10: Mt Blanc and the Mer de Glace

Today is Saturday, and it has been a busy week and a low-energy day.  Last weekend I had two great hikes.  On Saturday I went into Chartreuse about 30 minutes north of Grenoble, hiked to the top of a mountain and then continued down the backside and around .  Once I left the popular path that leads to the mountain top of Charmant Som I was totally alone, except for one goat-like animal, an Ibex perhaps.  The trail skirted a cliff.  Of course, again, I had no map but I think that was part of the adventure. 

 

 

On Sunday, I visited the area of St. Christophe-en-Oisans, about an hour southeast of Grenoble, and hiked up a valley containing large waterfalls and glaciers.  After 3 hours into the hike, and still only halfway to the glaciers, I decided to return to the car, reaching the trailhead just as a thunderstorm let go.

There are other means of entertainment besides hiking.  Most nights after work some of us meet at the corner bar, the Cafe Stendahl, for a beer.  We sit outside of course.  Everyone does.  The bar is on the corner where two one-lane, one-way streets cross.  Recently, the default right-of-way was enforced at this intersection, giving priority to the less-obvious and smaller side street that enters the main drag from the right.  Our cheap thrills come from the expressions on the drivers, the horn honking, the screeching tires, and near misses that occur constantly during rush hour.  It keeps us entertained for a while anyway.

 

 

 

 

For my birthday we ventured to Chamonix and Mont Blanc. Mont Blanc is the highest peak in the Alps, at 4807meters (about 15,700ft), and is covered with glaciers and year-round snow.  (in the photo of Mont Blanc below, notice the 3 climbers in the foreground--very small) 

 

 

 

Two gondolas, in series, followed by an elevator ride carry you from the town of Chamonix at 1030m (about 3500ft) to a viewing platform on Aiguille du Midi at 3842m (about 12,500ft).  Due to the weight of the cables, the gondola goes almost vertically up the rock-faced cliff as it approaches the top. and into the clouds.  The trip takes about 20 minutes. The views of Mt Blanc above and of Chamonix below are spectacular.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From Aiguille du Midi, another gondola can continue your trip across the Alps and down into Italy.  This takes another hour but was closed this day due to the weather.

 

 

 

 

 

On the return, at Plan de l'Aiguille, the halfway point where one gondola segment ends and the other begins, it was decided that we would hike the 3 hours to the Mer de Glace glacier.  From there we would catch the Montenvers cog railway back down into Chamonix.  As usual, I had no map.  So I asked a madame at the snack bar if the trail was easy to follow, and was it safe with just normal hiking boots and no special equipment. 

 

 

Well, I'm not sure when this woman last hiked this trail but, looking back on our discussion, I'd say she may NEVER have!  As we began our hike, at about the 7500ft level, we found ourselves immediately crossing snow fields.

 

But we continued, finally reaching a point where we felt it was shorter to continue than to return.  After crossing many snow fields, and viewing the fantastic scenery, a crusty old Frenchman approached us coming up the trail.  We tried to get some information about the trail and where we were headed.  He asked if we spoke French.  "No".  Then he asked if we spoke German.  "No".  Then he began to draw a picture in the dirt with his walking stick.  He drew a "Y" and repeatedly emphasized that we should NOT take the lower trail at this point.  Something about cliffs, rock slides, danger.  We had no idea where we should expect to find this split in the trail or how it was marked, only that if we took the wrong fork we would certainly die!  "Merci.  Au revoir" and we continued along the path. 

 

For being such a, supposedly, popular trail, there was very little indication that it had seen much activity this year.  The snow field crossings continued.  These began to worry me as the slope was becoming steeper with each crossing.  We had no ice axe, a type of pick that is used to arrest an accidental slide down a snow-covered slope, and the slope in many areas was quite steep, meaning, if you started to slide you would not stop until you hit the rocks hundreds of feet below.  Carefully, we continued, and eventually we came across another French hiker whose English was excellent.  She gave us all the details and we were comforted to know that most of the dangerous snow fields were behind us.  Only once was there a slight incident.  On one of the final snow fields my foot went into a hole through the snowpack.  I immediately sank up to my knee, lost my balance of course due to the slope of the hill, spun around and found myself lying on my back, feet above me, with my leg attaching me to the mountainside.  I kicked my foot free and slid a few feet down the hill coming to rest against some rocks.  Just beyond the rocks the slope continued at a steep angle for several hundred feet.  And that, folks, is why people should carry an ice axe when crossing snow fields.

 

 

Obviously, we survived.  The Mer de Glace (sea of ice) finally appeared before us as we rounded a turn.  (in the glacier photo, notice the crevasses on the left as the glacier bends around the mountain)  We were soon at the cog rail station and back in Chamonix.  This hike and the almost unreal views of the Mer de Glace and the Alps are really beyond description.  I cannot think of a better way to end my first 50 years. 

 

Dan.

Grenoble 2003.