Vallée Blanche & Col d'Entrèves
The famous Vallée Blanche off the beaten track.
With Agnès & Patrick.
The only good weather window during this gloomy Easter week, we decide to make the most of this beautiful day to immerse ourselves in a freshly dusted high-mountain setting. So off to Chamonix and the Aiguille du Midi for a descent of the Vallée Blanche off the beaten track.
Parking at 9am, the joys of Chamonix combined with the only weather window of the week: it's a traffic jam. We only reach the top of the Aiguille du Midi at... midday! The ridge is packed, but the two descent tracks mean we don't have to wait too long.
A first warm-up down to the foot of the Aiguilles du Diable. We admire the many rope teams today in all the classic gullies around. Conditions look good.
Once we have escaped the classic descent, we find peace and quiet and are left alone for the rest of the day. We even have the joy of making our own tracks, both up and down, in a dream setting!
We pass the crevassed area at the foot of the Pointe Adolphe Rey to enter the Combe Maudite. Silent, this place is completely untouched today. We loop round via the foot of the Tour Ronde, where two climbers are finishing the black ice of the north face. The majestic Italian side of Mont Blanc is edged with fine lace woven by the wind.
The gentle slope before the Col d'Entrèves is long and the altitude doesn't help. But with perseverance we all get there and enjoy a good contemplative break facing the Peuterey giants.
The day is well advanced and it is time to go down. A treat at this hour when the valley is deserted again. We dive greedily into beautiful powder. Magical moments!
The Vallée Blanche offers a beautiful line that is elegantly enhanced by a few extra steps into these wild corners. A really beautiful day stolen from the rain. Thank you!
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