Mont Blanc - Grand Mulet route. (15.04.1999)
Skrevet av h_maakestad (Helge Øystein Maakestad)
| Turtype | Randonnée/Telemark |
|---|---|
| Høydemeter | 3808m |
| Kart |
|
| Bestigninger | Mont Blanc (4810moh) | 15.04.1999 |
|---|
A winter ski ascent/descent of the Mont Blanc (4808m) via the classical route and the Grand Mulet hut. You spend two nights at the Grand Mulet hut at 3000m.
Day one: Take the lift from Chamonix to Plan de l'Aiguille at 2300 m and then walk/ski to the Grand Mulet Hut at 3000m. Eat and rest at the hut to early next morning.
A view toward the "North ridge of the Dome de Gouter" from the Grand Mulet hut below. The classical route goes below the ridge and the seracs in the left of the photo. There is a safer and more difficult route up the ridge.
Day two: Early start to avoid crevasse fall and avalanche. The Bossons Glacier is crevassed and you use ropes and ice axes to cross the glacier. You start early in the morning to avoid snow and ice avalances. When the sun melts the snow there is avalanche danger.
The top ridge of Mt. Blanc. We are leaving our skis at 4300m and climb to the top using ice axes and crampons. The ridge marks the border of France and Italy and you have spectacular view of Chamonix in France and the Aosta valley in Italy.
The top ridge:
Closing in on the summit:
Day three: Ski from Grand Mulet at 3000m to Chamonix at 1000m. In total 3800m descent in two days. On the photo you can se the "north ridge of the Dome de Gouter" - this is a safer route but more difficult. Our route - the classical route - goes up the crevassed glacier to the left of the ridge. This is a 30 degrees steep glacier that can be ascended on skis with skins. You use ropes for protection since the glacier is crevassed. This is the glacier you ski on the way down to Chamonix after the ascent of the mountain. We spent 13 hours from the hut to the top due to poor acclimatization and to do this descent with a backpack in 35 cm powder is hard and requires good skills. There are many crevasses to avoid.
You find youtube videos from the route by typing "mt blanc on skis" into the search engine. In the video linked below the ascent/descent is done in late spring or summer. In this period there is less snow on the Bossons glacier and you need a rope to cross some of the crevasses on the glacier. In general you should always bring a rope, ice axes and belay equipment when skiing on a glacier. In the video they start at night because of the hanging glacier on the photo above: This hanging glacier may collapse in the sun because of the heat, hence you should climb past this area before sun rises. You may hire a local moutain guide if you do not have the experience with glaicers. Ask in Chamonix. We started climbing at 0200 at night.
Kommentarer