NE face of Les Courtes and more Courmayeur

In the search for good snow, Owen and I headed to Courmayeur on thursday expecting the usual epic condtions. Several problems arose however. Firstly, both of us had a extremely enjoyable and sociable evening on wednesday night, meaning that it was almost 2pm before we actually clicked into the skis. Secondly, conditions weren't great. Hard to believe in Courmayeur but I'm afraid it was true, and the snow was pretty heavy even off the Arp. Still, we had a couple of fun runs off the Arp and Youla, and finished the day drinking a beer and looking at Mont Blanc so a good day despite the average snow.

Earned.

Today (saturday) Tom and I decided to go up Grand Montets and ski something steep. The north facing slopes are usually skied in March and April, but with a lack of snow and unseasonably warm temperatures we figured that there was a reasonable chance they would be good. 

The first good news we got was that high traverse was in, so we skied downhill until right under the north face of the Droites, saving ages compared to skinning up. The next bit of good news was that plenty looks in really good condition. Everything on the north face of the Grand Rocheuse and the Aiguille Verte look amazingly fat, including the Couturier, Bettembourg, Vivegel, Late to Say I'm Sorry etc. The routes on the Grand Montets ridge also look good, and there was an amazing amount of people climbing them. Finally, the headwall on the Droites looks good but the icefield looks a bit black so best to leave it a bit longer. The Lagarde Direct looks good though, and the Swiss Route on the Courtes looks like it is getting there, so it could be an amazing winter!

A busy day on the Grand Montets ridge.

We soon found ourselves under the immense NE face of Les Courtes and with a group of 5 people ahead of us to put the track in, that was decision made, so we began the slog up to the Bergschrund.

Tom approaching the NE face. The ski descent basically goes straight down the middle of the wide gully splitting the face.

The boot pack was ok, but given that I haven't been above 3000 metres since November, it provided a fair bit of suffering! It is also quite exposed but essentially impossible to protect, so anyone looking to ski the face would need to be very comfortable soloing Scottish 2 for 700m. It's not exactly a ski resort up there!

As it turned out the group ahead of us was comprised of the superstars of Chamonix skiing, so whilst we were climbing up they skied past us and showed us how it should be done. I have to admit that it was frankly humbling to see the speed and control shown by them, but also pretty inspiring.

This is how it should be done.

Having eventually reached the col that marks the top of the face, we were rewarded with awesome views across the Vallee Blanche and to Mont Blanc. However, the fact that we were about to drop into what is described in the ski guidebook as "true extreme skiing", and hadn't skied anything remotely steep since April, meant that the view got somewhat ignored in favour of getting psyched up!

 Tom dropping in. The face is pretty exposed, and from the second you drop in until the end, you can see all the way down to the glacier.

One of those "put up or shut up" moments.

The drop in is currently quite icy so we were pretty cautious over the first 50 metres and did a bit of side slipping where necessary. After that the snow is pretty good - firm in places and soft in others but grippy throughout, which is exactly what we were after. Once we'd skied the first couple of pitches we really began to enjoy ourselves and confidence and smiles grew as we made our way down to the glacier below. By the end, we were giving it plenty of american style "whoops" as we had the face to ourselves in good conditions - an awesome experience.

 At the foot of the face and heading for a beer.

Homeward bound.

A Busy Weekend

Despite a poor forecast, I was pretty confident of getting plenty done this weekend and so it proved but it wasn't quite as planned. Friday looked like it would be dire so Peter and I stuck to a day skiing the lifts but as it turned out the sun was shining most of the day and we maybe could have climbed. The skiing was ok, but with it having rained up to 2500 metres (!) you needed to go high and have a bit of local knowledge to find any good snow but we managed it, skiing off the Herse lift at Grand Montets.

  Peter's skis after going on a little run of their own!!!

Saturday was also forecast as poor so Tom and I headed over to Courmayeur for some more skiing. Courmayeur is usually amazing and it delivered yet again! We skiied a couple of tree lines in the morning then in the afternoon we headed up the Arp and the Youla and were rewarded with some amazing skiing and incredible views. It was a couple of very tired but happy skiers who finally got back to the car as night fell.

Watch your pole straps don't get caught in your ABS handle....

Top the Arp

Another gentle run from Tom

Finally, we decided to give climbing a go on sunday. We had initially hoped to head to the back of the Argentiere basin for a look at the Charlet Ghilini, but the sheer amount of snow that had fallen soon put us off that idea. Looking for something a bit closer we went to have a look at the routes on the Grand Montets ridge but they all looked pretty buried under snow and uninviting. We couldn't help noticing how good the snow in the Chevalier couloir looked though... However, after plodding up to the couloir for 10 minutes or so, we began to have our doubts about snow stability, and being armed only with climbing kit and no avalanche gear besides transceivers we backed off.

It's a "Non" to the Chevalier

I think that when the weather settles down some of the big ski lines may be in excellent condition. Things like the Chevalier, Col des Cristaux etc. are usually mid to late winter lines but I think they could be good soon. Here's hoping!

Having finally accepted that we wouldn't be getting any alpine routes done this weekend we settled for some dry tooling at Le Fayet, which was as savage as ever.

Finally, I have been experimenting more with my headcam so here is my first go at a skiing video, plus a bit of cheeky dry tooling thrown in for good measure at the end.

Untitled from Charlie Boscoe on Vimeo.

Happy New Year!

I got back to Cham 5 days ago and have been having a good look around so here goes for a first update.

The lift served skiing is currently pretty average but coverage is ok on all areas. I managed a quick bash around Grand Montets and Le Tour on my first day back but nothing else just yet. The next day I was working in Courchevel and they don’t have a huge amount of snow either, so that made me feel better about our lack of the white stuff. I also had a ski at Samoens with Tim and Nick on New Year’s Day and the Grand Massif is also short of snow, but the previous night’s excesses meant that I was more than happy not to have to go anywhere scarier than a red run that day!!!

New Year's Day at Samoens - a good hangover cure.

Basically it seems that the whole of the Alps needs a good snowfall as we now have a good base for it to sit on. Last year the snow didn’t arrive until even later and it ended up being a great ski winter so don’t lose heart!

I haven’t been climbing up high just yet but Damien and Marty reported good conditions on the Petit Viking last week, and also said the Gabarrou Albinoni looked very fat when they skied across to Helbronner the next day. There are also good reports about the Frendo Ravanel on the Grand Montets ridge, and the North face of the Droites looks good although I haven’t heard of anyone climbing it. All in all plenty to go at but the Vallee Blanche is apparently still quite heavily crevassed so it might be worth waiting until another snowfall before counting on getting down easily after doing a route up there.

Valley ice isn’t really my strong point but Cogne apparently has plenty to go at and it sounds like some of the other routes in the Aosta Valley are getting done, as are the more reliable Argentiere icefalls like the EMHM.

 Col des Montets is also OK, and Emma and I went up and did La Colonne, the classic of the crag and pretty bang on its grade of 4+ right now. La Micro Goulotte currently looks very, very thin, but Les Torrents has been climbed a few times, albeit in quite lean condition.

Emma finising La Colonne - not a bad effort for someone whos never ice climbed!!

Abbing off La Colonne

Its nearly Cham O'Clock!

I'm heading out to Cham at the end of the month and getting ready for a great season. The blog will be up and running as of the start of January and will now feature head cam videos as well as photos and plenty of info on routes and conditions.

Until January, here's a few photos from the past few months and my first attempt at a headcam video to get everyone psyched!

Simul soloing Stepped Ridge, Lake District

Great skiing in.....West Lancashire!

Liam Posslethwaite on Space Race, Malham.

Britain's highest person

Tom Grant on Pygmy ridge

Note to self - if you've got some goggles, put them on your face!

Andy Houseman not quite figuring out how ice axes work on Helvellyn.

Nearly there - Parchemo high camp, Rolwaling valley, Nepal.

Ama Dablam, Tawache and Cholatse from below the Cho La Pass.

Resupply at Syangboche

Finally, I've bought a headcam and my first attempt at using it is here -

Scottish Winter 2010 from Charlie Boscoe on Vimeo.

It took me a while to get it set up just right so most of what I filmed was useless but I'm getting there - everyday is a school day. Hopefully by the time I get to Cham I'll have it mastered.

See you in January - it's going to be huge.

Final Flurry

After a day of furious rest following the Cordier, we decided to go up the Mer de Glace and do a route on the Pillier des Contes, beneath the Envers Des Aiguilles hut. However, after about an hour of walking, we got the guidebook out to check where we were and saw that we were right underneath "Vingt Milles Lieues sous la Neige" (TD+, 6b, 300m) which was described as one of the best routes in the Massif. Seeing little point slogging up any further with such a good route right next to us, we quickly decided to forget the Contes and started up Vingt Milles.

French team on an adjacent route.

The first proper pitch is actually the crux, coming in at a desperate 6b on a glacier polished slab. Luckily it was very well bolted and despite the precarious climbing it is very safe. Purely for historical accuracy, I must note here that Peter fell off seconding this pitch.

This is taken from the official start of the route which is now about 30 metres up due to shrinkage of the glacier.

The rest of the route is absolutely superb and very varied. Protection is excellent on the crack pitches, and anywhere without cracks has bolts so it's very stress free. That said, there are several 25 foot runouts on some of the bolted sections so it's not the place to push your grade. The descent is straight back down on bolted belays so all in all a great and stress free route.

With one day left in Cham and feeling pretty knackered from long days and lots of red wine the night before, Emma and I headed up the Grand Floria and did "Robin Wood" (TD, 6a, 180m). The route is excellent and varied but I felt the crux was really tough for the grade. Still, good weather, climbing and company made for an excellent day.

Emma at the foot of the cliff after I forgot to take any photos on the route!

Nepal and Scotland now beckon for me, so I won't be in Cham until after Christmas when it will be skiing time. Can't wait!

And don't forget - "There is no such thing as too much snow".

A Bientot.

Cordier Pillar & Nabot Leon

With a couple of clear days left, Peter and I were keen to make the most of it and headed up for an attempt (my 3rd!!) on the Cordier Pillar on the Grand Charmoz.

After leisurely start we carried our kit up to the superb bivi site next to the Nantillons Glacier and then, despite the temptation to just look at the view all day, we went off to do a few pitches on the Red Pillar of the Blaitiere. We decided to go for Nabot Leon (TD, V+, 180m) and just climb for a couple of hours and then turn around. As it turned out we'd finished the route in a couple of hours so that was a good result. The route itself is simply fantastic, with interest maintained without ever being hard. Undoubtedly one of the best routes I've ever done in the valley and a must for any fan of granite.

Pitch 2 of Nabot Leon.

Away from the bivi by 6.15 the next day we hurried across the Nantillons glacier (notorious for rockfall) and were soon at the foot on the Pillar and trying to get our hands warm enough to climb. By 7.30 it was just about ok so we began heading up. Having done the first 12 pitches on a previous attempt  we made good time through the initial 1/3 of the route, which is sustained at about VS, with the occasional tougher pitch thrown in.

Low down the Cordier - long way to go!

The route is well equipped for an ab descent so we were able to go pretty light, armed with one small bag between us, and all seemed well until about 12 pitches up. Unfortunately a few of the pitches are in a chimney which had failed to clear of snow and ice, so the 3 pitches just before the route emerges into sunshine took us over an hour and a half. I even managed to take a leader fall whilst trying to climb ice in rockshoes, which was a blow to morale.

Still, we eventually emerged into the sun and debated whether to carry on given the gathering cloud. Eventually we decided to "go and have a look" (ie.carry on). As it turned out the top pitches were amazing - perfect golden granite high above the glacier and with the Chamonix peaks all around. We eventually finished the route just under guidebook time and had a quick handshake and began the descent with the cloud getting thicker by the minute.

This is what 600 metres of granite does to your hands!

Almost as soon as we began abbing the rain started up, and came and went the whole way through the 3 1/2 hours it took to ab. Given that I had no waterproofs, I filled my suffering quota for a year! Luckily there are plenty of ab points so we did lots of short abs in an attempt to avoid getting a rope stuck and it worked, as we got back to the kit at the foot of the route without a single stuck rope.

By the time we got to the glacier it was almost dark and very misty so we felt our way back towards our bivi site. As it turned out we almost tripped over it, which I admit was a complete fluke although Peter maintains he knew where he was all along!

We quickly packed the overnight kit away and started the walk down to Cham, which took nearly 3 hours. Great route, and quite a day!

Grand Charmoz with the top 3/4 of the Cordier Pillar marked.

Aiguille Crochues

We’d originally planned to head up to the Aiguille du Peigne today but woke up to find the Aiguilles plastered in snow. In need of a change of plan we got out the Aiguilles Rouges guidebook and had a quick scan for something quick drying and not too hard so we could manage it in what was left of the day.

I spotted the Ravanel route on the south side of the Aiguille Crochues, 400metres, sustained 5/5+ and a nice summit so we headed up. The route follows the red line to the ridge then the right hand skyline to the summit, and the descent is the left skyline.

Top of pitch 7 - "like a big version of Jenga!"

The walk in is pretty brief, 30 minutes or so, and the route is simple enough to find. The first seven pitches are sustained and superb, albeit with the occasional loose block higher up. The whole route is bolted but fairly sparsely in places so it’s best to have a few grades in hand.

Once on the ridge it is pretty easy climbing with 2 short steep steps, so we moved together from the top of pitch 7 to the summit. There are occasional bolts even on the scrambling bits so you don’t need a rack and can move pretty fast.

Summit!

From the summit we ditched the rope and down climbed the normal route and then made a hash of finding the correct descent and ended up on some horrible loose terrain, so keep your eyes peeled!

Downclimbing

Eventually made it back to the Index chairlift in 6 hours round trip, which felt like good time, and were down for ice creams in the sun not long after! Great day, great route.

Aiguille de L'index x 2

View from the Index

The forecast over the last few days has been pretty average so tuesday was spent in front of the TV, and wednesday we headed up the Grand Montets for a look around to see how condtions were. We wandered up towards the Petite Verte but snow conditions were pretty grim and it was blowing a blizzard so we retired to coffee and lunch. Some guided parties carried on up though so I assume it's possible, albeit not much fun.

In the afternoon we decided to go for a fitness run on the SE ridge of the Aiguille de L'Index. With a short approach and easy but exposed climbing this is a great classic of the valley, although the Index is a renowned lightning conductor - you've been warned! Without wishing to encourage such behaviour, we managed it in 1hr 18mins round trip from the top of the chairlift and back again.

The forecast was poor again today so we headed up the Index again and decided that with the temperature dropping and clouds gathering we'd stick to the Index again and did the Fissure Gauche straight up the face. The guidebook said it was equipped but in reality only the belays are there so take a full rack.

This afternoon we wnet up the Midi for a chedck on conditions and everything seemed very, very snowy so we're staying below 3500m for now.

3 days good weather coming up so hopefully we'll be on something big ASAP!

Plenty of action.

The original plan for this fortnight was to head to the Bregaglia but with recent heavy snowfall we felt that it would be too plastered for the big north facing rock routes and so headed to Cham with a good forecast for at least 4 days.

Suffering!

The trip started with an attempt on the traverse of the Chamonix Aiguilles which went well until the top of the Dent du Caiman, when the onset of altitude sickness prompted a (very!) hasty retreat. I've been straight up to 3500 metres before in the Alps and Himalaya and been fine but lesson learned - do something with an easy exit strategy first up.

Licking our wounds we opted for an easier day in the Aiguilles Rouges and clipped some bolts on the Petite Floria, an incredible summit but with a bit of a tricky descent down some loose scree unless you ab down one the sport routes - don't be fooled by the low grade of the descent route.

Top of the Floria.

Yesterday we headed up to the Red Pillar of the Aiguille de Blaitiere and did the uber classic (and superbly named) "Majorette Thatcher" (TD+, 6b, 180m). Peter was in his element with the brutal crack climbing on the route - this is definitely one for the jamming conniseur. I am certianly not in that category but the quality of the route as well as the views and exposure make for a great day out and a good option for a day hit.

Brutality on Majorette Thatcher. "For God's sake put a jam in youth!"

Back in the game!

I'm supposed to be off to the Bregaglia for a couple of weeks today but with the forecast in Cham looking good it seems likely I'll be there, so the blog returns! Hopefully have some idea about conditions tomorrow - psyched!

Summer Video

After the winter video, my mate Andy insisted on a summer one so here we go. Whatever you get up to in Cham, stay safe and have fun. See you for powder days in January.

Aiguille de la Republique

With time left for one more route, Peter and I headed up the Montenvers and towards the Envers des Aiguilles hut for a go at the Aiguille de le Republique.

The Republique from Montenvers. The peak is the tiny needle just left of the highest summit.

We found an amazing bivi spot below the route and got settled in for some serious sunbathing and tea drinking before heading up to do the first few pitches so that we could locate the ab descent for the next day. It turned out to be time well spent as it wasn't amazingly obvious how to descend the best way from the old tour rouge hut a few hundred metres up the route.

Not a bad bivi spot. Calm down ladies.

The next morning we were away early and climbing by first light. The first few pitches went well and within just over an hour we were in the large couloir leading up to the summit tower. However, we hadn't seen the forecast and so when big black clouds began to gather round us we thought we might be in for a thunderstorm and decided to head down. For the time it took us to descend the clouds got blacker and thicker and we were congratulating ourselves on a great call. As it turned out the clouds parted and the sun shone all day. You couldn't make it up!

Mer de Glace in the afternoon sun.

Unfortunately my time in Cham is up for now and I'm heading off for 6 months or so. Given the high temperatures recently and the fact that it's only going to get hotter, there isn't much need for conditions blogs - just go rock climbing!

One final walk out.

Aiguille du Peigne

Although we’re getting plenty of sun right now, the daily thunderstorm in the late afternoon is still ruling out any really big routes, so we’re sticking to day routes. An attempt at a big route ended last night when we got to the mid station, were about to walk into a bivi, and then were hit by a huge downpour, so promptly got back on the bin and ran away!

In search for a route which would dry quickly we opted to “send” the classic Papillons ridge on the Aiguille du Peigne. On the first bin, we were climbing not long after 8, and shot up the route pretty quickly, moving together virtually the whole way. The climbing is absolutely amazing, and only has a couple of tricky moves. There’s plenty of gear too, so pretty faultless all round!

Heading up the Papillons

From the top we scrambled up to join the west ridge to the summit, and the superb climbing just kept coming. The standard is slightly more sustained there, and we pitched up to the final platform below the summit.

Trying not to grunt too much on a typical Chamonix pitch!

However, by the time we got there we were starting to get a bit concerned about the gathering cloud, and one look at the infamous Lepiney off width crack sent us running away for the second time in 24 hours! We got held up by a guide and client on the way down and only just made the bin and narrowly escaped the downpour, so a good end to the day. We had two 50 metre ropes, although you could easily manage with one 60 metre. I tried to convince Peter we didn’t need the second rope but he offered to carry it the whole way, which won me over.

Peter is keen to go back for a return date with the Lepiney but I’m not too sure, looked a bit brutal to me!

Forbes Arete

Chardonnay and the Albert Premier hut.

With the weather continuing with good days and evening thunderstorms, we were still reluctant to jump on anything too big, so we went up to the Albert Premier hut for the classic Forbes Arete on the Aiguille de Chardonnay.

We got away early hoping to get some good photos and beat the bad weather, but unfortunately the nights have been really warm and the snow had not refrozen, so the walk in was fairly grim in soft snow. Still, we crested the ridge at 7 and got great views of the Argentiere basin and across to the Matterhorn.

High on the Forbes

The ridge itself was a bit too snowy, and the snow was pretty poor, so we couldn’t go as fast as we would have liked (although we were still at the fast end of guidebook time). That said, on the sections with no snow the climbing was superb and you could tell that if it was a bit drier the route would be even better. The climbing is continually interesting and involves a lot of down climbing and some cunning route finding, all in superb positions and with plenty of protection.

Given the nature of the descent (lots of down climbing) we decided to take 2 axes each, and the whole way up I had been lecturing Peter about how he was a dinosaur for using axes with leashes, how he was living in the past, how he ought to embrace modern gear etc. It was therefore somewhat of a blow to morale when I dropped one of my tools down the north face when half way along the ridge. Still, as if to prove my point of how good leashless tools are, it conveniently stuck in the snow 40 metres down. Having been lowered down and climbed back out, I resumed my lecture!

Looking forward to the descent, complete with 2 axes.

The summit itself is fantastic, just perfect views in all directions, but we weren’t keen to hang around as we wanted to descend before the snow got too poor. With our 2 axes we were pretty fast down climbing and soon located a good spot to ab from and were walking back to the hut just over an hour after leaving the top. It’s personal choice whether to take 2 axes, most people don’t, but I like the speed and security it offers, so its up to you.

You can currently walk directly back to the hut but I suspect that in a few weeks it will be too crevassed.

Looking back up at the mountain from the balcony - a nice feeling.

Great route, great mountain, enjoy.