with a pack on up steep ground certainly adds to the challenge, especially at 3500m!
Kurt leading me up the traverse pitch to position us below the crux pitch, below the roof visible in the photo.
Kurt pulling through the roof on the crux pitch of the Rebuffat, eperon Cosmiques.
Leaving the rock climbing behind and traversing across to the Cosmiques Arete.
Joining the other teams on the Cosmiques Arete. Nice weather and conditions, so no stress to wait a bit and enjoy the view. Kurt led me up the final chimney pictured, but I was to busy belaying to take photos 🙂
Sunday 18th July 2021
A long overdue start to the alpine conditions & news blog this summer. I’ve been busy guiding and doing other things and sometimes the blog updates fall behind.
Anyway, enough with the excuses. We are surviving Covid travel restrictions, Brexit and the wettest season for a while. Very soggy in the valley and plenty of snow up high. The glaciers are in excellent condition and once the snow settles for another day or two there will be superb climbing to be done up in the high mountains.
We have a good looking weather forecast for the week ahead and looking forward to getting on some technical routes again and making the most of the good conditions. In terms of availability July is looking busy but we have gaps and groups to join in August and September including Mont Blanc, the Matterhorn and local Chamonix classics.
Lou leading a steeper pitch on the excellent Fretes de Charmoz traverse above Montenvers. A great ridge and a surprisingly long day with 800m ascent from the train station.
Jennifer on the Chamonix classic climb, the Index. Accessed from the Flegere lift system the group also did the Evettes Via Ferrata to start the day. A nice combo.
Fred climbing a steep 5c pitch at the Servoz crag during a rainy spell this month. The rock is so steep at the top that many of the climbs stay dry, although the lower pitches were soaking wet.
A clearing in the weather on our way to the Col Entreves from the Italian SkyWay lift. Plenty of fresh snow and some amazing views, when it cleared anyway.
A nice snow arete on another day from the Skyway lift. There’s a nice variety of terrain here which is perfect for an introduction to glacier travel and crampons etc.
