Chamonix Mountain Report: 9th April 2013

I am wondering when spring is going to arrive ... But when I look back at pictures of last Monday and then look out of the window today, I wonder if it has been and gone.

Last Monday was a fantastic day; a day where good snow conditions and good weather collided. The only downside was that with it being Easter Monday we had to share the good conditions with a lot of other people. Along with people making the most of the fine conditions it was a day for people setting off the on Haute Route meaning that the top cable car at Les Grands Montets was exceptionally busy. There were groups that didn’t get to start skinning till 1pm. However they were rewarded for their wait with some fantastic snow on the descents during the week. Groups reported fresh fluffy powder off Les Grands Montets down to the Argentiere glacier, in the Val D’Arpette and off Rosablanche.

This is a popular time of year for people to do the Haute Route, a journey from Chamonix to Zermatt which normally takes 5 to 6 days. This April has seen difficult conditions for completing such a journey as we haven’t had prolonged periods of good weather. So what’s the solution? Ben Bardsley, Jon Morgan, Ben Tibbets and Misha Gopaul found a solution; do it very quickly. They spotted a small weather window and on Tuesday at 2pm they set of on foot from Chamonix Church. 31 hours later they had arrived at Zermatt Church after completing the traditional Haute Route via the Grande Lui. This is a remarkable feet and such a continuous journey without the use of lifts has only ever been down by a handful of people. It is a total distance of 114.3km and 8,400m of ascent. Their journey was not always straight forward. Skiing crust is difficult at the best of times so imagine doing 2,000m of it on skinny race skis in the dark! This is a huge feat showing not only exceptional fitness and skiing technique, but grit and determination combined with the essential mountaineering skills.

By Thursday the weather had closed in again. There have been reports of snow and weather conditions being slightly better across both borders in Switzerland and Italy. On Friday I went up the Aiguille du Midi to acclimatise. I was in a cable car at 9.30 and there were only 2 people in it with skis (and they came back down again!). The place was deserted. It was hard to believe it was the same lift that people had queued for a couple hours for on Monday. I’m sure the snow would have been excellent; it was just that it was engulfed in thick mist.

From the forecast looking ahead into this week it looks like this past weekend was one you wanted to make sure you had off work! It was another window of opportunity to get out and make the most of the good weather before it closed in again today. I went round to Gressoney, Italy and skinned up to the Gnifetti Hut, stopped for an essential coffee and headed on up to Pyramid Vincent. On Sunday we went up to Signalkuppe and Zumsteinspitz. The snow was excellent as was the visibility. This time we were taken aback by how quiet it was. For a hut that sleeps 176 people it was strange to only be sharing it with 3 others! Reports have come back from friends on Mont Velan of excellent conditions too, and it turns out that might have been where everyone else was!

NB: Off piste skiing and mountaineering are dangerous. The opinions expressed in these articles are very much time and condition specific and the content is not intended in any way to be a substitute for hiring a mountain guide, undergoing professional mountaineering training and/or the individual's own backcountry decision making.