The Team Sherpa Blog

We are planning to do a ten day trip to the Alps at the end of March 2008. Our goal is to do a ski hiking around Chamonix, Mont Blanc trying to summit Mont Maudit and/or Blanc if the weather and the snow conditions are favourable.

There are few routes that we are thinking of. We may try the summits separately or both via long route from Aiquille du Midi as one tour often called as traverse of Mont Blanc. The MB traverse option would be surely more intriguing but it requires very good fitness and one must be very well aqqlimatized. Also the weather prognosis must be very good for at least two days from the start.

The idea is to spent a night in the Cosmique hut (3613m) at Col du Midi (Midi cable car takes us to 3800 and hutclimb is easy from there) and start very early next morning (at 2am). From north face of Mont Blanc du Tacul to Maudit, over Brenva classier to Blanc summit. Decent follows Gouter route over classier du Bosson (highly crevassed and requires good snow cover) to Plan de l’Aiquille where we’ll catch the cable car back to the village.

Traverse of Mont Blanc is long route and preparations for it must have been done properly.

So before such trip we would normally train for two months intensively. Three to four times a week long runs (1h30), gym exercise, indoor climbing, diagonal skiing, downhill skiing etc. We want to do different things to keep the fun factor as high as possible.

After arriving to Chamonix we will do all sorts of different lower altitude hikes in Aiquilles Rouge and Argentier to get accustomed to snow conditions and thinner air. Then, like so many times before, it’s all about the weather. I have been forced to turn down from Mont Blanc for four times so far because of really bad weather, so I do have an appreciation for a good weather prognosis.