Winter has well and truly finished here in Chamonix so climbing and running has taken over. Finishing the winter with our attempt of traversing the Mont Blanc massif pushed me into thinking that 2000m isn’t a big day anymore! The first day of our traverse was 2700m with heavy packs and skis on so what could I do with a light pack and without the 5kg of skis?

My summer goal was to try and hit the biggest peaks of Italy, France and Switzerland all in single pushes. Gran Paradiso, Monte Rosa and Mont Blanc. Each climb would be a little bigger than the last with the aim to finish with a Valley up Mont Blanc at the end of the summer. But for some reason I went and did Mont Blanc first.

I had already climbed Gran Paradiso in a single push with Tim back in December and wasn’t really looking forward to doing it again without the prospect of skiing the 2000m back to the car, so I sort of scrapped that one. Monte Rosa was next on the list. I have never been the the Monte Rosa massif before so had no real understanding of what would be in store for me. The idea of climbing it over two days, like normal, on a scouting mission and then returning to climb it in a single push really put me off. Especially given I’m a massive tight arse and driving through the tunnel and on Italian tolls means I would have to work more/harder during the summer months, something I’m not quite prepared to do! So this just left Mont Blanc!

I chose the Gouter route as it is safer than the Grand Mullets route at this time of year and is also the more sensible option given I was going solo. It was also the first route I did up Mont Blanc back in 2012 ( my 3rd alpine route and first solo!) so I had a vague idea of where I was going!

The weather looked good for my 3 days off and rather than waste my first day resting I finished work around 6, had some food then went to bed before waking up at 10:30pm and getting ready to go. The forecast was for a warm night so I chose to get the initial slog up to the Gouter refuge out of the way before day break.

11pm- Leaving Les Houches Church, walking up the tarmac road to the start of the trail I passed a group of friends having a BBQ and some drinks, I was envious of them I’m not going to lie. They probably looked at me and though ‘what an idiot’, I couldn’t disagree. The first 15 minutes are always the hardest for me. Thoughts are going through my head- why am I doing this? I could be drinking a beer on my sofa, I want to go to bed, so on and so forth. But I suppose thats what they call the mental element of these things. As soon as I got into the woods and turned Creedence up in my head phones I started to get into it a bit more. Sweat was pouring off me wearing just a t-shirt and leggings, it was so hot! As I got closer to the Tete Rouse someone caught me up, a lone french man armed with a parepente who was hoping to fly from the summit. We ended up chatting and walking together for the next hour until we reached the Gouter refuge, at which point he packed it in and was going to fly back from there. Taking only 2 litres of water and topping up what I had drank along the way from streams I was really looking forward to a can of coke at the Gouter only to find out that its open 2-3am and then from 7am onwards. Arriving at 5am I wasn’t going to wait around, so donned crampons and continued the never ending slog without my much needed sugary beverage.

The sun started to come up and it was turning out to be a beautiful morning. As I got over the Col du Domes the wind picked up and I put on my last layer of clothing and continued to the Vallot where I took shelter for ten minutes and tried to eat another snickers. Lack of water made this difficult. I had just under 1L left but knew it was going to be a long, hot walk back to the Midi so was trying to save as much as I could.

The Vallot and the summit

From the Vallot onwards I passed several people going up and dozens of people coming down, Fearing a crowded summit I made sure that no one overtook me and hoped the windy would deter people hanging around too long up there. So just over 9 hours after leaving Les Houches and 3900m of climbing I reached the top, It was very windy but it was all mine. Not another sole in sight. It was quite surreal at the time and I don’t think I stayed long enough up there to appreciate it. I have been on the summit several times now and although its still amazing its never as good as the first time for me!

DCIM101GOPRO

As soon as I had reach the top the daunting fact of the descent quickly overpowered the joy of summiting. I made quick progress to the Col Maudit where I was greated with a awkward, icy down climb. Not normally an issue but wearing glorified running shoes combined with crampons tied together with string and a 240g axe it was a down climb not to be underestimated! Only to be made worse that after the down climb you had to traverse a steep slope littered with rock fall debris and over a menacing crevasse! Why do I like mountaineering again? A short snow slope followed this then a 300m traverse under millions of tonnes of ice and I found myself lying at the Col du Tacul eating the last of my haribos trying the regain the energy I just consumed on my serac death run.

It was getting pretty warm now and time was ticking on, it was around 10am when I reached the shoulder of the Tacul and started my last descent to the Col midi. This felt like it went on for way too long! Arriving below the Cosmiques refuge I called my Girlfriend (she worries) ‘as long as I don’t fall off the arete I should be home safe’ I told her. The walk back up the midi arete always seems to take a long time, whether it be from a spring ski or an alpine climb, but after already doing 4200m of ascent this time it seemed to take a little longer!

Finally reaching the cable car there was no queue, which was a shocker for a Sunday in the summer but I was relieved to be able to sit down for both 5 minute rides back to Chamonix where a pint and burger were waiting for me! What an adventure!

Ski touring these days puts so much emphasis on ‘fast and light’. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a firm believer of this practice and will try to cut out most items that I don’t need on an everyday ski tour. There are, however, some items that are essential to your back pack that can’t be left at home. With these ‘mandatory’ items I try to cut down the weight or find alternatives that can be used in their place.

The pack I have dissected below is what I would take for a glaciated ski tour where I am unsure of the approach conditions but has no real technical climbing.

It is not a ‘recommended’ list of items and it also excludes any extra items of clothing but it is what comes with me everywhere I go!

1. Cilao harness. Its a fine line between comfort and weight when it comes to mountaineering harnesses. This French made, 135g harness fits in my pack nicely and I can wear it under my pants for a comfortable minimal fit.
2. Petzl Ride ice axe. New this year these short, curved, alloy axes are great for Ski-mo. Having a steel pick they can bite in ice and paired with a trig grip make them a great all round tool. Weighing in at 275g I often carry two for good measure.
3. Tranceiver. I used to carry a light single antenna transceiver but after reading stats about their performance I upgraded last year. Its all well and good having a light one but if you can’t find your friends in a slide then whats the point.
4. Gloves. I usually carry a pair for up, and a pair for down. Petzl make a great leather glove that can tackle most rock without falling apart, paired with my Salomon Goretex glove for the way down or if it gets too snowy I’m covered for all occasions.
5. Ski crampons. I used to not bother with these. But for the sake of 200g in the bottom of the bag you barely notice they make all the difference on a long and icy ski track. Gram for gram worth the weight!
6. Poles. I use the Salomon Carbon S3. Light and strong these adjustable poles have great long grips that make traversing easier.
7. Crampons. I mostly use the Camp X450. A lightweight alloy crampons that I like to beat up in the rocks. No anti-balling plates can often be frustrating, but at 450g for the pair I turn the other cheek.
8. Shovel. For the last 4 winters I have been carrying around a 800g monster. I now carry around the carbon alternative that shaved 500g from my pack. At 295g this is the lightest shovel you would want in your pack as it actually still works to move snow!
9. Probe. This year I dropped to a 240cm probe from the 320cm one I had before. 200g
10. Boots. Salomon MTN Lab. In my opinion the best ‘real’ ski touring boot on the market. 1850g in 28.5
11. THE BAG! I squeeze all this and more into the Xalp 30. Designed for this sort of thing it has been well thought out. It has a separate compartment for your crampons/rope. 2 ice axe loops, and the best ski carry system that saves time. I can go a whole day without taking off the waist strap but still getting in and out of the bag. A great feature for anyone who has tried to get in their bag at the top of a 55′ couloir!
12. First Aid Kit. This has all the essential plasters and bandages as well as pain killers, a multi-tool, wire and cable ties for repairs and a head torch.
13. Your eyes are key! Sunglasses, goggles and a spare lens always come in my bag. Its great when you can see!
14. Rope. A crucial item when on a glacier. I have gone for a 30m 6mm line that works great as a crevasse rescue rope, and an abseil line. its lighter than a 30m 8.1mm rando line but not as strong when placed over sharp rocks. 950g
15. My go-to touring ski. Salomon MTN Explore 95 with MTN binding. 1750g it is a great all mountain tool. floats in powder and holds an edge on 50′ boiler plate.
16. Skins, I don’t take the bag if I’m going super light, and forget the cheat sheets. Grams are grams after all! 520g
17. Water. 500ml does me for most days. 1L if its hot or more than 5 hours.
18. Food. Snickers, cereal bars, energy gels, whatever I can find in the cupboard as I rush for the door! Mainly just calories in some form or another.
19. Crevasse kit. I can haul a friend out of a hole with these simple items. There is also a belay plate and a prussik for abseils. 700g

All of this kit fits in the 30l bag with space for a down and a shell layer. the bag weighs just over 4.5kg with everything in. Not the lightest but far from the heaviest but it has everything you need.

Since winter finished I have been back in Wales for a few weeks doing a little running and working in Snowdonia. It is a great place to get some training in for the Mont Blanc Marathon which I signed up for months ago and it sure came around quickly!

Snowdonia

Arriving back in Chamonix in early June I spent a few days up high on my skinny skis enjoying the last of the spring corn. Mainly this was just spent touring around the Aiguille du Midi and a quick jaunt up the Tour Ronde with Pete. This was great to re-aclimatise and get back into the high mountains.

When the Flegere ski area reopened for the summer this meant the Aiguille Rouge was easily accessible again. Heading up the Crouches-Berrard traverse with Dave Searle and Pete we went fast and light and enjoyed running around in the snow and traversing this classic ridge.

Dave on an exposed ridge

Dave and I along the summit ridge of the Belvedere

As the month of June was coming to an end this meant the marathon was close! I will am honest when I say I have only been on 4 worth while training runs ranging from 9-16miles. Entering the Marathon I was originally planning just to finish, to see if I could complete the big task ahead. After running some of these training runs in fairly good time I then set myself a goal of 7 hours for the 42km with 2750m of height gain. The nerves were felt in the morning but after a 7am start I just focused on the race. Getting off to a good pace I felt strong for the first half. After loosing some time on the big descent around the 15mile mark I had dropped 200 places. With the final long push back up to the finish at Brevent I gained almost 180 places and finished in a time of 6 hours 54  minutes. 659 overall place out of 2650 and 355 out of 981 in the senior mens.

I am really proud of my time and I might be tempted to run again in the future, but might train some more before the race!

I am heading back to Wales for the summer so will be doing a lot more running and some Welsh trad climbing, before returning to Chamonix for the Winter.