news blog

Report 6th October 2017

All the high mountain huts are now closed, with the exceptions of the Cosmiques, (closes 7/10) and the Torino, (closes 2/11).  All the lifts are also closed except for the Aig du Midi and Skyway which will remain open until the beginning of November.

At lower altitudes, only the Loriaz and Plan de l’Aiguille are still open.

Despite the mixed weather in September and the cool, windy weather at the start of October, the mixed routes and the gullies are still not in condition.  

Some routes, such as the Contamine-Grisolle or the Chéré on the Triangle du Tacul, remain feasible.
The normal route on the Tacul and the Midi Plan traverse, (as far as the Rognon,) have been done recently in OK conditions.

The 3 Monts traverse has not been done now for a fortnight.  Following the recent passages of bad weather, the rock routes often have ice in the cracks and snow on the ledges.

A large part of the Tournier Spur on the Aiguille du Midi N face has collapsed leaving the area unstable.

No recent news from the Torino sector, though the traverses of the Marbrées and Entrèves remain feasible. Take care on the glaciers, as the snow bridges are still weak.

In the Mer de Glace sector, (Montenvers train closed,) some of the in-situ material at the Egralets and the Couvercle-Leschaux traverse has been dismantled for the winter. The way is still possible but demands good technical ability. A party has climbed the Shroud, though in delicate conditions. The Colton McIntyre would appear to be out of condition for the moment.

The Aiguille de Bionnassay was climbed at the beginning of October, there and back from the Durier, in generally good conditions

In the Albert 1^er sector, the routes on the Chardonnet have not come into condition yet.  In general, it has been far too dry this year and patience is needed before the routes will be feasible again.   

The normal route up Mont Blanc by the Goûter remains popular, (huts and lifts closed,) despite unfavourable conditions for the Aiguille de Gouter. One needs to be well experienced and have the right material. 

In the mid mountain, Autumn is the time for a lot of maintenance work and many of the paths are closed.  Check the arrêtés en cours  site before venturing out.

Autumn is also a time when it is difficult to gather good information, (huts and lifts closed, not much activity etc,) so the Chamoniarde relies on your feedback to create the updates.  Please do not hesitate to write up your outings in the cahier de courses  or give them a phone call. Whether the conditions were good or bad, the information is always useful and most welcome. 

Report 24 September 2017

The rise in temperatures has melted a lot of the recent snow at mid-altitudes.   However, some of the shaded paths may still be awkward from about 2300m upwards.
During this Autumn period, many of the paths are closed for repair.  For example, the path linking Col des Montets and Lac Blanc will be closed from 25 to 29/09 as far as the Tête aux Vents cairn.
Consult the list at Chamoniarde site.

The Tour du Mont Blanc is still feasible but you need to be self-sufficient, as many of the huts are closed.

Most of the high mountain huts are now closed; exceptions are the Goûter, Cosmiques and Torino huts.

The recent snow has temporarily improved conditions for some of the Tacul Triangle routes, but overall the conditions are dry.  Summer 2017 was the driest ever recorded and Autumn, with its snowfalls, has only just started, patience is required!

The Chéré, Allemands, Contamine-Grisolle, Contamine-Mazeaud and Contamine-Negri are being climbed in variable conditions.  

The normal route on the Tacul is tracked but the not the traverse of the 3 Monts. The Mont Maudit looks to be avalanche prone.
The Pointes Lachenal traverse is tracked but there is already some bare ice.  The Laurence and Cosmiques ridges are also being done.
The S faces are being climbed, despite some snow still on the ledges.

Near the Torino the conditions are Ok for the Aiguilles d'Entrèves and Marbrées (best done N-S), traverses. Good conditions for the Dent du Géant. The Rochefort ridge was done on 22/09.
Careful on the glacier (weak snow bridges.)

All the lifts are shut, except for the Aiguille du Midi, Montenvers train and the Skyway (Italy).

Good conditions reported for the Grand Paradis via Chabod hut.

We are entering a period where less information is available. La Chamoniarde is counting on you to report your experiences to them, to help with their next report.

Report 19th September 2017

Between seasons !

The Planpraz/Brévent – Flégère/Index –Tour/col de Balme – Valllorcine – Lognan/ Grands Montets – Prarion lifts are closed.  The following are still open :  Montenvers train–Aiguille du Midi cable car –Bellevue cable car (until 24th September) –  Monte Bianco Skyway, (Italy). 

Many of the huts are now closed; more information on the Chamoniarde site.

There is snow down to 1800m, and at 2000m there is 10 to 20cms in some places.  The Loriaz and Moëde Anterne huts have 15cm of snow, 10/15 cm at the Albert 1^er, 20 cm at the Leschaux , 30 cm at the Goûter, Torino and Conscrits  and 50 cm of new snow at the Cosmiques. 

It is cold for the time of year. At mid-altitudes in the morning the ground is frozen, (use mountain boots and hiking poles), and snow covered in some areas. This creates difficulties on some paths.  At higher altitudes, the temperatures are low (-10° at 3300/3500m), with almost winter conditions.  There were strong winds during some of the snow falls, creating both snow drifts and patches of bare ice.  Take care on the glaciers, the snow and wind have helped form snow bridges which can be extremely fragile. The rocks are plastered with snow but the gullies are not yet in condition!

 There has not been a lot of activity in the high mountain recently. 

Aiguille du Midi sector : some parties on the Chéré couloir, (abseil descent, be careful of other parties). The Triangle du Tacul looks snow covered but appearances can be deceiving.  Parties turned back on the Pointes Lachenal traverse, (windslab.) 

Torino sector, the Marbrées and Entrèves traverses were done in winter conditions. Parties turned back on the Rocherfort Ridge, (bare ice.)

Albert 1^er sector : the Petite Fourche has been done.

Chamonix Aiguilles sector : everything is plastered.

Conscrits sector: no activity for the moment.

Report 12th September 2017

With the series of weather fronts since the start of September, it has been difficult to find a good weather window for the high mountains.

In the last two days about 30cms of snow has fallen at 3500m, with some drifting due to the strong winds. The rocks are plastered, but routes like Cosmiques Ridge or the Aiguilles Marbrées traverse remain feasible.
There is fresh snow down to 2100m and some paths are affected, notably on the multi-day tours, (Aiguilles Rouges, Tour du Mont Blanc...). To remain safe, mountain boots and hiking poles are essential.

The bad conditions, plus the fact that most of the lifts will soon be closed, means some of the huts might bring forward their closure dates.  Check with the hut before leaving the valley.   On a separate topic, be aware that there are unstable blocks on the routes at the “Le Spa”,(Fayet)  dry tooling site.

Several paths in the Chamonix valley are closed for works, details available on the Chamoniarde site.
The Mont Blanc Tramway is closed and you are reminded that it is forbidden to follow the tracks when accessing  the huts on the normal route up Mont Blanc.

There are plenty of options for climbing on the valley crags during the dry spells.