This season, we’ve had several trips to Mont Blanc in quick succession, including one trip on skis, one trip that attempted a traverse via the Trois Monts but got shut down by the wind and then two trips climbing Mont Blanc in one day from the valley.

We’ve done a few “Mont Blanc one shot” trips over the past few seasons, and doing two in such close succession has been interesting in terms of timings, itinerary and equipment.

Interestingly, all of our one day ascents have taken around the same amount of time, give or take an hour or so, depending on stops during the descent. This year both trips were around 15hr 30mins total, including the small gear stops in each hut and a drink stop at the Nid d’Aigle during the descent.

Ascent times are around 8hrs 30 to the summit. Followed by a descent that still takes quite a long time! The descent from the Gouter refuge has been steep and snowy this year, which requires extra care especially on tired legs.

They have been completing work on the train line again this season, so during the descent we’ve had to drop into the valley before climbing a couple of hundred meters backup to Bellevue and then to Les Houches, so I guess that has added on 45 minutes or so. You can see that route on the strava gps track below.

In previous years we’ve started the climb from Les Houches church around midnight. These past two trips we’ve had very stable conditions in the Grand Couloir, and good overnight freezing, so we’ve had a relative lie in and set off around 3am. Those extra few hours sleep are pretty beneficial and I’d definitely go with that again, conditions depending of course.

I weighed my bag on the first trip and it was 7kg, including 2 litres of water and food. But not including my rope or ice axe. We needed quite a few warm layers for that trip, but it still amazes me how much the bag weighs considering how much money I spend on lightweight equipment!

I have used a new pair of mountaineering boots this season after my previous pair were completely worn out. I’ve gone for a pair of La Sportiva Aequilibrium Speed Gtx. Quite a mouthful! But they’re really good, take a proper crampon and are comfortable for a long ascent like Mont Blanc. They are warm enough, but not as warm as a full B3 boot obviously, so some careful checking of the forecast needed. Having said that, I did take a pair of trail shoes on the 2nd trip, and it was nice walking down in them rather than the boots. You can hire a pair of the La Sportiva’s in Chamonix.

I’d like to write a more detailed post in the future about the physical preparation for a trip like this, but for the moment I’ll skip that and say all the folk who have climbed with us in this style have had a very strong background in endurance sports, especially trail running, and have trained seriously in preparation for Mont Blanc in a day. If you’re thinking of a trip but are unsure of the standard required get in touch.

And finally, here’s a google review of our most recent trip, June 2024.