Chamonix Activity Report: 29th July 2006
Not sure if you're feeling it at the moment, but the really hot, humid weather is draining me and having spoken to a few friends, they say they're lethargic too. Whilst normally full of beans, this week I've found it hard to do anything in the afternoons and have even resorted to a cheeky siesta once or twice.
I did manage to drag myself off of the sofa earlier in the week for a walk up to the Bossons glacier, it is Europe's highest and largest ice fall as it descends down from the summit of Mont Blanc. The glacier is a defining image in Chamonix and one of the visuals that first grabs your attention when you arrive in the valley.
There are a number of ways to get up there, we chose to park the cars at the lift station and walk up, though you can obviously take the telesiege which takes you to the foot of the glacier and save some energy. We walked the marked trail which weaves its way along a wooded path (providing some welcome shade). The path rises up about 300 metres over 4 kilometres, and although the signs suggest that it will take an hour and a half I feel that is a little over conservative. We were still fairly “relaxed” from an evening at the Vagabond the night before but managed to stroll it in a leisurely 50 minutes. I found that a dog on a lead for these sorts of expeditions is very useful; Otto pulled me up for the first half of the climb, which is fairly steep going. I then noticed everyone else wasn't looking as fresh as me so offered him to one of the struggling group who shot up ahead. Please note, however this method is not so effective when going downhill! Trying to stop a rampaging dog on a down slope turned my legs to jelly.
Once you reach the top of the telesiege, which you snake underneath from the start. You arrive at a small chalet which serves drinks and snacks. Its worth walking up the extra hundred metres to the viewing point where you can get a full aspect of the glacier. It's an amazing sight which towers above you. Unfortunately as people aren't allowed near the foot of the glacier (for safety reasons) it's very difficult to get an understanding of scale. But as you stand in front of it there is an eerie silence that belies its obvious size, this is interjected by the occasional creak and groan from the glacier as it slowly moves down the mountain.
The size and shape of the glacier has changed dramatically over the years and there are many information boards along the path which describe its history and movement over the years. Some fascinating pictures from the 1920's up to present day chart all its geographical changes which really are vast and its hard to believe it's the same glacier at times. In the early 1900's you can see that it descends as far down as where the main road is now but at present has retreated some 300 vertical metres from here. Interestingly it actually advanced in the 1950's due to some cold wet summers, however due to warmer drier springs and summers it is retreating up to 30-40 metres in length each year. In fact just when we were watching we saw two huge ice fall's drop from it.
What looked like small icicles dropping off of a house in spring were actually huge boulders of ice smashing into the moraine, the scale only realised by the resonating noise which was comparable to the aforementioned house being demolished.
The Bossons glacier has also been the site of two air crashes uncannily by two Air India planes, which occurred fifteen years apart. Even stranger, the aircraft crashed within 200 meters of each other on the south rim of the mountain. The first crash occurred on November 5, 1950. The aircraft was operating as Flight #45 and tragically all 40 passengers and 8 crewmembers were killed. Flight #45 had originated in Bombay with planned stops in Cairo and Geneva before reaching its eventual destination of London. While descending in preparation for landing at Geneva, it crashed into the mountain in heavy snow and high winds. Fifteen years later on January 24, 1966, Air India Boeing 707-437 VT-DMN was beginning its approach to Geneva when it crashed in almost the same spot on the mountain. As with the first crash, there were no survivors among the 106 passengers and 11 crewmembers. The glacier occasionally “spits out” remains of the aircraft, some impressive debris decorates the terrace of the Chalet des Glacier Bossons including a huge part of an undercarriage. All of this merely adds to the mystery and extraordinary appeal of the massive natural phenomenon, so pay it a visit as the effort of the walk pays a worthy reward.
My lethargy on the walk could well be the fault of my own over-exuberance from the night before but I feel some thanks should be given to the efforts of the guys at the Vagabond. It's a very cool bar that doubles as a Gite and therefore offers some affordable accommodation in terrific surroundings with a fun atmosphere. A nice little touch is the garden area behind, which is perfect for relaxing in. And if you fancy a warm up first thing in the morning or just too embarrassed to try in front of other people a climbing wall hides away from judging eyes. But best of all, the barbeque they hold on a Friday night is exceptional. After a “few” small beers in the setting sun, to have to choose from salmon, chicken or burgers is a trickier conundrum than any off catchphrase – I went for the burger and wasn't disappointed, though neither were friends who went for the other options. All in all a really good evening good food, beer and atmosphere, so if BBQ's are your thing…….
We look set for a brief period of stormy weather and then a cooler period to follow so hopefully after that everyone will be back on full form. Until then I'll be recharging my batteries ready to tackle something new. See you there.
Piste Maps for Chamonix (pdf format), Les Houches (jpg format), Cross-country skiing (pdf format), and Mountain-bike trails (pdf format)
Current status for opening of Pistes & Lifts
Chamonix Webcam Index
Useful Links
Swiss Federal Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research
French Avalanche Research Institute
Meteo France - Mountain weather and avalanche conditions bulletins (in French)
Henry's Avalanche Talk - popular avalanche training sessions based in French Alps as well as translation of current avalanche conditions
PisteHors.com - Backcountry Skiing and Snowboarding News in English for the French Alps. Excellent coverage of avalanche safety and advice
Additional snow and weather information provided, with thanks, by meteo.chamonix.com and the Tourist Office
