Aug 6
First Ascent Guide Caroline George Reaches Highest Summit in Western Europe for the Fifth Time

 

By Caroline George

I was joined by two other guides to guide six clients up Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Western Europe and in the Alps. We met at the Bellevue cable car in Les Houches, a few kilometers down the valley from the alpine climbing mecca, Chamonix, France, and rode a small mountain train to the start of the trailhead called “Nid d’Aigle.”

From the start, there were a number of steep switchbacks and a rocky spur to the Tete Rousse Hut at 3,167 meters. The Tete Rousse is a beautiful and comfortable location perched high above the Vallee de l’Arve, with the north face of the Aiguille de Bionnassay and the strenuous Gouter Ridge looming above.

The great thing about climbing in the Alps is that you dont need to carry any camping or cooking gear with you. The hut system is operated and maintained perfectly – all you need is your climbing gear and warm clothing. The huts are equipped with beds and comforters. The hut keepers cook delicious treats to snack on before and after the climb and provided us with meals, with soup, cheese, main course and dessert. It was a real challenge for me to pick between the blueberry and the walnut pies!

We woke at 1 a.m. to start our ascent toward the summit. We ate our breakfast and headed out in the sparkling, moonless night up the 700 meter long rock ridge to the Gouter Hut. We encountered one of the cruxes of the route 20 minutes into the climb when crossing the infamous “Grand Couloir,” a 50 meter wide couloir that has a tremendous amount of rock falls every year. We carefully trekked up the ridge toward the exposed rocky terrain of the Gouter Hut, which sits on the Aiguille du Gouter at 3,817 meters. A new hut is being built there and should be ready to host the hordes of people that climb Mont Blanc by 2012. From the Gouter Hut, we followed an almost horizontal ridge toward the Dome Du Gouter at 4,237 meters, and onward to the Vallot Hut at 4,362 meters. From there, we climbed steeply up the knife- edge West Ridge called the Arête des Bosses the Bumps Ridge, going over the Grand Bosse at 4,513 meters (the Big Bump), and the Petite Bosse at 4,547 meters  (the Little Bump) along the narrowing ridge to the top of Europe.

It was 7:30 a.m. when we reached the summit of Mont Blanc at 4,810 meters (15,782 feet). It felt like we were standing on top of the world, higher than any other peak that we could see. It was an amazing view! Standing on the knife-edge snow ridge, we had one foot in Italy and one foot in France. The town of Chamonix was to the north, still in the shadow of its surrounding giants, while the town of Courmayeur, Italy, to the south, was already basking in the sun-rays. We were soaking in the morning sun, too, enjoying the amazing climb we had just finished.

There was hardly any wind on the summit just gorgeous blue skies and sunny warm temperatures.

This was my fifth ascent of the peak. I have climbed it through different routes: from France over the Arête des Bosses, the Three Monts Traverse and the Grand Mulets, and from Italy by climbing the Freney Pillar, one of the hardest routes in the Mont Blanc range and one of my greatest climbs ever!

As we looked out into the horizon, we already started planning some future ascents: the Gran Paradiso to the south, Matterhorn to the west, Monte Rosa to the east, and the Eiger to the north – and perhaps Blanc again. I always look forward to ascending this beautiful and prestigious peak.


Author: - Friday, August 6th, 2010
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  1. Scot
    August 9, 2010 at 7:13 pm

    Reading this reminded me of my trip up the Zugspitze on the German-Austrian border… which was my first peak. I’d love to spend some time climbing in Europe again… will have to give those friends living in Zurich a call. ;)

    Thanks for sharing the story.. can’t wait to see some pics.


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