Chamonix High Mountain Snow Report: 16th April 2015

I have been on the ‘Roof of Europe’ twice before and both times suffered greatly on the descent. Almost 4000m of knee slamming agony on hot sunny days, feeling very tired after an early alpine start. Tim Oliver is usually keen for most things mountain based so after a very quick phone call he was on board and had booked us two spaces at the Grand Mullets for the Sunday night.

At only 12.50euro for a bed with an alpine club membership you can afford to splash out on some nice food to build up some reserves for the long morning to come. Pasta, cheese, chorizo, snickers the list went on… Carrying up about 2kg of food and Port was worth it when you know you don't have to lug it up to the top with you the next morning!

Thinking of a more interesting route to the refuge we decided to ski Couloir Cosmiques to reach the Bossons Glacier...this turned out to be a bad idea. After the two 30m rappels we encountered hard snow, some of the hardest I've come across! After 50 to 100m of back straining side slipping we decided to change to crampons and down climb. Front pointing down 400m of a beautiful moderate ski descent takes its toll on your psych for the day ahead.

Skiing the lower 400m to the glacier went much smoother and we were soon skinning along the Bossons Glacier en route to the hut. Passing a guide who told us to follow the signs we reached the refuge in the evening light around 4:30pm. Meeting a friend, Ally Swinton and a couple of his friends, we settled in for the evening and enjoyed the surroundings. The guardians are very nice at the Grand Mullets, offering water for boiling and generally being very hospitable. After a large quantity of pasta, cheese and a glass of port we started to wind down for the night. The Guardians generously gave Tim and I a rice pudding despite us not eating the dinner on offer, a small token of appreciation for the port we gave them.

We retired to the room around 20:30 and the lights went off. 30 minutes later I shot up, gasping for air with a funny feeling in my guts. Quickly on with the slippers and I'm darting down the stairs. But before I reach the door I throw up all of the pasta in the doorway and over the railings. Walking back in after a minute of cursing, I approached the guardians with the bad news. They offered to help me clean it up but I couldn't let them- it was not the prettiest sight. Afterwards they offered me a coke to settle my stomach and I went to bed around 22:30 dreading how I would feel when we rise 5 hours later.

3:30am comes around in what felt like 10 minutes, and luckily I didn't feel that bad, except I was starving and very dehydrated. Eating a few snickers and drinking a litre of water we pushed on regardless. 4:40am and we were off on the skin track. When you are in the big mountains in the dark you feel very small. With freight train rumbles passing close by, the sound of falling seracs chills you to the bone. Pushing on almost seems stupid but we do it anyway. The skin track takes you on a wild tour through towering seracs and bottomless crevasses until you reach the Grand Plateau. From here you can see the Vallot Hut and you know the summit is in sight.

Tim kept telling me that I looked rough and my inner Welshman wanted to push on despite feeling like I should be in a warm bed 3000m meters below. Having done the Bosses ridge a few years prior I knew what was in store. Skis on our back and the long monotonous slog continued. 6 hours after leaving the refuge and despite having an empty stomach we were on the summit. 6 of us in total with hand shakes and high fives flying around.

A mouthful of sweets and we started the descent down the North East ridge heading towards the north face. Every turn was a struggle, lacking oxygen and energy, but I persevered. The North face is a crevasse and serac mine field, luckily we were following some faint tracks so route finding was not too much of an issue. One hour of tiring skiing passed and we were back at the refuge. A quick stop to pick up the gear we left behind, and we were keen to get back to mid station and return to the valley, where the beer is on tap and the burgers were on the grill.

Sitting in Cham sud you get a very surreal feeling looking back up at Mont Blanc, it was hard to imagine that only 3 hours ago we were suffering on its summit. Content, relaxed and exhausted we had done what we set out to achieve, despite the obstacles that lay in our way. What an end to another great season.

The days following our ascent were very busy in the refuge with Monday and Tuesday nights being full. Thats over 100 people who were going for the summit. The weather however was short lived with the clouds returning today (Thursday) and they look set to stay for a few days. This should hopefully drop some snow up high and mean that there will be more chance of fresh tracks from the summit next week when the sun returns. I would recommend booking the hut a few days in advance to avoid disappointment.

This may be my last Ski related High Mountain Report of this season as I am away for the next 4 weeks. If we get a wet May then you may well see a few more when I'm back in Chamonix! It's been a fun winter and thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed.

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NB: Off piste skiing and mountaineering are dangerous. The opinions expressed in these articles are very much time and condition specific and the content is not intended in any way to be a substitute for hiring a mountain guide, undergoing professional mountaineering training and/or the individual's own back country decision making.