A trip to the Aravis. A summer signpost to our future.
No snow, no ice, no crampons. Just rock.
No widening crevasses, no routes falling apart, no avalanches, no tumbling stones. Just solid, unfrozen rock.
Behind us the Mont Blanc Massif was closed. Too dangerous. Frozen mountains melting in the heat.
Ahead was a rocky ridge: the Arête à Marion in the Aravis range.
Tim the guide had steered us away from trying for something among the snowy peaks. No one was guiding up there. But, more than that, he was saying this was how things were going to be from now on. Summer climbing, in future, would have to be away from from traditional snow and ice climbs on the Massif.
We'd seen the evidence. James witnessed a huge chunk of ice falling from just below the Aiguille du Midi. Tonnes of ice and snow cascaded down near the Frendo Spur. It would be madness to go anywhere near there. Rockfall was intense on many of the major routes. The ice which glues the rock together was melting. The stark truth was that the warming climate was making traditional Alpine routes unsafe.
Climbers would have to look elsewhere. Guides would have to find new routes.
Mind you, this was a good one. The ridge takes you to the high point on the left (photo above). You park at the Col des Aravis on the D909 between Megève and La Clusaz. Then head South West, through a farm and up a long gully. Be prepared for a punishing trudge up and a worse one when you are weary and heading back down.
James on the upward trudge
And here we go. Nice limestone cracks heading up to the ridge. But you can spot (below) the long ridge stretching up to the right. There is quite a distance to cover.
Now you see James ahead and me following behind. What you come to is a long scramble over an arête which gets quite pointy in places. There are some deep breaks which you have clamber into and out of. We were moving together until the route became steeper close to the summit.
I'm the one with the red helmet. The first half of the ridge stretches along to the right behind me. We climbed up to it from the scree-covered gully beyond.
We are getting to the spicy section which feels a lot more exposed than the shot below suggests. The whole ridge has to be followed, along to the steep pinnacle in the foreground. You can choose to take some sections à cheval, or pinned to the side, or simply walking on top - comme tu veux.
The winter issue of Summit, the BMC magazine, has a feature running on the impact of the changing climate on the Alps. It doesn't make a pretty read and it reminded me to say something about our experience in the summer.
The mountains are changing, there is no going back and it is too late, even, to save them as they are. 94% of European glaciers will be gone by the end of the century. The BMC piece asks whether Alpine climbing has a future at all. It suggests the window for doing it will become very short. August will be impossible if it continues to be as hot as this year. There will be an emphasis on early summer and autumn.
Back to our rock-only expedition. Tim is leading a quite sharp section, below, which required a belay. The top is just beyond the next rise, as it always is...
Spare a thought for Alpine guides who are seeing a share of their traditional business disappear and are having to think hard about where to take people instead. It's a tricky time. Some are pushing people towards other sports during high summer; others, like Tim, are seeking out new and safer routes.
On the Arête à Marion the holds are are reassuring and plentiful. It is graded as an AD. One up-and-over early on is marked as a 5b, though, so best not to be too cocky. It's also worth noting that the route is quite long, so it is well worth having someone with you who knows the way and knows what they are doing.
The views are tremendous on a day like this, although I wouldn't want to be up here in wind and rain. James is taking a breather in one of the dips. What you can't see in the above shot is what he is looking at, which is the extraordinary vista of Mont Blanc. It's a sad thought that hardly anyone was climbing up there, at the end of August, when the area is usually infested with happy mountaineers. Anyway, here's the view we had across to Mont Blanc.
So, a stupendous view on one side beyond a long, sheer drop, but on the other a much gentler escape route. This is an excellent spot to unwrap your sandwiches and have a munch, along with a glug from your bottle. For me it was ham, mountain cheese and salad.
The escape route, down the stone-strewn descent and turning right at the col.
There were a couple more people behind us on the ridge, cooking themselves to a turn in the afternoon sun. You can see one of them in this shot, taken as we ground down our knee bones on the steep descent through scree. As ever, the climb was easier.
You know what? This little jaunt took us nearly eight hours from leaving the car to getting back to it. You could probably shave a little time off that, but allow plenty.
Thanks to Tim Blakemore (Insta: Tim_Blakemore_bmg) for a lovely excursion and to James for making it possible.
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