FRANCE 2009
CLIMBING POINTE ISABELLA 3761m IN WINTER (Jan 2009) text
The biggest glacier in France - Mer de Glace
Day 1. We arrived in Couvercle Hut in the dark
Breakfast in Couvercle Hut
Grandes Jorasses outside
Near Couvercle Hut
Couvercle Hut is hidden under a huge boulder
Day 2. We opened the route towards Pointe
Isabella
Small planes with tourists land on the glacier
Our route on Pointe Isabella
We started at 3 am
Deep snow made this ascent very tiring
Here we turned right to reach the ridge leading to the summit
The hole on the left is where I almost fell in the bergshrund hidden below
Climbing the ridge, still far from the top
Easier section. Mont Blanc on the left
The last and most difficult part below the summit
"Cumbre!!" With Douglas we communicate in Spanish
Unforgettable view from the summit
Rappelling from a fixed point
Aiguille Verte 4122 m (first from the left)
At sunset we were still far from the hut. We arrived at 21.00, after 18 hours of climbing
Next day weather was bad and we returned to Chamonix
Artificial Ice Cave in Mer de Glace
Mer de Glace flows 90m a year, so they have to dig a new cave