Chamonix Chalet news

Chalet la Foret November 9th, 2009

On a warm and sunny October day, we walked up to La Jonction to bivvy under the stars and drink champagne…

Packing! The champagne was a present from Tim and we'd decided to walk up to La Jonction, chill it in a crevasse & and bivouac under the stars

Looking up at La Jonction from Chamonix town centre. We're going to the end of the long diagonal ridge between the glaciers (Montagne de la Cote).

Getting out at Le Mont - the little chairlift from the base of les Bossons doesn't run at this time of year so this is the best place to park.

Le Mont is a lovely hamlet under the Aiguille du Midi

The path winds up through the woods...

...before starting to weave spectacularly from one side of the ridge to the other, with jaw-dropping views on both sides. These seracs are near the Pyramides chalet, the last stop on the way up in summer.

As you go further up, the seracs change shape

and as the sun sets, we're nearly there

Sunset

This is where we're going to bivouac for the night - the "Gîte à Balmat" . The plaque tells you a bit about the history of these massive rocks: '7th August 1786 - the Chamoniards Jaques Balmat and Michel G Paccard bivouaqued in difficult conditions under this block of granite. The next day, the 8th August, by the force of willpower and bravery, they attained for the first time the summit of Mont Blanc, opening the route of modern mountaineering.'

La Jonction is a sea of ice

Time to find a good spot to chill the champagne

Lowering the Krug into a handy crevasse

Making supper - couscous with fishcakes

Glass of Krug? Go on then!

We walked up to the Jonction once the moon was up - you didn't need a headtorch because the moonlight on the glacier was so bright. You can see the streaks of the stars on the long exposure. It's quiet by the rocks where we're sleeping, but once you're up on the ridge, the glacier is alive with movement, cracking and creaking all around you

While we had the camera set up, there was a massive avalanche set off by a serac fall.
Unfortunately after this time all the camera batteries went dead from the cold so the rest of the photos are from the trusty iPhone which kept going. It was REALLY cold by this time, so we got back in our sleeping bags, polished off the champagne and went to sleep

Moonset

Sunrise

In the morning, there was frost on the outside of the sleeping bags but we stayed toasty warm all night.

Bivi spot - it was still pretty cold in the morning...

...until the sun came up and then it was lovely and warm

La Jonction. It was lovely to have been there in the morning with no-one around.

The Midi. It's amazing to be so close to a glacier without needing lots of safety equipment.

By the seracs

Stopping again at the Pyramides on the way down.

Google map of the start and finish points. I think the time according to the signposts is 4.5 hours for the ascent and about 3 for the descent, so it’s one to allow an early start and a full day for, as it’s an incredible place and you’ll want plenty of time for the scenery.

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Chalet la Foret October 3rd, 2008

In the morning: are we really going up there? Normally, you go up via the rack railway, but since it is late season now, it’s closed, and we had to walk from the cable car, which adds about 2 hours. Here we all are, about to set off…Neil the guide, Nick and me. Fortunately, it’s a very beautiful walk The work train is being used for repairs part of the way up, but otherwise, it’s deserted at Nid d’Aigle. Two weeks ago, this place was full of tourists, but it’s all quiet nowApart from the ibex who are everywhere… Steadily climbing to the Tete Rousse hut have to do the last bit in crampons …as there’s a big snowfield and couloir to cross before the hut…but the view is amazingand the sunset is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. These aren’t retouched or anything… Setting off in the morning – relatively late at 5.30 am because it was so cold that a guide froze his face yesterday, making the normal 2am start too dangerous. We are lucky and it isn’t quite so cold today. There’s no new snow so the path is firm – perfect conditions.In half an hour, we’re at the Grand Couloir.Crossing this is about the most dangerous part of the whole trip, and the main reason we are setting off from the lower Tete Rousse hut is that, though it’s a longer day, you cross the couloir before dawn, when it’s quiet. As soon as the sun hits it, rocks varying from peas to pianos in size come ricocheting down. Plus, if you slip here, it’s all over. A Spanish climber died here last week, we think these flowers were for him.Safely past the couloir, and climbing up to the Gouter hut as dawn begins. Chamonix is visible far below.. At the Vallot hut (which is just a metal box lashed to the mountain at 4360m for emergencies). Apparently, this is often where people start flagging. I kept retching here and wasn’t sure I’d make it. But I thought – if I didn’t make it, I’d have to do it all again – and I really didn’t want to have to do it again. So I managed to keep some revolting power gel down and kept going. Being encouraged by Neil up the slope to the first Bosse. You can see these double humps in the top pic – they look tiny from the ground but they are massive!Feeling  better but that is a long way…and do we go up that ridge?????Summit ridge. We’re going to make it!Digging in for a rest beside the summit, out of the windHurray!!!!Looking back down the ridge. Remember this one the next time anyone says Mont Blanc’s “just a long walk”Clouds on the Bionnassay ridge Looking back at the summit Downclimbing the Gouter ridge in the snow, as it was getting dark. You can see how much more snow there is compared to the same thing at the top. There’s cables here, but not all the way and it’s a 2 hour downclimb. We did most of it without torches so Neil could see the whole of the route better. I was really, really glad we were with someone who knew it so well, it’s scarily easy to lose your bearings.Just after a terrifying re-crossing of the couloir in the dark, with snow constantly hissing down it. We’d been up for 17 hours and climbing for 15. Finally, walking back down the next morning. Happy days!!!!

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Chalet la Foret May 22nd, 2008

It’s one of our favourite times of year – the mountains are still thickly blanketed with snow, while the valley becomes flushed with green and alive with flowers and blossom. We leave most of the lawn as a natural meadow, so the Alpine flowers flourish, and they are just starting to bloom.

These lovely violets are peeping out from the shadier parts of the garden, thriving with the ferns and grass below the pines.

Close up on a single violet flower:

Drifts of Birdsfoot Trefoil are appearing over the garden

There’s a lot of this small yellow flower, which I haven’t identified yet – if you know what it is, let me know…

Forget-me-nots and speedwells are coming up around the hot tub

and there seem to be more Bugle flowers this year

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Chalet la Foret February 19th, 2008

Climbing up frozen waterfalls hadn’t been part of our weekend plans, but after a day’s off piste with guide Neil Hitchings, he suggested that we give it a go. It’s completetely new to us, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity to try it out, away from the half term Friday crowds on the pistes.

We all set off to the ice climbing area known as the Cremerie, above the excellent Cremerie du Glacier restaurant in Argentiere, where we got the equipment ready and walked through the quiet forest, past beautiful scupted snow formations on the river rocks, to the frozen waterfalls that we’d be attempting to scale. They were a lot bigger than I’d imagined! This is just the first, small section that we began on. Neil went up first to fix the rope:

Then it was our turn. I was slightly surprised to find myself really enjoying it!

The second section was a lot higher. We clipped into ice screws and waited for the rop to be fixed. Youi can see the curved angle of the ice axes here – once you use them, the shape makes perfect sense, and it’s very satisfying feeling them bite deep into the ice.

Happy to have completed the second pitch safely, we abseiled back down at sunset,

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Chalet la Foret December 20th, 2007

Amazing early season snow blanketed the valley this Christmas, so we’ve taken some photos to share the magic! Click for larger versions on Flickr.

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Chalet la Foret November 25th, 2007

As the first serious snow arrived, we took a walk from the midstation of the Aiguille du Midi to Montenvers along the Grand Balcon Nord, through magical snowy forests and along the path that winds above the clouds…

View the whole set on Flickr

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Chalet la Foret November 24th, 2007

skiing, originally uploaded by cedccb.

Beautiful photo of the more unusual Grand Envers route of the off-piste ski classic, La Vallée Blanche. It’s well worth clicking through to the larger image to appreciate the texture and shapes in the snow.

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Chalet la Foret October 17th, 2006

Chamonix 2006 024, originally uploaded by H69.

Lovely light on the rock – it looks like it was a beautiful clear bright October day when this was taken! I haven’t seen that crag photographed from here before, the people seem so precarious….

Apparently the weather in Chamonix has been really great all autumn – hope it holds out for us, we’ll be there soon!

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Chalet la Foret September 24th, 2006

Lac Blanc, originally uploaded by maisharefu.

Lovely panorama of Lac Blanc, it’s a beautiful hike to here from Brevent, or you can take a shorter route from Flegere.

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Chalet la Foret September 10th, 2006

High Meadow, originally uploaded by OneEighteen.

Les Houches in summer

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