4000m and …..
Working alongside Dave Hollinger for Alpine Guides (http://www.alpine-guides.com/), we’ve spent the week climbing with their regular clients Lewis and Jane helping them with their quest to complete the 4000m peaks of the alps. With an awesome forecast for the week we managed to bag some new summits for all of us via some great routes.
We warmed up with the Lepiney route on the Trident du Tacul, then early next morning traversed the Rochefort arête to the Aig de Rochefort and continuing past Mont Mallet to the summit of the Dome de Rochefort. Pretty amazing scenery all morning.
Next up was a trip to Switzerland for the mighty Weisshorn. This is a big undertaking by European alp standards with no uplift to ease the substantial climb from Randa to the Weisshorn hut and so to the summit and back. We gained the peak via its classic East ridge and descended the same way aided by great conditions throughout.
Next morning we were nursing our tired legs as we strolled to the Cabane de Valsorey below the Grand Combin. Another 2 o’clock start saw us gaining the col du Meitin and so the adventurous Meitin (West ridge) of the Combin, traversing the Combin de Valsorey to the main summit of the Combin de Grafeneire. We descended quickly down the Couloir du Gardien and returned back over the Meitin col and down to the hut in the good time of 6.5 hrs round trip. A testament to climbing with ultra trail runners!
Finally on the last day we enjoyed some long granite rockclimbing above Barbourine after a well deserved lie in. Thanks to Lewis and Jane for their amazing efforts during the week and all the best with reducing the list….not too many now!
