Hi There,

A query to the more experienced here who may or may not have climbed Mont Blanc and Skied down, but who would have a fair idea of what’s involved.

A group of friends are planning a 9 day trip with a guide in April to do just this. My experience of this kind of thing is limited to date. I have really only been skiing off piste for 4 or so years and I have limited to no mountaineering or climbing experience at all. Having said that I do go skiing 3+ times a year, and have managed a fair bit of high altitude off piste at this stage e.g. Argentiere, Grands Montets (grande face, couloirs to Arg glaciere, etc, vallee blanche from either side), Mont Fort (over the top), Stairway to Heaven, Various routes in St Anton, Some tree skiing, etc. I’m in reasonable shape and don’t suffer from too much of a fear factor. However I have only once abseiled, never done any real climbing, never skinned (despite having kit in ruck sack a few times) and never slept in hut or at altitude. Also while I am reasonably fit & athletic, I have a rugby players physique, so I am strong and heavy as opposed to more agile and lithe like most climbers are.

Would I be mad to consider this trip???

If I were to consider it what kind of training will I require to do??

What is the best way to prepare for sleeping and exerting at altitude??

Is there any fitness test or climbing test I could set myself as a minimum standard to reach before attempting it.

I am planning a trip to St Anton in March regardless & there is a trainiong weekend for the climb, as well as the pre-climatising and training days in April (4 say), but still as you probably gather from the tone of this post I am inclined to err on the side of caution at the moment.

Daithi - 15 February 2008 05:48 PM

… climb Mont Blanc and Ski down ...
Would I be mad to consider this trip?

A lot depends on what you mean by “ski down”. If you mean to ski directly off the summit, like the North Face or the Corridor Route, most guidebooks say that would be pretty serious. I’m guessing that’s not what your guide leader is intending. More likely you’ll leave skis far below the summit, climb the summit on foot, climb back down to skis, then do some skiing at a reasonable difficulty level (how reasonable might depend on weather + conditions).

I recall in recent years there’s been report of serac falls onto the traditional “normal” route to the Grand Mulets—but I haven’t kept it with that. If it were me, I would prefer to climb up from Refuge Cosmiques by the “three Mont Blancs”, to minimize the time of exposure to serac falls. A few years ago I tried that on skis (and some sections on foot) with a Geneva partner, but we decided to turn back at the rimaye on Mt Maudit. Still I thought it was a great tour, skiing powder on Mt Maudit, then the north slope of Mont Blanc du Tacul.

To me the concept of using “ski on Mont Blanc” as an excuse to hang around Chamonix for a week with a guide and do interesting tours while supposedly “preparing” for the great goal—sounds good.

To me it seems like an act of hubris to choose a specific week in April two months in advance and planning to climb + ski Mont Blanc. My view is that you ski Mont Blanc when the mountain is in condition for it, and so are you and your partners.

Ken

First of all a big caveat, I’ve not skied Mt Blanc but I have done a lot of touring in the Alps without guides. I echo Ken’s suggestion of the Three Mont Blancs, the people I know who’ve done Mont Blanc have done it this way although some have descended by the Grand Mulets - without hanging around in the ice fall.

I think mountain biking is some of the best preparation for ski touring (apart from ski touring that is).

The altitude thing is a bit of a lottery. I have a friend who skied Mt Blanc 3 years ago, she rows a lot but had very little preparation. Stayed in the Cosmiques, didn’t sleep (she stayed up playing cards) then set out for the summit with a couple of friends. I know another very fit guy who had to ski down after a night in the Cosmiques. The best thing is to have good cardio-vascular fitness and drink plenty of water on the climbs.

I would reccommend using a guide and preparing for the climb in Cham during the week waiting for a weather window. The end of April can often see unsettled weather in the Alps and it can be a bit of a lottery. It would be a shame to go to the summit and not have a view.

Apart from that it is a high mountain route with all that entails - potential risk of avalanche throughout the year, falls, crevasses and seracs. The route isn’t hard but you have to contend with a lot of other people during the peak periods (April may not be bad as it is still quite early). The weather can change rapidly and at 4500 m you are in the jet stream. Some relatively experienced climbers died on the route last summer when the weather changed rapidly despite being in touch with the rescue services by mobile phone so it is not to be underestimated even if very inexperienced climbers do summit.

Not sure if you saw replies to your Thread on snowHeads ....

This link to Mountaintracks Mont Blanc trip requirements, http://www.mountaintracks.co.uk/winter/skitouring/montblanc_ski

may be of some help to you decide. You don’t mention who your guide is, but if you haven’t settled on one yet, then I would seriously advise you to consider Mountaintracks. ( SnowHead helinick, Nick Parks is one of Mountaintracks owners).

In addition to fitness and skills issues, Mont Blanc can be a very dangerous place and it has claimed many lives in the past. I am very fussy about guides in tricky places and have managed to keep a hop-step-and jump ahead of the reaper so far .... 

I am intending to do this trip in April. PM me if I can be of any further help.

I’ve climbed and snowboarded Mont Blanc several times, via the 3 main routes, the Tacul/Maudit from the cosmiques, the Grand Mulets from plan D’Aiguille, and up from st Gervais via the grand couloir and valott.
If his is your first time and you’re not hugely experienced i would definately got up Via the Grand Mulets, the summit day is a long one, but as long as your away from the refuge at 2/3am, you’ll get to the summit by 10 or 11am and will get back down in good time before the ice gets too creaky.
the main problem is the lack of oxygen and slow pace above 4500m, technically it’s not too difficult.
But if it’s april you’re doing it, you should leave your skis at Vallot and climb up to the summit with your crampons and ice axes.
Good luck, you’ll love it......

Hi Folks,

Many thanks for all the great advice, offers of further advice and general well wishes.

I must say I am now very tempted, these opportunities don’t come around every day after all.

cheers,
Daithi

p.s. must dig out the mountain bike and prepare for 2 months jogging & running hard into the anaerobic zone...hmm ...lovely

Did this 6 yrs ago from the Cosmiques, one of the most memorable trips in the mountains.
2 fit 30 something guys with very experienced guide - Yves Detry.
Day 1 ski / skin around top of Vallee Blanche overnight in Torino hut, realised weather window was going to break and so we returned to Cham, restocked and headed back to Cosmiques that night. 
Day 2 Left Cosmiques at 1.30am and on summit around noon.  Quite a few others on the route and delayed at bergschrund at bottom of Mont Maudit by a one armed German climber. Spent night at Requin on way down to enjoy fantastic sunset.
Day 3 Across to Plan d’ Aguille

Despite lack of proper acclimatisation to altitude we had no problems with altitude but both of us were fit and used to long mountain days.  Weather was also on our side.  Climbing up from Requin via standard route is playing Russian roulette with the seracs for quite some time - a month before we did it 5 Belgium climbers were killed! We almost straightlined it on the way down.  Another route goes up to the Dome de Gouter from the Requin but can be very icy and exposed. The routes from the Requin do allow you to spot a route down the North Face though.

The climb over Mont Maudit is the hardest part but it isnt really very technical in good conditions which we had.

Defintely recommend it.

Requin? Don’t you mean Grand Mulets?

Yves Detry? Now there is a living legend. First descent of the Mallory with Daniel Chauchefoin and Anselme Baud in 1977. Mark Frary of The Times (and who seems very reasonable when I’ve spoken to him) rates Detry as one of the worlds seven best ski guides and a man to “bet your life on”. This is Yves phone number if anyone wants to book him: +33 45093 8743. The Observer newspaper describe him as “inspiring”.

Baud, of course is well known but Chauchefoin, the quiet man of the Aravis with a legacy of extreme descents on the limit of what is possible back in the days when men were men and skis were worn long and thin. In 1986 “Chauche” seems to have just decided that enough is enough. An enigma.

“le chauche” in action

Apologies I meant Grand Mulets - its been too long.

I couple of other highlights on the trip.  On day one at the top of Aguille de Midi met a couple of Yves friends who spent the morning with us - they were obviously good skiers but also knew alot about the mountains and happy to share their knowledge and passion.  Turns out they were Baud and Tardivel. Secondly, at the Torino hut there was one of the mountain magazines talking about an American skier looking to ski some serious routes - one from the Chardonet and North Face of Aiguille de Midi and a couple of others.  My companion was asking Yves about them, had he skied them - unassumingly he told him that he was the first to ski 3 of them and the second person to ski the other by a matter of hours.

Would highly recommend time with him - he does a lot of guiding for Ski Weekend in Chamonix over the winter.

Anselme Baud was my landlord for a winter season in Morzine, a really nice guy too. I remember a conversation when I was talking about an ice route I’d just done on Mt Blanc du Tacul, he casually mentioned he’d skiied it. That put me in my place, though it didn’t feel like a put down!

sinbad - 19 February 2008 11:25 PM

On day one at the top of Aguille de Midi met a couple of Yves friends who spent the morning with us - they were obviously good skiers but also knew alot about the mountains and happy to share their knowledge and passion.  Turns out they were Baud and Tardivel.

And to bring things full circle Pierre Tardivel learnt his craft at the feet of Maitre Chauchefoin in the 1980s. Incredible to think the Tardivel still has the passion in his third decade of extreme skiing.

Sounds absolutely amazing - best of luck!