Minimum altitude: 1,196 meters
Distance: 7 km
Slope Aspect: South-West
Vertical Climbed: 999 meters (3,278 feet)
Vertical Descended: 1,054 meters
Rating: 4.1
Avalanche Risk: 1
Snowline: 1,250
20 ski descent of the Dent de Crolles. The mountain is fantastic and fascinating. Accessible, 20 minutes from the valley. Iconic due to the way it guards the southern flanc off the Chartreuse chain. Steep enough with the NFZ in the pas with concentrates the mind somewhat both climbing and descending.
I climbed the south-east ridge up to the base of the pas de l'oeille then put crampons on. Given the pas is a no fall zone due to the exposure and steepness spending 2 minutes fixing crampons seems like a minimum. Climbing through the pass there was a crack, like a rifle shot. Then several large rocks bounced off the cliffs, the largest landing slap, bang in the climb route and the others flying down hill. The rock must have been 250kg and would have killed someone directly. I hurried quickly past.
It was chilly at the summit with a wind, from the south. The pas was choppy snow but skiable, large grains, almost neve after the long period of fine weather. No real problems making turns despite the exposure. Then the prarie. Excellent spring snow, I skied past a family of chamois who paid little attention to another skier. The road was still soft and pleasant to ski almost back to the car.
Winds blown snow on the summit plateau. Crud, easy to ski in the Pas de l'Oeille, spring snow on the Prairie of Death (Pre qui tu), soft snow on the road. Rockfall in the Pas de l'Oeille - like serious rockfall.
