As always, Ian arrived fit and keen. The illusive Verte welcomed him on a grey day. The weather had not improved too much, the forecast not good enough for too big a route on Ian’s first outing with me. The plan had always been that Ian would arrive a few days earlier, do some acclimatising on his own, and if the two Davids were able to go for Mont Blanc, I would arrange for Pascal, one of my favourite French guides, to come along with Ian. Quite a hard proposal for a first route out from Britain, but Ian was tough! In the event, the two Davids Mont Blanc climb was thwarted by fitness (or lack of) and the poor weather.
Ian and I therefore decided to get a rock climb in, on the Aiguille Rouge. Ian had done the Index and Chappelle, so Athena provided a nice start to Ians eight days with me.
The route went fine, and we planned to come down early so that we could check the forecast and if possible, get up to a high hut the next day. Unfortunately, not only was the forecast poor, it rained heavily that evening and was still bad next morning. We salvaged an afternoon at the Guides Crag, watching (and dodging) the rail showers from under the trees at the crag. The snowline was down to 2000metres.
Having been poor weather all night, the morning was much brighter, but the damage had been done. Lots of snow had fallen high up, but the forecast was not too bad, so we took a midday cable car to the Midi, hoping to go all the way across to the Torino Hut. The Tour Ronde by the normal route and the Rochefort Ridge was our two-day plan.
Arriving at the bottom station, we were dismayed to find the Helbroner lift to the Torino Hut was shut (due to icing on the cables).
This was a bit of a blow, but being only midday, I reasoned we had plenty of time to walk across, and it would do Ian a power of good. When we reached the Midi summit, the route across the Vallee Blanche was simply not there! There was a great deal of fresh snow and no tracks. At first, even as far as the Gros Rognon, the wind swept snow provided a relatively easy walk. We were heading into dark, misty ground towards the Tour Ronde, but I could see a track starting under the Pyramid du Tacul, and that would ease the slog. Arriving at the first tracks, I thought that someone from the Torino Hut must have walked in snowshoes as far as this point, before turning back?
Following the better track now, we headed into the thicker clag. Soon we were groping for visibility, although I could just make out the old track so it was fairly easy to follow.
I was having some sinister thoughts for several minutes, and decided to just have a quick check of the compass, so we stopped on a fairly sharp snow arête for a drink and the check. I’d been through this complicated crevassed area once before this season in good visibility so I knew it was not simply straightforward ground.
Horrors, the track was leading us into Cwm Maudit! Someone, using snowshoes must have been heading to the Col de la Forche Hut, or a route on the Frontier Ridge?
This was not good. The crevassed area was very contorted and even my GPS would have required many, many defining points needed to be taken. It was now four-thirty and it didn’t take me long to decide things were not good. We would be in amongst the crevasses for a good while, the thick clag developing more as the minutes wore on, and there was even the possibility of a benightment, which was not on the agenda!
I turned Ian around. We would take a further two hours to retrace our tracks and return to the Cosmiques Hut where, after being gently scolded by Arnou (the guardian) for not telephoning, we settled down in the sparsely filled hut to a free beer, and awaited the usual splendid evening meal. Arnou had reason to be pleased to see us, as several of his occupants were intending to cross to the Tour Ronde the next morning, and he had already suggested their plan could be risky. I was able to tell him he had been right to warn them off.
Next morning, cold but much clearer, Ian and I crossed the Vallee Blanche, over to the Pointe Lachenal. I recall doing this small peak, years before and it would be a good consolation climb. As it turned out, it was superb. I intended to top out on the right hand summit and traverse over to the left hand peak. This would require us descending a steep face, which appeared to be a few hundred feet high. Reaching the top of the peak was great fun, but I decided, on reaching the top of the descent, maybe it was better to return the same way and approach the left and peak from the Gros Rognan side. The slopes leading to the ridge were steep, icy, and it was not easy ground. From the summit of the left hand peak, the route followed the ridge and then descended a short way before tackling the steep ground I had been reluctant to abseil down. At this point, three climbers (looking very much like local guides) overtook us, complete with two technical tools each, cams, nuts and double ropes. I watched them drop down into the col and they were soon belayed and pitching up the steeper ground. We were simply not equipped for this complete traverse, and reluctantly, I turned Ian around and we descended our ascent route back to the Vallee Blanche.
The long slog back to the Midi summit was, as usual, quite tiring, but it did give Ian some acclimatisation and fitness training for things to come!
The weather was not being too kind at the moment, but forecasts of better weather in a couple of days had me planning a big route for Ian. Over the Domes du Miage from the Conscrits Hut and on to the Durier Hut. Then along the Bionassay Ridge and over Mont Blanc to the Midi, a fourteen to sixteen hour day from the Durier Hut I myself had wanted to do for a long time. The forecast seemed ideal “the return of Beau Temps for the final three days of the summer”.
The approach to the Conscrits Hut, from the Tre la Tete Hotel above Le Contamine, is long and I recalled the last time I went there, a few years prior (but didn’t mention it to Ian!). A good but lengthy trail leads through the forest to the Hotel, and then a contorted glacier, covered in moraine rubble leads to a steep but reasonable track up the grassy hillside to the hut.
We took just under the five hours the guidebook says it needs to reach the hut. A few other guides and clients were there, they all were intending to follow the normal route along the Tre la Tete glacier to the Col du Dome and, after reaching the ridge, traverse back along our ascent route along the Miage Ridge and over the Aiguille de la Be?angère, then down to the hut.
Leaving the hut at 4am, we made good progress, in thick clag to the summit of the Be?angère. This weather wasn’t forecast to last very long so I pushed on. It was difficult to follow the easiest line, as there were some tracks, but only on occasions, and it would be easy to stray too far left on the steep slopes. Often, I clambered over the rocks on the actual ridge, knowing full well the easier ground lay to my left. All went fine though and, moving together all the way, we finally reached the first summit of the Domes Du Miage from the other (normal) direction. Here we made contact with the other guides and teams. The weather was very poor, visibility almost non existent, and a chat with the local guides seemed a good idea.
They were cautious about me continuing on to the Durier Hut, and voiced some concern about the snow conditions of the Bionassay Ridge. I had to decide carefully what to do next, because, when local guides voice disquiet about a route, we visiting guides would do well to heed their discomfort. Ian was in agreement for our descending the normal route and abandoning the big traverse. Another day, in better weather? I was still in two minds though, as the forecast was sure it would clear up and be great. But those ridge conditions?
I will never know now, as we finally decided “down was best”. We had had a great Domes du Miage traverse, and the valley was calling.
I had forgotten just how long and tedious it was to get back to the car park above Le Contamine. We ended up going fairly slowly down the final steep track through the woods, our fatigue showing through. Ian drove us back to Argentiere and we made plans to meet as usual in the Office for drinks and a meal, after we had rested and showered.
It was a surprise when Ian and I later discussed plans for the remaining couple of days’ activity. Ian announced that he had had a great time on the Miage traverse and anything now would be an anti climax. So he had already switched his flights and was due out next morning, back to a very busy dental practice and he felt good that he would be back in time to handle one of his more troublesome days of his week.
What could I say? It meant I was able to pull out of the Alps a day earlier than planned, and my drive back to the ferry at Zeebrugge was at a more comfortable pace than usual.
My alpine season was over for another year.
Having decided not to go to Tanzania for Jagged Globe, the original plan for two back to back trips up Kilimanjaro had somehow been changed to just one two week expedition, I would now be able to spend some time at the house, renovations going on, and there would be lots to do!