View Mountaineering Chamonix 2006
The venue for the summer mountaineering trip in 2006 is planned to be Chamonix. There are numerous activities, including walking / hiking, mountaineering, climbing and mountain biking. There is something for everyone. Chamonix is an excellent base for snow and ice routes, with the Aiguille du Midi cable car providing easy access to the Mont Blanc Massif.
Dates
The provisional dates for the trip are Saturday 24th June to Saturday 8th July. This should hopefully be early enough in the season to ensure that the snow and ice routes are still in condition, but not so early that the cable cars are not running. Hopefully two weeks will be sufficient for us to get acclimatised and visit some high mountains, weather permitting!
Accomodation
There are a couple of options. The Vagabond offers bunker accommodation at approximately £140 per person for the fortnight, whilst Ceil and Logis offer appartments varying between £100 and £200 per person for the fortnight, depending on numbers. I would suggest deciding which option to go for when we have a better idea of numbers.
Flights and Transport
At present EasyJet flights from Liverpool to Geneva total approximately £90, including taxes. Since there is an excellent train and bus service in the Chamonix Valley it will not be necessary to hire cars. The cost of transport from the airport to Chamonix is approximately £40 return.
Activities
At the foot of the Mont Blanc Massif, there are plenty of opportunities for mountaineering expeditions. These range from snow gullys and ice routes to walking over peaks to the summit of Mont Blanc. The book "The Mont Blanc Massif" by Gaston Rebuffat is an inspiring pictorial guide in which the best 100 routes in the region are presented in order of difficulty. The standard guide books "Mont Blanc Massif" volumes I and II by Lindsay Griffin are the more difinitive guide to the area, giving details of all kinds of routes.
For the rock climbers and sports climber amongst us, there are a number of valley crags including Gaillands which has lots of easy grades and goes up to 7b. The Chamonix Aiguilles provide some higher rock climbing, including L’Index, the SE ridge of which is graded IV.
Mountain biking is now becoming more popular in the valley. There are trails to suit all abilities, and those looking for more adventure can get out of the valley on to steep and technical routes.
There is excellent walking in the region, and a number of one-day walks can be stared in areas such as the Aiguille Rouges, Le Tour or the Chamonix Aiguilles. Cable cars can be used to make the walking significantly easier if required!
Details of my last trip to Chamonix, including photos and route descriptions can be found at Walking in Snowdonia - Alpine section. Further information on Chamonix and activities can be found at Chamonix.net.
Additional costs
The total cost of accommodation, flights and transfer from the airport is approximately £300. Additional costs are likely to include insurance. Alpine and Ski insurance from the BMC will cost £51.50 for a two week holiday in Europe in 2006. This should cover all the activities I have mentioned above. There is also the cost of cable cars. To get a return ticket to the Aiguille du Midi is approxilately £25, whilst a return to Brevent is £13.
Equipment
For mountaineering routes I would recommend (in addition to ice axes, crampons, other ice equipment and possibly some rock get) getting a bivvy bag and a warm sleeping bag. This will enable us to sleep out and get an early start for a route. The alternative is to use a mountain hut, which could be quite expensive.
Deadline
Since flight costs increase with time and accomodation gets booked up, please contact Andy a.s.a.p. if you are interested.
