Acclimatization
prologue
This was our traditional summer trip to the mountains. I’ve been doing these trips to the mountains for good fifteen years now and the pattern has stayed pretty much the same. During the winter season, first WE and later years I, have used skies and then on summer we just put one feet in front of the other. In both cases going up is pretty much the same, but coming down is that much more efficient in the winter. Obviously we don’t normally try to push that high in the winter conditions, that we do during the summer season.
There are these few really classic mountains in the Alps, which I consider to be that much more special to me in my book of dreams. They always also seem to be in every trip plan that I make. I know that for some the basic routes to their heights are just easy formalities and hardly justify a challenge. But for me as a normal hiker and a mountain lover, most of those routes are really a serious undertake and require respectful attitude and a humble mind to make a try for a summit.
I have read many books about climbs in the Himalayans and in the Andes made by the greatest climbers of our time. There are so many names by now to mention, Reinhold Messner ‘der Keiser’, Hermann Buehl, Ed Viesturs, Veikka Gustafsson, Anatoli Boukreev, Göran Kropp…. the list goes on and of course doesn’t exclude the first major legends like Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary…. All of those amazing climbers and adventurers that give mountaineering such a great media exposure by their extraordinary endeavours and achievements, are probably best known by most of the sofa expeditioners.
For me however, even though I look so high up to these gentlemen, my heroes represent something that even I can remotely think of achieving. Not necessarily the same routes, but the same peaks where I can admire the actual lines they have sometime in the past fought for. The first real mountaineers in Europe for me were off course Mr Edward Whymper and his legendary and loyal companion and a Chamoniard guide Messieur Michel Croz. It also always amazes me to read about the incredible routes in the Alps, which the best Italian climber ever Walter Bonatti did in the 50’s in a very puritan way.
For me mountaineering and possibility to be in the mountains represent some sort of a concept of a freedom. I get to switch of my cell phone and other apparatus and try to believe that I’m out of the reach and just have to rely on my judgements about the routes and the conditions. There is quite often, even in those lower altitudes of the Alps comparing with the ones in the Himalayans, an uncertainty within you, whether you should continue or not if the weather turns intimidating.
There are so many different opinions, versions, stories, books, movies, news coverage’s, magazine articles about dangers, stupidities, mishaps and glory in the mountains. Over the years the concept of mountaineering has been moulded by and defined through those countless different publications by different authors from the late 19th century to this day and age. Many of them give the idea that mountaineering is always something really dangerous and you always risk your life going to the mountains. Or the reason to go to the mountains is to do some epic struggle. Having said that, I certainly understand that there of course are risks involved with high mountain activities. Making the absolutely right decision is sometimes impossible and risk management plays a crucial role.
Even though my journeys probably represent technically less demanding aspects of the mountaineering, there still is the factor of the unknown to deal with. You still have to cope with the elements that surround you. The stress caused by the anticipation of strenuous long walks and climbs, unpredictable conditions of snow bridges, crevasses and leaning seracs on the glaciers, avalanche risks, your mental and physical fitness and your team’s and most of all the weather factor. The 4thousend meter peaks are for a reason considered to be a high mountain environment where curtain rules do apply.
Even though mountaineering is very popular sport, it is not simple to try to explain your ambitiousness and your utter strife for feeling of freedom to your mother or family when they are feeling anxious about your next trip. You can also show just so many photos and try to relive the feelings you had on the mountains with your non climbing friends, but it will still remain something of a mystery for them. It is impossible to describe a sensation, when after some long hours of hardship pushing to the summit, you stand on the top and give you’re climbing partner a sincere hug feeling overwhelmed by your emotions.
I do this for a love of the experience and not for a reason to ‘collect’ summits. From my trip to Peru I learned even more, that sharing your experiences with some ones alike makes the adventure even more fulfilling. Obviously you have to have clear goals and targets when you make a push for the higher grounds, or the effort would not be substantiated.
-H-
This trip’s main target was based on the ‘2008 Ski and Hike Trip’ (The first story on my blog). We did try it in the spring of 2008, but because of too harsh conditions up in the high peaks, we didn’t have a chance (story ‘Great Powder’). So once again we made our plans according for a try to the summit of Mont Blanc. For the first time we started from the Italian side as we took the flights to Milan and with rental car drove to our first base village of Gressoney la Trinite.
Gressoney La Trinite
Like so many little alpine villages in the Aosta, Gressoney is located at the end of a long winding road from Aosta freeway. The village sits in between high mountains perfectly in front of Monte Rosa mountain range. It was a beautiful day when we arrived in to the lush, colourful and ambient village watching gorgeous view to the broad west face of Lyskam basking in the late afternoon sun.
Via Ferrata to Gnifetti Hut
Lyskam and other main peaks in Monte Rosa range reach the altitudes around 4200-4600hm and here we would have our perfect practice routes to find our ‘mountain feet’ and get acclimated. Even though we did quietly plan on trying to do the whole Lyskamm ridge, we knew that for that we would really have to be very well prepared so it wouldn’t be possible to try it for the first. Thus the idea was to climb the next day to the Gnifetti Hut at 3647m from the highest cable car at Passo dei Salati 2980hm and the day after climb the Schwarzhor (Corno Nero) 4322hm.
Evening view from Gnifetti
There are two rifugios (Mantova and Gnifetti) people normally start the routes to Monte Rosa summits from this side and they are very crowded, the huts and the routes. We stayed in the higher one (there also is Margherita Hut 4556hm, the highest in the Europe, but that is not to be used unacclimated) and it actually is very comfortable and tidy comparing to some in France. We started our climb at 04:30 and there were many others sharing the ‘glacier highway’ that morning. A little worry was the weather forecast, but everything looked like it was going to be really nice day as the clouds stayed low in the valley.
We progressed steadily higher on a not too steep clear path in a crisp temperature and pale morning light. We passed the turning point to Vincent Pyramid and continued along this vast ice field towards Col de Lyskam 4250hm. We actually were a little bit further up than was necessary for the Schwazhorn, but I was feeling surprisingly fit and wanted to have look at the end of Grenz Glacier on the Swiss side. It is one of the five ‘fingers’ of the massive stream of ice flowing towards Zermatt. There is huge rounding chain of four-thousenders surrounding that high ice plateau. From the west to east long traverse of Lyskamm to Ludwigshöhe stopping at near vertical drop of 1000 meters to the Italian side of the range. Then continuing to north over Parrotspitze, Signalguppe, Zumsteinspitze and then back to the west to the highest point in Monte Rosa, Dufourspitze 4634m.
My friend Samu had already topped the closest peak of Ludwigshöhe (4342m), so he traversed towards Schwarzhorn while I climbed another 100 meters higher to my first summit of the day. There was a huge cornice leaning to southeast from the summit, so I tried to be careful not to go too close to the edge while taking some photos. I descended about 80m lower to south from the summit to meet up with my friend and then we continued short, steep climb to top of Corno Nero. Very last part of the summit is kind of an airy rock pyramid and there is a little statue of Holy Mary on the top facing west guarding the climbers.
The Summit of Swarzhorn
Swarzhorn from the summit of Ludwigshöhe
From the summit of Schwarzhorn we descended a little further south to Balmenhorn and I was still in very good form and felt like I would like do a little more climbing. Samu had left our longer rope to the Gnifetti Hut, so he had to follow the tracks back down to fetch it. We agreed that we would meet in two hours at the bottom of the glacier. I continued up to the summit of Vincent Piramide 165m higher. The summit is quite large snow and ice dome at the altitude of 4215m and is generally regarded as the most western 4-thousender of the Monte Rosa chain.
After few photos I continued the ridge southeast to descend to Punta Giordani which for some strange reason is also defined as a separate summit, even it merely is extended ridge from Vincent.
Normally all the climbers turn back from the summit and descend via the same route as coming up and follow ‘the Highway’ back to the Gnifetti Hut. That probably was the reason why two sporty looking Italian climbers looked at me with surprise on their faces as they commented ‘tutti solo?’
I thought that the descend along the ridge wouldn’t be that complicated, since I had been looking at it from below with binoculars and it looked quite reasonable. When the summit ridge ended, the steep rock ahead looked much more intimidating than I would have hoped for. I only carried a 20 meter randonnée rope, so it would not help me a great deal on many rappels.
At first I thought that I need to turn back and climb over the summit again to the normal route, but then I spotted a narrow couloir that seemed to be covered with snow. In the shadowy couloir the down climb was ok and my crampons bit to the hard snow well. But as soon as I appeared back to the sunny south side face, the snow turned rotten and at places disappeared completely. The rock underneath was also very poor quality and there was very seldom reliable place to try to get grip with the crampons.
I stopped at the place on the face where I could lean against the rock and get a hold from a crack. There still was good hundred meters of 40 degree wall covered with loose rock and wet snow beneath me as I tried to assess the situation. Very briefly ‘Oh shit!’ came to my mind as I thought what on earth to do next. First I was thinking of turning back and climb over the summit to the normal route to Gnifetti. But I was already half way down the face and climb back would have been too much of a work to do after already three summits and the route was as unappealing above me as it was below.
Then I told myself that focus yourself for short targets and make one careful step at a time. I noticed that there were strips of snow in the different chutes coming down from the top and I could use those to slowly climb down backwards using front points of my crampons. Each step I placed the tip of my ice axe in a crack or tried to bury it as deep as possible into the soft snow and gravel. Making gently steps in the loose mixture of thin snow and loose gravel, I progressed lower trying to find solid rock where I could rest. The only problem was not to find the foot holds, but also trying to avoid being hit by the shooting rocks and stones that were constantly flying down from the face.
It probably took almost an hour for me to climb down the face and I almost reached the glacier before I saw that there still was some 20 meter drop in front of me. This easy mountain really wanted to test me, I thought. I had my 20 meter rope, but if I wanted to have it back, I only could rappel ten meters. I looked around for another possible way down and saw that to my right there would be another option. I would need to rappel those ten meters, but then there would be a narrow passage via smooth but solid rock. The crampons actually hold very well on a rock if you place them carefully along the small cracks and grains on the rock. I made a little awkward belay and rappelled down leaving only a small sling behind me. Then I meticulously side stepped that smooth inclined rock slope down to the glacier. Without stopping I continued towards Punta Giordani and tried to get away fast out of the reach of the shooting rocks.
At the hight of 4046m there is a small rock formation which is called Punta Giordani. It to me really is not a 4-thousend meter mountain as it own, but just an end of a ridge coming down from Vincent Piramide. Never the less I took a couple of photos and prepared myself for glacier hike down from the mountain.The clouds had suddenly started rise up from the valley and for sure I did not want to find my self in a whiteout on a route I hadn’t climbed up.
Another hour down and I met Samu waiting for me at the edge of the glacier. We walked down to the cable car and without any delay in the village to the nearest bar for a well earned cold Moretti.
Our trip had had a good start and first summits achieved, so spirits were high when we continued along the Aosta valley to our next destination and challenge.
epilogue
I am very passionate about mountaineering and really feel strongly about the mountains, but I think that it is not necessary to try to analyse it too much. That quite often happens in the mountaineering novels though, but the level of trekking and climbing that I do is just another way of spending your vacations. It is a great way to have a change to see new places and possibly meet new people, but at the end of the day the main thing is to feel good and content. If at some point the whole thing starts to bee a must to do or achieve, then it is time to try something else.
