Chamonix Snow Report 26/5/10 : Mont Blanc

Yesterday we climbed Mont Blanc via the Three Mont Blancs route, and snowboarded down the North Face of the peak to Chamonix.

We decided to do it six weeks ago, and have been training ever since. Charlie and I (31 and 30) are both of average fitness for Brits living in Chamonix, but we knew we needed to get our fitness as good as we could get it for Mont Blanc. We did three days on, one day off training for six weeks - snowshoeing up the Pierre A Ric homerun at Grands Montets (+1000m), snowshoeing up the Col de Passon (+650m at nearly 3000m), walking up the Merlet trail (+800m), walking up to Plan d'Aiguille (+1300m), with heavier and heavier packs, adding snowboard boots and snowboards to the climbs in the last week of training. With hindsight I think that this type of training was spot on, although we could have done some longer stuff. The Mont Blanc climb took us nine hours!

Acclimatization was spending the occasional lunchbreak wandering around up at the Aiguille du Midi (3842m), and we slept up there Friday night - cold and uncomfortable. If you decide to sleep there, bring a mat and bag, and if it's baltic, go sleep in the toilets - smells like sh*t but a lot warmer! During acclimatization I struggled a lot - I had headaches, felt weird, like I was about to faint; I even puked up when we slept at the Midi.

As snowboarders, the efficiency and luxury of skinning wasn't possible for us. So gear-wise, we had MSR Denali snowshoes, hiking poles, first-layer/fleece/insulator/Gore shell clothing, long johns and gore trousers. Grivel alu crampons and short hand ice axes. In the first-aid kit I had headache remedy, paracetamol, sunscreen and anti-nausea tablets. With a 2L camelback, five Powerbars and 1200ml of Powerade, plus snowboard, 3L Gore mitts and harness, my pack weighed in around 16kg.

We are both pretty savvy with riding on glaciers and routefinding in avalanche terrain but neither of us have had much mountaineering experience - so we hired Lars, a Belgian skier/snowboarder and high mountain guide, to take us up. He cost 750€ and was worth every cent. I'd recommend him if you're planning a similar trip, link below.

So, after sleeping at home in the valley on Saturday night, we headed up the Midi Sunday afternoon and got to midstation. Oops - I'd left my thermal pants in the car - amateur, damnit! Fortunately my girlfriend had her pass on her so she brought them up. Luckily we weren't on the last bin so there was time. We then went on up, got to the top, walked to the ice cave, crampons and harness on, rope up, walked down the unequipped arête in a whiteout, got to the Midi plateau, put our boards on, traversed over to below the Cosmiques and bootpacked up the 30m to the refuge (3600m). Lars had reserved the refuge for us and it cost us 51€ each for a three-course evening meal, breakfast and accommodation in bunk rooms (14 people per room). The refuge is modern, non-stinky and beautifully furnished with a big sun terrace. Apart from the St Bernard monastery it's the nicest refuge I've ever been in. However, watch out; there was no free drinking water so you have to buy heli'd-in 1.5L bottles for 5€ (!) - luckily we'd brought a few up so didn't have to spend anything while there. Dinner was excellent - veg soup, beef stew and some passion fruit dessert thing. Waitress service, the works. The refuge felt really homely and warm and helped settle my nerves for the trip. Fortunately, they put you in rooms with others waking up at the same time as you - breakfast is served at 1am, 3am or 5am - so we even got a bit of sleep.

We were up at 3am and from the balcony could see the headtorches of those who'd been up earlier criss-crossing the Mont Blanc de Tacul. After a bowl of cereal and some toast and tea we were kitting up, riding down from the refuge back onto the plateau, arriving in the dark at the foot of Mont Blanc de Tacul.

The Tacul was, for me, the scariest part of the climb so I was happy that it was pitch darkness and I couldn't see the disgusting 800m+ exposure below or constant serac-fall hazard above. We snowshoed the frozen skintrail, and at the bergschrund (giant crevasse at the bottom of the face) had to tiptoe along a narrow snowy ridge, slackline-style, to get through. A few minutes later we met a French guy who'd lost his crampons and was looking around for them under the seracs - glad I wasn't him. Once through the bergschrund gnar, we pushed on fast, arriving at the shoulder of the Tacul in two hours, as the sun started rising over the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa in the distance. We were happy to have knocked the Tacul off so fast as we'd heard nothing but horror stories and warnings about this windloaded, serac-y place.

At this point we were at 4120m, not too tired and not ridiculously high up. We hadn't been overtaken by many people skinning either, which was a miracle considering we were not that quick on snowshoes. The other side of the Tacul revealed a descent of -100m to the base of the second peak of the morning, Mont Maudit. We switched back to boards and rode to the base, then put the boards and snowshoes on our packs and switched to crampons which had better purchase in the still-hard morning snow.

We pushed up Mont Maudit, roped together, starting to feel the fatigue gnaw and wind chill our bodies. After 90 minutes of climbing we arrived near the top of the Col de Mont Maudit, a steep pitch you have to semi-ice-climb. There were about 30 German climbers there, screwing around with a spaghetti of ropes and three or four crazily complicated pulley set-ups. After waiting half an hour for them to get on with it, and seeing no progress, our guide Lars cut around them and belayed us up the pitch.

As soon as I got to the top (4345m), I started feeling the altitude pretty badly - I had an enormous, pounding, hangover-style headache and nausea. Charlie gave me an aspirin and I drained my Powerade (apparently it helps pretty well) and started chugging my water. The aspirin sorted the headache and we were soon good to go. At this point we were in the Col du Brenva and I'd envisioned a shallow, slow climb up the east ridge - like it looks from Chamonix. Not so. From the Brenva a huge panorama revealed itself - I could see the skintrack climb, descent, go up steep sections, past seracs, across flats - a long, arduous, white, technical assault course to the summit. I started to doubt I could make it but Charlie's enthusiasm was infectious, so we pressed on to to the Mur de Côte, a steep face at the start of the true Mont Blanc summit, climbing ever higher to the peak.

We were taking one pace every three seconds here. And it got worse. The higher we got, the less I could breathe - we were stopping for ten seconds in order to walk for ten seconds near the summit. I knocked back another aspirin and kept at it. My hip and inner thigh muscles were in bits and my shoulders agonisingly painful from the weight of the pack. It was getting hot and sweat was pouring down my face as the summit edged closer and closer. Despite the aspirin the hangover-type headache was back and I was feeling weird, otherwordly, like I was in a videogame or movie watching this character climbing a mountain.

Then, before I knew it, we were there and crested the summit together, nine hours after leaving the refuge. I was drained; I collapsed face first and lay in the snow for a full minute, then got to my feet, burst into tears and threw up. Not exactly the summit experience I expected, by one I'll remember. No wind, blue sky, nice temperature - I was wearing nothing but a fleece and a first layer and was fine.

We rode down the North face, through snow that resembled Grands Montets at 11am on a powder day - chopped up, soft and deep. Lars found us a few untouched sections which were really nice, and the scenery was outstanding - seracy and glacial like the Vallée Blanche but bigger, gnarlier and scarier. We were riding for the views and the altitude loss, not for the thrills. Never thought I'd say that but there you are.

Before we knew it we were down at the Bossons glacier, which we traversed roped on snowshoes, then slogged two hours back to the midstation at Plan D'Aiguille, wallowing through deep, sh*tty, slushy snow as we fought to make it for the last bin down to Chamonix.

Thirteen hours after leaving the hut, we were through with it and went straight to Chambre Neuf to celebrate.

In hindsight, I wouldn't have changed much; maybe another two nights at altitude to acclimatize better, and longer uphill hikes to increase my stamina. Gear-wise, I never needed my windbuff or insulator layer, and didn't eat three of the five powerbars I brought, so could have saved some weight there. I broke both my poles (lost the baskets) and my right snowshoe was only held together by one tiny piece of steel by the end.

If you're thinking about climbing Mont Blanc, the above should help you. Just know it's hard if you're a mortal, like me. Anyone who tells you it isn't hasn't done it. It's a magical, once-in-a-lifetime experience. After we decided to climb it, we decided to use it as an excuse to raise money for a children's hospital in London called Great Ormond Street - so far we've raised over £2000.

Links:
www.justgiving.com/snowboardmontblanc - not punting for sponsors here, just happy we've acheived such a lot.
http://www.mountainpenguins.com/ - Mountain guide Lars is someone you ought to hire if you're doing Mont Blanc - or, for that matter, anything else in the Chamonix area.


Charlie


Me


Lars


Gearing up at the bottom of the Midi arête


At the Cosmiques hut


The Midi from the Cosmiques

Last minute tuning at the hut

Sunset from the Cosmiques

Breakfast!

Midi at sunrise from the Tacul shoulder

Plod...plod...plod


Alps from the Tacul


Kitting up on the Tacul shoulder


Mont Maudit approach & climb


Tacul backside from Mont Maudit


Mont Blanc from Col du Brenva


Still climbing!


Made it! Summit shot


Chamonix from 4807m


Sponsored by... ;)


Starting our descent of the N face...not actually that steep...


Seracs


More seracs


Nearly down.

Chamonix Snow Report 22/5/10 : Sleeping With Ghosts

Ended up having an interesting piece of Chamonix acclimatisation last night. Pics coming later from this hopefully once-in-a-lifetime experience. Mont Blanc Sunday & Monday - finally!

Here I am, at nearly 4000m above the blue sea. It's the middle of the night and I'm elongated on concrete, back aching as the wind howls outside. Up here I am surrounded by memories; looked upon by achievements of others, cold, and haunted by ghosts.

Cables moan in the gale, neons flicker, machinery hums and my fellow mountaineers snore. They'll be leaving soon, little group by little group, sights set high as they, my goretex-clad sleepers-in-crime, set out to write more history in this high place.

Chamonix Snow Report 29/04/10 : Col de Passon

The Col de Passon is a classic Chamonix ski tour - one of the must-dos on any off-piste skiers list, with a relatively straightforward approach from Les Grand Montets top station. It's also fairly high, which made it great training for our Mont Blanc climb & snowboard next week.

To get to the bottom of the Passon you ski the backside of Les Grands Montets, then cross the flat glacier between crevassed zones. You then climb up the moraine and ascend the side of the valley. Soon, the mellow 30° ascent finishes, snowshoes come off and crampons go on for an 80m couloir climb.

Now, I love climbing couloirs as much as the next guy, but time cas ticking and the snow was becoming slushy fast. With the melting, large chunks of granite would sporadically tumble down the couloir, meaning you had to keep one eye on your climb, one eye on the rockfalls.

The crux of the couloir next to the top was nearly devoid of snow; at points I had my pole strap around one wrist, ice axe strap around the other, using my hands to pull me up the rock.

We got to the top in 1hr 45, had lunch and checked the descent. The Le Tour glacier is entirely dissimilar to classic Chamonix line; it's wide open, with a mellow pitch. Big turns, minimal crevasse risk and shaded, non-sun-affected snow.




Routefinding at the top was tricky, but once we had sued out where we were, it was easy enough. Wouldn't like to do it in a whiteout though. And the very last section needed some serious bushwacking and a sketchy river ford before we got back to the Le Tour car park.

Grands Montets is open for another fortnight so plenty of scope for fun-having until then!

Chamonix Snow Report 23/10/2010 : Snowboard Mont Blanc

I was at Les Houches today and, considering it's the end of April, the snow was holding up OK. Les Houches is the spotty, fat younger sister to the prom queen resorts of the upper valley, so this was a nice surprise. Like riding a giant pile of wheat; large particles of ice, stuck together by copious helpings of meltwater. Soft and playful.

I'm deep into training for my Mont Blanc climb and snowboard down at the start of May. I even got some coverage in my local paper (ahem. Next stop Wall Street Journal). Now, I'm no sports scientist but even I can tell you that for a massive walk uphill, on special gear, at altitude, you need to be pretty fit. Not that I'm unfit, but by Chamonix standards, I'm a couch potato. Anyway, I've tried to introduce one aspect of the climb at a time; I started off with medium length (1.5hrs) uphill walks, then added in the gear (snowshoeing up the Pierre A Ric yesterday and Les Houches today), then am going to add the altitude in next week (climbing the Petite Aiguille Verte & Col de Passon at Grands Montets, sleeping at the Midi).

I'm still a couch potato, but climbs are getting easier every time. Back up the Pierre A Ric tomorrow, then up the Col de Passon Tuesday morning.

Chamonix Snow Report 18/04/10 : Snowboarding Mont Blanc

In just over two weeks time, I will be stood on the summit of Mont Blanc.

Whilst this is pretty normal stuff for the daredevils, summit-addicts and wannabs of Chamonix Country, for me it's pretty special. See, I'm just like you. Not a mountaineer, not a climber. Just a regular person-on-street.

What's going to make it even more special, is the fact that I'm lugging 6kg of snowboard up there, in order to ride down the North Face. As hiking-for-lines go, it's one of the most physically demanding and sought-after routes in Europe, and it's just coming into condition now.

Over the next couple of weeks, along with the regular snow reports, I'm going to put notes up about the training that I'm doing for it, which should serve as a nice historical resource for anyone else planning a similar project. At times, I'll post up about the gear I'll be using too.
For the record, the summit attempt and north face snowboard descent is called High Hopes.

And for mountain nerds, we'll be going up to the Cosmiques hut, overnighting there, then going to Mont Blanc via the Tacul and Mont Maudit. The Three Monts route. I expect we'll leave the Cosmiques around 2am, trudging through the dark, and summiting around late morning.

Whilst my buddy Charlie and I are funding the entire expedition out of our own pockets, you can get involved by bunging us a tenner or so of sponsorship that will be donaetd straight to Great Ormond Street Hospital. This trip is something we were going to do anyway, and if we can raise money for a good cause, then so much the better.

Some links to sign off:
http://www.justgiving.com/snowboardmontblanc - the link for donations. Please add your name to the list!
Mountain Penguins Guiding - Snowboard guide guru Lars is taking us up
Zero G Snowboards - supporting the expedition
Charlie Davies Photography - shooter Charlie is my counterpart for the project

Chamonix Snow Report 15/04/10 : Fakin' It

Sometimes, you see pictures like this on the Tourist Office website. They are meant to incite a desire to come here; a picture of bottomless pow and blue sky.

It's hard to believe that these were shot 48 hours ago in some of the most fiendishly diabolical snow I've ever ridden; three inches of fresh powder on top of a hard, variable, icey baselayer. Enough to make it really hurt when you fell, but enough on top to make it look wonderful everywhere.

Enjoy the pictures (shot by Charlie Davies Photography). But don't believe them!

Chamonix Snow Report 12/4/10 : In the Valley

I was at Courmayeur on Saturday - it was amazing.
I've just got down from riding at Brévent...and it sucked.

Why? Thank the sun.

Whereas everywhere has been a slushfest for the last week or so (meaning hot, sunny days and plenty of soft, slush puppy snow to bounce around in), it clouded over yesterday. Literally, every time a cloud passed the sun, the cool air temperature refroze the snow as hard as hockey ice.

Last night it snowed (10cm at 2200m), so today's conditions utterly sucked; although the snow looked sensational, you punched through the thin, fresh layer right away onto that hard, icey crust. Noisy and scrapy; no fun.



Fortunately, it wasn't all bad because I got to ride the 2011 Jeremy Jones Flagship 162. Yes yes, the big mountain one, not the jib one. Really, really nice board. I rode it on the two days described above, with large Burton P1 bindings and size 47(!) Burton SLX 2010 boots. The stance goes quite wide, I had it maxed out at 66cm before turning the discs to get a bit more. The first thing I noticed was the wooden topsheet and wooden sidewalls. The board looks very eco-warrior. The finish is real wood, almost like the topsheet is made of unvarnished parquet floorboards. The nose rocker is mellow and a handflex reveals the tail is really stiff. The nose is blunt and wide - see the why's and wherefores on the Jones site.

Fortunately Jones realises that not everyone gets to ride enormous spines covered in deep pow every day so I think he's dumbed down his dream board to create a board that feels good to more people in more 'normal' conditions. There's a nice sidecut which makes it carve great. The mellow magnetraction is barely noticeable when you're looking at it, but while riding you feel like it's there locking the rocker in. But don't ge't me wrong - this is a freeride snowboard. The tail is stiff, it feels long, and it likes being ridden fast and aggressively. The thing is as stable as a T6 at top speed when you're straightlining bad snow. In the soft stuff, the wide and blunt nose works very well, whilst the slightly tapered tail sinks nicely, lifting the nose effortlessly.



Interestingly, without being anywhere close to a freestyle board, it gives you the feeling your landings are going to be controlled, so you end up very stable in the air. And the nose rocker is quite buttery and easy and fun to press and slide down ridges at the side of the pistes. But don't bother with this snowboard if you like riding the park or doing rails. If that person is you, you're much better off buying something different.

If you would classify yourself as a pretty good rider who rides 60% piste, 40% off piste, who loves powder and rarely goes to the park, this board is one that'll definitely put a smile on your face. And, at 450€ RRP, it'll likely keep your bank manager happy too. And as ever, Zero G have the Chamonix exclusive on this one, dropping October 2010.